New pants for BATAC

[foxyrick]

I finally finished making a 'survival sheath' for my BATAC. It's made from a laptop bag that had a cellphone pouch on the front. I cut out that panel, made a liner from a semi-rigid mousemat and hanger from 1.5" webbing. The whole thing is glued (acrylic resin and Evo Serious Glue) and stitched with 18/3 Linen thread. The only thing I might do next is to replace the velcro closure on the pouch with some press-studs; but I need to order more.

Now I need to build a PSK in it. I suppose it keeps me quiet while waiting for my NWA knife.

Rick.

 

[jll346]

Nice job!!!

 

[RokJok]

Very nicely done!! Looks real professional. Besides the ingenuity of finding/using an already-made pouch instead of reinventing the wheel making your own, I like that you also included a tie-down loop at the bottom. That should serve well to keep it from flopping around unnecessarily.

Any chance for a picture of the back of the sheath?

Thank you for sharing the shots with us.

 

[Random04]

Wow:thumbup: amazing job. Looks great and really useful.

RokJok's got a good suggestion. Some brass grommet would make reinforce the webbing for the tie downs.

 

[foxyrick]

Thanks for the great comments. This is the first sheath I've made.

Here's some pic's of the back. The back isn't as tidy as the front; there's some acrylic resin leakage in the odd place at the seams. The camera flash makes it look worse though, I think the stuff is fluorescing! I used a lot of resin, basically covering the whole of the back liner with it as the final seam was difficult to stitch effectively. Unfortunately I forgot that the more resin is mixed, the hotter it gets and the quicker it sets. I had to move very quickly and it got a little scruffy.

The belt and leg loop (which fits a 1" webbing through it) are either end of the same 1.5" webbing, the loops glued and stitched for double strength. It passes under the cordura that wraps around the back. That webbing was the laptop case's carry strap. The only bought material was the 1" webbing for the knife fastening loop and the press-stud.

The fastening loop is doubled over and stitched along the edges so that the visible ends are folded loops. The seam is underneath. The press-stud is between these layers so is not visible, except as a slight bulge under the webbing if you look closely at the pictures.

The top of the liner, just inside the band at the top, is shaped to exactly fit the shape of the BATAC's handle. It is lined along the top edge with leather for cushioning between the handle and the plastic liner. The nylon/cordura material is waterproof, being backed with rubber.

Anyway, here's the pics:

Cheers,
Rick.

 

[SpookyPistolero]

That is one really impressive setup. Very useful and still hugely economical. Good job! Using synthetics like that to make a sheath is something I've not yet ventured into. Did you use anything other than the acrylic resin to bind it? Or did you have to sew also?

Can't wait to see some action shots with the PSK!

 

[foxyrick]

That is one really impressive setup. Very useful and still hugely economical. Good job! Using synthetics like that to make a sheath is something I've not yet ventured into. Did you use anything other than the acrylic resin to bind it? Or did you have to sew also?

Can't wait to see some action shots with the PSK!

The pouch was part of the front panel of the laptop bag. I unpicked the front panel and cut it so that the pouch made the front of the sheath and there was enough material to wrap around the sides and back.

The cordura is mainly glued with resin to the liner. I had intended stitching it at the back but the resin is rock-solid so no need. The webbing is stitched to form the loops at the right places and the stitching is sealed with resin.

I'm half way through a leather sheath for my Busse Steel Heart, but I might get sidetracked into making another of these for it instead. I've just found another old laptop bag with a similar, but longer, pouch. Perfect for the SH.

Rick.