Help needed with HEST sheath

M

mbassoc2003

Joined
Jun 28, 2009
Messages
79
I've just received my new HEST. Unnumbered edition sans book. It's my first HEST. The kydex sheath seems to have two tightnesses for retaining the knife. Upper holes where the knife is too loose to be carried and retained if you were to say stumble of fall, and lower holes where the knife cannot be removed from the sheath even when you loosen the screws and use brute force.

Does anyone else have this problem with the HEST sheath?
Is my sheath juast badly made, or are they all like this?
Are there any aftermarket sheaths available for the HEST?
If this is normal, does anyone know if RAT intend to correct the problem, or is that the way the designer intended it to be?

Finally, is this why people sell on the knife after they receive it? Having been totally bowled over by the excellence and quality of the Izula, and bought two of that particular blade, The sheath on the Dpx HEST really lets the company down. The mass production version (as opposed to the limited numbered edition) is a great little knife. The quality seems to be as good as the Izula, the handle scales are just superb. There are little black nylon inserts between the handle slabs as opposed to micarta ones on the mass production version. But the sheath I received (and I'm assuming it's just a one off production error) is really bad quality. It either doesn't retain the blade, or locks it in permanently.

At the moment I have to carry it locked in there along with a screwdriver for when I want to draw it out. Maybe if I could find wingnuts small enough I might have a workaround.

Wookie - If you decide to do a HEST sheath, I'd be most interested. Maybe other people here with the same issue will be up for one too.
 
From th 2 hests i have, no issue with sheaths. Remember use your thumb to push the knife out, as for the izula. I really their kydex sheath so it might a singular bad one. Just a note the limited series hest are the same as the mass production one just the serial engraving differs
 
Maybe you are over-tightening the screw when it's in the top hole?
 
Tightening has to be done with the tip of the fingers over tightening is very easy on th sheaths
 
mbassoc2003 said:
There are little black nylon inserts between the handle slabs as opposed to micarta ones on the mass production version.
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Inaccurate. Unless of course you were referring to something else. #105 with Little Black Nylon inserts. I'd venture to say both production runs will have these little black positioning groms:
3926440752_19b3e596e7.jpg


If your screws are in these positions and you're still having trouble then the kydex was probably molded wrong... I'd lobby for a replacement. Reference Picture:
3925643897_a0f64bcb08.jpg
 
Okay. Here's what I did.

I took out all the screws and then cut myself a piece of 2mm thick rubber sheet about a quarter inch wide and inch long. I inserted it into the open side between the leaves overing the first two screw holes. Then I used a scalpal to make the hole cutout and put the screws back in. This forces the gap in the kydex at the lower front corner to about 1mm wide. I kept the remainder of the screws loose and filled the remaining gap along the leading edge with heat bun glue. Tidied up with a scalpal blade, and now I have a tight and well sealed kydex sheath which required the thumb to pull the blade from the sheath much like the Izula. I'm confident that there isn't a chance the blade will fall from the sheath, but with the factory default on my sheath, even with the screws tightened with a screwdriver, if you jumped up and down the blade would disengage.

My home mod works, but shouldn't have been necessary. Now to either fill the handle or wrap it in 550. Can't wait to field test this baby.
 
mbassoc2003 said:
My home mod works, but shouldn't have been necessary.
Click to expand...

I agree, our quality flat sucks! :D

You should have just emailed us and we would have sent you a new sheath. Pretty simple. In fact I would rather you do that now and let us see what is wrong with the one you have because you seem to have gotten the only one like this.

I have a HEST here that I tried and if you tighten the screw too tight it locks up pretty tight. A small rubber washer on under the screw head works pretty good also since it will hold the screw with it being slightly over finger tight.
 
Just re-read your original post. Wow, what insinuations. I didn't know people were selling their HESTs after receiving them. Appreciate the news! That should slow down all these back orders we have pending since so many second-hand models are now available.
 
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Every knife is popped in and out at the factory. Not sure what the problem with mbassoc2003's sheath is but this is a first. We don't expect anyone to make home mods to fix an issue since they should get a first-quality product to start with. Simply email us or call me (I have posted my cell # numerous times) and we will send out a new part if there is a problem. Now we have insinuations from mbassoc2003 that people may be selling their HEST because of poor sheath design and this sheath "lets the company down". Maybe it's just me but that's a whole lot of words to type just to ask a question about a sheath being too tight.

I remember another thread by mbassoc2003 that started the same way. I suppose now we will rehash the compass issue in the survival kits, as well. Bottom line, if you have an issue, simple email or call us. Or simply post up the issue but leave insinuations behind. There is never a need to make insinuations about the product as a whole based solely on your single issue. If you got a screwed up sheath, we will replace (at our cost) but never come on here and insinuate that since your sheath is screwed up their is a mass following of people dumping their knives. That's not fair,and you know it's not fair. We welcome feedback. We welcome criticism. In fact, I just posted last night about a HEST failure. We welcome anyone who comes on here and states fact, good or bad. If you feel your sheath or knife junk then make that statement and we will back your right to do so. But making unfounded insinuations is wrong.
 
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I have a pair of HEST and no issues at all with the sheath, scales or anything ,1st I have heard of this issue as well
 
Yeah what negativity! You posted the thread at twenty after eight this morning and fixed it yourself at Noon... Give us a chance to offer you some Input, afterall that's partly why we're all here doing this, to help and be helped, it's a fellowship, and we're fortunate enough that the fine men who make these knives are right here interacting with us, the buyers/users/reasons-RAT-is-in-business in the first place...

Regarding the turnaround selling of these HESTs, can anyone even substantiate this? I think not... I highly doubt anyone is putting their numbered pieces on ebay or w/e and selling at a profit... And Basso's isn't a limited production version anyway... Gentlemen, I do not like this, I don't like it one bit.... You can see above, I advised our friend to Lobby for a replacement, as I know from exchanges on this forum that RAT Cutlery are as Customer Friendly as a Christian Bookstore.

I'm sorry this happened today. I wish you all the best.
 
As a side note, the only difference between the production version and the limited edition version is a serial number so I'm not even sure where the differences are when he makes this statement: "The mass production version (as opposed to the limited numbered edition) is a great little knife." Why is the LE version so much worse than the production version as he implies? Not real sure what the agenda is here. We appreciate every user to this forum. We appreciate those who don't like our knives as much as those who do. We appreciate the op's personal opinion on our knives, good and bad. We do NOT appreciate insinuations. All we ask is someone just not beat around the bush and make sense in their posts. I personally HATE our RC-5 knife. I think it's nothing more than a oversized prybar and I'd much rather have a 5 dollar tramontina machete than that thing. But there are a lot of folks that like the RC-5. Does that make them wrong? No. Did I insinuate in my statement that since I don't like it that others are probably selling theirs? No. This whole thread is confusing to me.
 
It's OK jeff I love the Rc-5 enough for the both of us. I can share my Rc-5 love!
PS where can one get a 5 dollar tramontina machete? their 14 inch bolo style is straight up secks.
 
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Just wanted to point out something about the sheath and the HEST, you do not need a screwdriver to loosen and tighten the sheath, while playing around with mine I used the prybar as a screwdriver so even if you have an issue with the sheath it doesn't mean you have to carry a screwdriver with ya :)
 
I believe mbassoc2003 is from another country maybe he worded his statement wrong :D but after I reviewed the compass thread again maybe not :confused: ;)
 
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