Kydex belt loop designs...

[aarongough]

Hey all!
I'm quite happy with the construction of my Kydex sheaths, except for the belt loop designs. Previously I had made my own belt loops that attached via a chicago screw like so:

(note the photo only shows one loop, as it was the photo which showed the loops the best, there would be 2 supplied)

I wasn't happy with this, so yesterday I tried a tek-lock as a replacement. Basically the tek-lock is attached to a sub-plate of kydex, which is in turn attached to the sheath using chicago screws.

I didn't mold in any space between the sub-plate and the sheath however and I found that the tek-lock screws pushed against the sheath and made the blade bind. I'm sure this can be fixed by molding in some space, but it still seems a little less than ideal to me.

Would anyone care to make any recommendations for belt attachment methods that they're happy with, either on their own knives or those of others? Photos would be a great help!

This is what my sheaths currently look like without any belt loop system attached:

Thanks guys!
-Aaron

 

[Omega Leather Works]

It would look far better if it were on *my* belt.



Seriously though, the tek that I use to have had rubber grommets as spacers, but it could have been an old design. I'll see if I still have some. Anyway, I'd prefer your design for IWB carry I think. For outside, have you looked at the Spyderco G-Clip?

 

[rwn2000]

I am far from a master kydex bender, but I have run into the same problem with the knife binding in the sheath after i attach the belt loop, whether it is a Tek-Lok or a kydex belt loop that I made. I usually just hit the back of the sheath with a heat gun after tightening the Chicago screws on the belt loop until it loosens up a little. I think you can order the Tek-Loks with or without the mounting hardware, but even with teh rubber grommets, you might have to tweak the sheath fit after attaching the Tek-Lok.

randy

 

[Everglade Blade]

I know exactly the problem your talking about, bad I did the same thing as rwn2000. It seemed to fix the problem. Hope this helps.

 

[Bfusmc03117]

I ran into a similar problem.
I ended up heating up the kydex and after I molded one side of the knife I took that sheet when it was cooled and put a heat gun on the area where the middle of the blade would contact it.
Once it became flexible I pressed a washer the same size as those Chicago screws onto the soft kydex this forming a raised area the size of the washer on the outside of the kydex .
Then drilled a hole the same size as a rivet and put a rivet in that hole.
Then putting a loop either soft loop or hard kydex loop and attaching it with a Chicago screw to the rivet I had installed.
Now once the sheath is fully assembled the knife can slide in and out of the sheath with good retention and the blade will not hit the screw for the loop because it is on the raised space created by the washer. I can post pics in a little. Not to mention it's awesome to have the loop in the middle of the blade. Hope this helps

 

[kdstrick]

Personally, I've gone to leather for the belt loops. They have a flexability that kydex cannot offer and tend to move with your body, making the sheath more comfortable. Hope this helps...

.

 

[aarongough]

It would look far better if it were on *my* belt.



Seriously though, the tek that I use to have had rubber grommets as spacers, but it could have been an old design. I'll see if I still have some. Anyway, I'd prefer your design for IWB carry I think. For outside, have you looked at the Spyderco G-Clip?

I hadn't seen the g-clip, looks interesting! I tried something similar and had it fail in testing (fell off the belt), but spyderco don't tend to make bad products, so it's probably worth a look!

 

[aarongough]

Personally, I've gone to leather for the belt loops. They have a flexability that kydex cannot offer and tend to move with your body, making the sheath more comfortable. Hope this helps...

.

I will admit that going with leather is very tempting. I've also looked at nylon webbing but was unable to find anything that was stiff enough... I'm staying away from leather because I want my sheaths to be zero maintenance, but the nylon might still be an option...

 

[aarongough]

I ran into a similar problem.
I ended up heating up the kydex and after I molded one side of the knife I took that sheet when it was cooled and put a heat gun on the area where the middle of the blade would contact it.
Once it became flexible I pressed a washer the same size as those Chicago screws onto the soft kydex this forming a raised area the size of the washer on the outside of the kydex .
Then drilled a hole the same size as a rivet and put a rivet in that hole.
Then putting a loop either soft loop or hard kydex loop and attaching it with a Chicago screw to the rivet I had installed.
Now once the sheath is fully assembled the knife can slide in and out of the sheath with good retention and the blade will not hit the screw for the loop because it is on the raised space created by the washer. I can post pics in a little. Not to mention it's awesome to have the loop in the middle of the blade. Hope this helps

Cool method! I like that it removes the need for a sub-plate! I will have to give that a shot at some point!

 

[aarongough]

I am far from a master kydex bender, but I have run into the same problem with the knife binding in the sheath after i attach the belt loop, whether it is a Tek-Lok or a kydex belt loop that I made. I usually just hit the back of the sheath with a heat gun after tightening the Chicago screws on the belt loop until it loosens up a little. I think you can order the Tek-Loks with or without the mounting hardware, but even with teh rubber grommets, you might have to tweak the sheath fit after attaching the Tek-Lok.

randy

Yeah I'm leaning toward trying your suggestion of spacers. Either that or I will make a little template for moulding in some extra space behind the sub-plate... I just wasn't sure whether there was some fancy trick that I was missing with all of this...

 

[Omega Leather Works]

Aaron, in the realm of synthetic (nylon I believe) fabric, take a look at Cordura. 1000 denier may be just what you want. I have some motorcycle gear made from it and it's very tough stuff.

Btw, thank you so much for your YT channel. I subed today and you have a knack for explaining things very well.

 

[aarongough]

Aaron, in the realm of synthetic (nylon I believe) fabric, take a look at Cordura. 1000 denier may be just what you want. I have some motorcycle gear made from it and it's very tough stuff.

Btw, thank you so much for your YT channel. I subed today and you have a knack for explaining things very well.

Thanks mate, I'll have a look for that! I think for standard belt carry a loop of webbing makes a lot of sense, for MOLLE gear the sheath itself actually mount directly using zip ties or 550 cord... I tried some other types of clip today and I can't say I'm especially enamoured with any of them.

I really like the sheath from the Gerber LMF II (even though I hate the knife)... Something like that but more compact would be close to ideal I think.

 

[kdstrick]

I will admit that going with leather is very tempting. I've also looked at nylon webbing but was unable to find anything that was stiff enough... I'm staying away from leather because I want my sheaths to be zero maintenance, but the nylon might still be an option...

Yeah, the problem with leather is the durability when the sheath may be used in a very humid or wet environment.

Heavy nylon webbing works great too. My kayak sheath's belt loop is constructed of the type of nylon webbing you may see in a dog collar or leash, but 1.5" instead of the 1". Like leather it gives plenty of flex, but it impervious to the elements like kydex. It's a good fit in that regard.

My preference is to sew or superglue 2 strips together back to back to add some ridgidity, it works fantastic.

For visual purposes, here is an example I found on ebay... http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-5-100-YDS...678?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35c143344e

I think this may be a good solution for you...



.

 

[james terrio]

I'm staying away from leather because I want my sheaths to be zero maintenance, but the nylon might still be an option...

I agree, adding leather to a basically plastic sheath kind of defeats the whole point. Likewise, a couple extra steps to make tek-loc or similar work sounds like, well extra work At that point I think I'd just stick with a nice leather sheath. (easy for me to say since my wife does the stitching for me...)

I like the nylon strapping ideas you folks are talking about, though.

 

[kdstrick]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Your wife does your stitching for you! I bet she's a good cook, too. Some guys have all the luck! :thumbup:

I found a pic of the sheath I was referring to earlier... I mentioned Kayaking, but it serves as a fine hunting rig too...Here is a shot:

.

 

[aarongough]

Yeah, the problem with leather is the durability when the sheath may be used in a very humid or wet environment.

Heavy nylon webbing works great too. My kayak sheath's belt loop is constructed of the type of nylon webbing you may see in a dog collar or leash, but 1.5" instead of the 1". Like leather it gives plenty of flex, but it impervious to the elements like kydex. It's a good fit in that regard.

My preference is to sew or superglue 2 strips together back to back to add some ridgidity, it works fantastic.

For visual purposes, here is an example I found on ebay... http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-5-100-YDS...678?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35c143344e

I think this may be a good solution for you...



.

Agreed about the leather, which is why I shied away from using it. I bought some webbing previously that was much too supple, the knife/sheath would just sag outward when it was on your belt. Doubling up the webbing might be an option.

In previous research I also found this: http://www.strapworks.com/product_p/scuba178.htm

That stuff is 0.09" thick... Might be a good thing to try out, though it's a shame it only comes in black and OD! I didn't buy it previously for reasons I cannot remember. I think I'll have to buy some and try it though.

I agree, adding leather to a basically plastic sheath kind of defeats the whole point. Likewise, a couple extra steps to make tek-loc or similar work sounds like, well extra work At that point I think I'd just stick with a nice leather sheath. (easy for me to say since my wife does the stitching for me...)

I like the nylon strapping ideas you folks are talking about, though.

I really need to learn to make leather sheaths at some point. I don't think they're the right fit for my Resolute knives, but when I make some fancier one-offs leather will be the order of the day for sure!

 

[theHobbyist]

I had a similar issue with my IWB belt clips. what I do now is I'll form my clip while its on the sheath, for spacing I use a piece of scrap leather, make sure you leave a good bit of material where your screw hole will be, that area will get a bit sloppy when you press it. the eyelet provides a handy marker as to where you should drill.

My outside the waisteband stuff I use the spyderco g-clip... but others have posted that...

 

[aarongough]

I had a similar issue with my IWB belt clips. what I do now is I'll form my clip while its on the sheath, for spacing I use a piece of scrap leather, make sure you leave a good bit of material where your screw hole will be, that area will get a bit sloppy when you press it. the eyelet provides a handy marker as to where you should drill.

My outside the waisteband stuff I use the spyderco g-clip... but others have posted that...

Do you like the g-clip? Ever had it come off a belt while in use?

 

[james terrio]

^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Your wife does your stitching for you! I bet she's a good cook, too. Some guys have all the luck! :thumbup:

It's true, I am a very lucky man. I didn't get this fat by accident

I really need to learn to make leather sheaths at some point. I don't think they're the right fit for my Resolute knives, but when I make some fancier one-offs leather will be the order of the day for sure!

It's worth knowing how to do. Some people just plain prefer leather, and I'm one of them. But there's no question that low-maintenence kydex is hugely popular, so I am following this thread with interest. :thumbup:

What I'm really intrigued by, is that many of the ideas you folks are discussing seem to lend themselves well to sheaths that could be very versatile for different methods of carry without much extra work... IWB, "normal", horizontal, left- or right-handed carry, MOLLE-compatible... I like that. Options are good :thumbup:

 

[aarongough]

It's true, I am a very lucky man. I didn't get this fat by accident



It's worth knowing how to do. Some people just plain prefer leather, and I'm one of them. But there's no question that low-maintenence kydex is hugely popular, so I am following this thread with interest. :thumbup:

What I'm really intrigued by, is that many of the ideas you folks are discussing seem to lend themselves well to sheaths that could be very versatile for different methods of carry without much extra work... IWB, "normal", horizontal, left- or right-handed carry, MOLLE-compatible... I like that. Options are good :thumbup:

Agreed about the options! I'll have to get some photos of my sheaths attached to MOLLE webbing.

I've got a knife coming up that will need a leather sheath for sure. Should be a fun learning project...