How long until the detent comes loose on a wood scaled fixed w/ kydex?

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n7titan

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Jun 14, 2014
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A bit ago I replaced my esee4 scales with my own wooden ones, after using it a bit I notice the kydex leaves some black rub marks on the wood. The birch wood also shows some slight sheen, indicating it's been compressed a little. (kind of like burnishing? is that the term?)
It been dropped once on concrete tip up in the sheath, now there's a nice flat on the back end of the wood. It compressed maybe 1/2cm or so. Not much for a hard drop and luckily the sheath saved the blade.

So does wood/birch have a point where it doesn't compress anymore and will stay true to form? I know I can heat up the kydex and reshape that also.
Is too much sheath detent a common problem with wood scales?
 
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Birch should be pretty stable. I have a birch handle on a decades-old leuku and the shrinkage has been negligible. Being a lighter wood, birch is going to show marks. Most woods will dent if dropped on a hard surface. Is the wood varnished/coated or raw? A good varnish or polycoat might help protect it.

Kydex is going to fit tight. Possibly tight enough to put some minor surface marks or blemishes on wood when examined closely. It will put scratches on blades too. I prefer a sheath that holds the knife a little deep, esp. with Kydex. If everything still works I wouldn't worry about some new 'marks' on the knife or sheath. That's going to happen....

Just want to be sure you aren't worried over nothing here. See what others have to say....
 
The marks don't bother me, I'm even up to reforming the kydex every once in a while.

I just wanted to know how it's supposed to behave under normal use.

....that and I want to play with it often but I was afraid of detent wear. Kind of like how some people worry about lock-wear when they flick em too often. Metal on metal doesn't worry me but I wasn't too sure how kydex on birch would play out.

I like to have the sheath on tight enough that only real hard shaking will pop the knife out, I figured it would probably wear over time.
 
I like my Kydex to fit extremely tight too. It'll probably make some minor marks over time, establish a rub line or two. I wouldn't worry about the detent wearing. I haven't heard of many Kydex sheaths wearing out over time although I suppose it happens.

A few knives just work better for carry with Kydex (especially some of my small ones) but I still prefer leather...it doesn't scratch a finish, break or make noise.
 
I'll eventually get a leather, I made the scales with using the stock kydex in mind because I was being cheap.

Oh and the birch is only finished with danish oil. I chose not to use a varnish or lacquer because I don't like the plastic-y feel.
 
I have some kydex sheaths that are over 10 years old. No lessening of the retention at all. Even on knives with wood handles.

You shouldn't have to reform or mess with the sheath at all - unless it's so loose the knife just falls out, or so tight you can't get the knife in. It doesn't sound like that is the case here. I would just use it and see what happens... I bet you won't have to mess with it at all , and it should give you years and years of trouble free service.
 
Good to hear, when I began shaping the scales I actually had a 2 year life span in mind because I started off on roughly cut pieces and didn't think it would come out nicely. And it was my first attempt, but it did and I love it. Although birch doesn't have much of a grain to show.

In fact the grain became more pronounced after using it a bit and having dirt fill in the pores. The dirt is more apparent than the bare birch itself! :rolleyes:
I really like the light colored wood on black blade though, any suggestions for future replacements?
 
Hmmmmm..... I love goncalo alves, maple burl, cocobolo (has a really nice red color to it), bocote, kingwood, there are tons of different types of wood out there. You're really only limited by what you can imagine you would like. It's sort of hard to get a feel for what different types of handle materials look like actually on the knife. (When they are not ON the knife)

You might want to look at a lot of samples first and try to get a good idea of what type of wood you'd like to try. There is a place here in Houston that sells wood blocks specifically for knife handles. You can even get sets that are matched very closely so both scales look similar (if that matters to you). I just can't remember the exact name of the place right now.

Best of luck on whatever you choose. It should be a fun project! Post pics if you can.
 
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