Recommendation? Leather sheath?

[MarkSD]

So I’m still new to knife making but I feel as though my knives are getting close to deserve a sheath and not just hanging on a nail. I was looking into making leather sheaths and it seems to be a whole other hobby on its own. Kydex seems to be a good easier option but I’m not sure. I like both sheaths I feel they both have their pros and cons but for a beginner what would you recommend?

 

[John Cahoon]

Subforum sheaths and such is chock full of sheathy goodness

 

[Langadune]

I'd say it comes down to the amount of time you're willing to put into it. I do both, Kydex can be quicker but has its own challenges. I like the look of leather but it takes more time and there's a definite art to it. You can "whip out" a simple Kydex sheath in relatively short order, giving you more time with your knives, but sometimes Kydex doesn't match the style of knife. Also, I sometimes worry that Kydex might scratch a finely finished kitchen knife, but I haven't really explored that much.

 

[Horsewright]

I'm a leather guy. It takes practice just like knife making. The more ya do it the better and quicker ya get at it. Two pancake sheaths for crossdraw right hand carry, (to be carried above the left front pocket.) The plain one took 20 minutes of hands on time, (not counting drying time, glue drying time, oil setting etc), just time I actually was doing something with it, from side of leather on the cutting table, to finished sheath. The flower carved one 40 minutes hands on time. Once a guy has the hang of it, it doesn't take all that long.

Granted I've been doing this along time. But say it takes ya three times as long as me. That's still only an hour.

As mentioned there is a ton of help over in Sheaths and Such and not just for leather. Lots of Kydex guys there too.

 

[John Cahoon]

Man Dave that's fast. It would take me about 4 hours and would look about 20% that good. But that's just inspiring. For the OP, there's tons of tutorials and very helpful people over there. Dave Horsewright above is one of the small handful of bestest and helpfullest.

 

[Horsewright]

Thanks JW. It really is just practice. Just like anything else. I get lots. What a batch of sheaths around here looks like John Cahoon .

 

[Jay Griesser]

I'm a leather guy. It takes practice just like knife making. The more ya do it the better and quicker ya get at it. Two pancake sheaths for crossdraw right hand carry, (to be carried above the left front pocket.) The plain one took 20 minutes of hands on time, (not counting drying time, glue drying time, oil setting etc), just time I actually was doing something with it, from side of leather on the cutting table, to finished sheath. The flower carved one 40 minutes hands on time. Once a guy has the hang of it, it doesn't take all that long.

Granted I've been doing this along time. But say it takes ya three times as long as me. That's still only an hour.

As mentioned there is a ton of help over in Sheaths and Such and not just for leather. Lots of Kydex guys there too.

 

[Jay Griesser]

Do you hand stitch or machine. If it is a machine what recommendations do you have. Thanks. It is great work,
Jay

 

[Horsewright]

I do machine stitch for the last 25 or so years. Before that I did hand stitch. The machine I would go buy today without a doubt for sheath work would be a Cobra 4 from the Leather Sewing Machine Co.