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options for conceal carry of small fixed blades
- Thread starter polak187
- Start date
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2004
- Messages
- 1,467
Anything with a kydex sheath is gold. here are my three favorite spots:
1. Inverted on the belt. You have to cover it with a draping garment of some sort. I use either a BDU top or a leather jacket.
2. Inverted, under the arm. make a lop of paracord, and twist it once so there is an X in the middle. Tighten it up so it fits comfortably over your shoulders, and tie the knife tightly under you non-dominant side armpit. You can get it very quickly with a cross-draw.
3. When wearing cargo pant, lashed to the ankle, either upright or invert. This is kinda hard to get to without practice.
When in a tee shirt, I like to carry a Shivworks Loco on the inside of my left arm, suspended just below the tip of the shoulder muscle on an elastic armband.
When using some of these carries, you have to pop the knife out of the sheath with you thumb.
1. Inverted on the belt. You have to cover it with a draping garment of some sort. I use either a BDU top or a leather jacket.
2. Inverted, under the arm. make a lop of paracord, and twist it once so there is an X in the middle. Tighten it up so it fits comfortably over your shoulders, and tie the knife tightly under you non-dominant side armpit. You can get it very quickly with a cross-draw.
3. When wearing cargo pant, lashed to the ankle, either upright or invert. This is kinda hard to get to without practice.
When in a tee shirt, I like to carry a Shivworks Loco on the inside of my left arm, suspended just below the tip of the shoulder muscle on an elastic armband.
When using some of these carries, you have to pop the knife out of the sheath with you thumb.
- Joined
- Nov 24, 1999
- Messages
- 4,981
Any preference on how its carried? At the request of a customer I've made a few kydex sheaths with stainless steel clips (boot clips) on them. The way the clips are designed makes them very secure, they sort of clamp down on whatever they're clipped to, won't slide up and down or shift too easily.
Anyhow, what I'm getting at is that with them you can make a sheath that can be slipped right down in your pocket with just the clip showing like a folder. Probably would work in a waistband too although I'd never carry a knife that way. Also could go in your boot.
Then there's tek-lock and multi position belt loops, where you can get the knife sitting just how you want on your belt so that it can be covered by an untucked shirt, jacket etc.
There's a ton of options out there, a few guys here specialize in custom kydex sheaths (Normark has given me lots of advice and makes top quality stuff, haven't seen him post in awhile now that I think about it though
) and can make just about anything you want for pretty reasonable prices.
Or if you want leather there are some custom makers here for that too (Wild Rose does fancy rigs of all sorts, Gary Graley does folders, Lifter4him does some real nice all around stuff)
So if you already have the knife you just have to figure out exactly how you want to carry it and I'm sure someone can fix you up with a rig for it.
Or if your looking for the knife too, give us some more details on what kind of knife you might want and how you want to carry it so we can give some more specific suggestions.
Edited to add that J Neilson's wife Tess should not be left out of the list of leather sheath makers.
Anyhow, what I'm getting at is that with them you can make a sheath that can be slipped right down in your pocket with just the clip showing like a folder. Probably would work in a waistband too although I'd never carry a knife that way. Also could go in your boot.
Then there's tek-lock and multi position belt loops, where you can get the knife sitting just how you want on your belt so that it can be covered by an untucked shirt, jacket etc.
There's a ton of options out there, a few guys here specialize in custom kydex sheaths (Normark has given me lots of advice and makes top quality stuff, haven't seen him post in awhile now that I think about it though
) and can make just about anything you want for pretty reasonable prices. Or if you want leather there are some custom makers here for that too (Wild Rose does fancy rigs of all sorts, Gary Graley does folders, Lifter4him does some real nice all around stuff)
So if you already have the knife you just have to figure out exactly how you want to carry it and I'm sure someone can fix you up with a rig for it.
Or if your looking for the knife too, give us some more details on what kind of knife you might want and how you want to carry it so we can give some more specific suggestions.
Edited to add that J Neilson's wife Tess should not be left out of the list of leather sheath makers.
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2002
- Messages
- 2,986
A quick trip to Bud Nealy's website to see his MCS sheath system of small fixed blade carry will give you a great starter tutorial. He covers most of the basics.
www.budnealyknifemaker.com
www.budnealyknifemaker.com
- Joined
- Feb 13, 2004
- Messages
- 787
You might check out the Graham knives they make some very nice knives with pocket sheaths.
http://www.grahamknives.com/
Danny
http://www.grahamknives.com/
Danny
blgoode
Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
- Joined
- Oct 3, 2003
- Messages
- 7,145
Inside Waistband/ Conceal Sheath
This is my standard pouch sheath converted to an inside waist band sheath. I have detachable belt loop lengths to accommodate different belts. The screw that holds the belt loop also allows for a pivot movement that adds to the comfort.
This turned out well.
The belt I have on is a 1 1/4" belt. You can see that the loop will accommodate a larger belt. The slack fit allows for the sheath not too bind up when bending or shifting around in a car.
Knife is my SideKick / 6.5" overall model.
In the last image you can see where a larger 1.5" or 1.75" belt would pull the slack in the loop down. I made a shorter loop for smaller belts.
Here is the smaller "regular" size belt loop
Its a much better fit but with a larger belt the other would be just fine.
Here is the completed package.
What I may do in the future is extend the sheath mouth on the skin side only to help you not get stuck when inserting the blade. Horizontal sheath would be a better way to go IMHO but the customer wanted this instead and it was surprisingly cumfy
Thanks for looking.
This is my standard pouch sheath converted to an inside waist band sheath. I have detachable belt loop lengths to accommodate different belts. The screw that holds the belt loop also allows for a pivot movement that adds to the comfort.
This turned out well.
The belt I have on is a 1 1/4" belt. You can see that the loop will accommodate a larger belt. The slack fit allows for the sheath not too bind up when bending or shifting around in a car.
Knife is my SideKick / 6.5" overall model.
In the last image you can see where a larger 1.5" or 1.75" belt would pull the slack in the loop down. I made a shorter loop for smaller belts.
Here is the smaller "regular" size belt loop
Its a much better fit but with a larger belt the other would be just fine.
Here is the completed package.
What I may do in the future is extend the sheath mouth on the skin side only to help you not get stuck when inserting the blade. Horizontal sheath would be a better way to go IMHO but the customer wanted this instead and it was surprisingly cumfy
Thanks for looking.
- Joined
- Nov 7, 1999
- Messages
- 6,651
Hey Guys...
Matt..
Thanks for the mention..
Still here,, however in the process of moving into a new house and new shop!OMG theres so much to be done...Anyway,, I'm still plugging away..
BGood..
ShWeet!
Now to answer some questions...
There are several ways to carry concealed..
For arguments sake,, I'll assume you mean IWB carry,,however won't rule out neck carry..
One of my favorite ways to carry is a static line,, either slipknotted around a belt loop or belt, then the sheath is tucked into the waist of the pants,,and a shirt keep it's from prying eyes..
Very comfortable way to carry,,which allows you to move it around,depending on the length of the static line... when the knife is drawn, the sheath comes out of the pants,(This is nice as it also protects you from being cut on the way out) then when the static line tightens up, the sheath pops off, leaving the knife "hopefully" in your hand..
This rig will also serve as a neck rig...
Another way to carry IWB is by using a G-clip.The knife tucks in your pants, and the front of the clip holds onto the belt. The only thing showing would be the front of the clip itself, which with dark clothing, wouldn't be easily picked up. On the draw,, this rig will stay put, however it will still allow for adjustments.
The bonus with this over static line carry,,is that it can easily be removed and tucked away without too much fuss.. The static line would have to be untied.
Metal boot clips are also an option in some cases,, however i've found that the force needed to remove a knife from a synthetic sheath is greater than the holding force of most clips other than a very select few which I've tried..
IWB loops made from rubberized material or nylon webbing also work,, however, don't serve much purpose,,as they tend to give slightly on the draw,and can actually hamper a quick draw,,by possibly twisting the knife in the sheath...
You either want a sheath that stays in place on the draw,, or one that completely comes out of the pants.. Partial movement of the sheath on draw can cause problems with some sheaths...
Not all sheaths are up to the task of concealments,,as they are usually either too wide, bulky or flimsy, or have straps,snaps and buckles that get in the way and make for an uncomfortable carry...However,, this is not always the case... A sheath designed to do this task would be a much better option in my opinion..
Please feel free to drop me a note if you have any questions,, I'd be willing to answer any questions you may have.
ericn@mnsi.net
ttyle
Eric....
Matt..
Thanks for the mention..
Still here,, however in the process of moving into a new house and new shop!OMG theres so much to be done...Anyway,, I'm still plugging away..
BGood..
ShWeet!
Now to answer some questions...
There are several ways to carry concealed..
For arguments sake,, I'll assume you mean IWB carry,,however won't rule out neck carry..
One of my favorite ways to carry is a static line,, either slipknotted around a belt loop or belt, then the sheath is tucked into the waist of the pants,,and a shirt keep it's from prying eyes..
Very comfortable way to carry,,which allows you to move it around,depending on the length of the static line... when the knife is drawn, the sheath comes out of the pants,(This is nice as it also protects you from being cut on the way out) then when the static line tightens up, the sheath pops off, leaving the knife "hopefully" in your hand..
This rig will also serve as a neck rig...
Another way to carry IWB is by using a G-clip.The knife tucks in your pants, and the front of the clip holds onto the belt. The only thing showing would be the front of the clip itself, which with dark clothing, wouldn't be easily picked up. On the draw,, this rig will stay put, however it will still allow for adjustments.
The bonus with this over static line carry,,is that it can easily be removed and tucked away without too much fuss.. The static line would have to be untied.
Metal boot clips are also an option in some cases,, however i've found that the force needed to remove a knife from a synthetic sheath is greater than the holding force of most clips other than a very select few which I've tried..
IWB loops made from rubberized material or nylon webbing also work,, however, don't serve much purpose,,as they tend to give slightly on the draw,and can actually hamper a quick draw,,by possibly twisting the knife in the sheath...
You either want a sheath that stays in place on the draw,, or one that completely comes out of the pants.. Partial movement of the sheath on draw can cause problems with some sheaths...
Not all sheaths are up to the task of concealments,,as they are usually either too wide, bulky or flimsy, or have straps,snaps and buckles that get in the way and make for an uncomfortable carry...However,, this is not always the case... A sheath designed to do this task would be a much better option in my opinion..
Please feel free to drop me a note if you have any questions,, I'd be willing to answer any questions you may have.
ericn@mnsi.net
ttyle
Eric....
- Joined
- May 3, 2002
- Messages
- 6,192
I carry a Tom Krein TK-4 every day. I set up the tek-lok so the knife rides up high. I put it so the sheath is between the belt and my pants with just the tek-lok clip showing on the outside. I just wear it with my shirt pulled over it. Nobody really notices the tek-lok clip attached to the belt and if they do they don't know what it is.
Make sure you get a COMFORTABLE knife to wear next to your skin. I have a cordwrapped one that really hurts when it rubs against me and I have a skeletonized knife that pinches. Your best bet is a handle covered with smooth micarta with no sharp edges.
Make sure you get a COMFORTABLE knife to wear next to your skin. I have a cordwrapped one that really hurts when it rubs against me and I have a skeletonized knife that pinches. Your best bet is a handle covered with smooth micarta with no sharp edges.