specifically kydex.
i bought a gerber guardian back-up and was thoroughly dissapointed with the sheath, i thought to myself a complete retard could make a better sheath even me :que lightbulb in brain:
the more i thought about it the more appealing the thought became. i have always like working with my hands.
the only problems are that i live in an army barracks and thus have no power tools and i have no idea what im doing. where could i buy and what supplies would i need in order to start the process of making my own sheaths.
thank for any help anybody can render me:thumbup:
I ran into the same problem that you did; a nice knife and lousy sheath!
Bare bones leather working? A new cheap razor box cutter knife, a wooden work top to cut and nail into, a small package of
brass finishing nails and a small tack hammer, a common kitchen fork, some heavy duty sewing thread such as carpet thread, needles, and some leather. All your work can be done setting the wooden work top on a stool between your legs while you sit on your bunk.
Plan out your sheath on paper, leaving room for the stitching and planing for the carry system you want. If you're going to have attached loops on the back of the sheath you'll want to sew them on before you put the front and back together.
Cut your leather pieces with the razor box cutter. Use a pencil to scribe a line around the leather for stitching. Slightly dampen the leather and use the fork to imprint spacing holes into the leather for the stitching. Put the pieces together and use the brass nails (
do NOT use steel nails as they will blacken the leather,) to punch holes for the stitching. Remember to attach the belt loops and tie down before assembling the front and back!! Mark and punch the holes for that just as for the main assembly.
Nail all around the sheath being sure to go through all the leather an into the board. Being that the Guardian is a double edged blade it would be wise to add a spline all around the sheath so the edge doesn't cut the stitching.
Remove the nails, double the sewing thread (or use leather sewing cord if you can get it,) and begin sewing in the SECOND hole, coming back to the first and then re-entering the second to give extra strength with the back stich, then continue sewing from front, back, front, back, etc... When you reach the opposite end, give the first two holes a double stitch then come BACK with your thread from the opposite sides of each hole, so the entire sheath has all the holes with a double lacing.
When you're finished with the stitching, sand down the edges of the leather and give them a good helping of boot polish, really rubbing the stuff into the leather to seal it, then give the entire sheath a coat of wax too.
Done this way, you should have a good, dependable sheath for the Guardian in less than 3-4 hours. Here are a couple of other ideas for attachments;
instead of belt loops sewn onto the sheath use contact cement to glue on hook-side Velcro onto the back of the sheath. Then use another piece of leather with the loop-side glued onto it with your belt loops. You can make two or three different ones; horizontal carry, vertical carry, boot strap carry, etc. You put the mount where you want to carry, then just slap the sheath onto the mount at any angle that is comfortable for you. If you use heavy duty Velcro, this makes a very dependable, adjustable carry system similar to the attachment system of the old original Gerber Guardian.
Stitchawl
