Pouch Sheathes for Folders

H

HondaScoot

Joined
Mar 27, 2014
Messages
13
My friend / co-worker for twenty years was complaining that his Swiss Army Knife was wearing out the front of his pants. IT WAS. It's a big knife and falls horizontal in the front pocket and has worn thin spots in most all of his pants.
Being a long time admirer of leather work, I promised to make him a sheath. Having never worked with real leather, it was a lot harder than I thought.

ssaknife.jpg


Then I wanted one for my Remington Guide Knife.

remingtonguideknife.jpg


I leaked some blood making both of these. Those needles are really sharp.
I now have major respect for this craft!
 
Very nice! I was watching a video on how to get basket weave lined up so that it runs straight up and down when running them diagonal if that makes sense. I like the work on yours though.

Did you make those patterns yourself? If so I'm jealous.

If you buy harness needles, they aren't very sharp. They aren't meant to penetrate the leather (or thread), so they are left purposefully dull.

I bet your buddy is really happy. :)
 
Good looking leather there! :) And ya, I feel your pain on the needles, I've driven more than a few into a finger or thumb. Hurts like a son of a gun.

Something tells me you have some drafting experience, I spent some time on the stool in High School and College. Both before CAD. But it taught me so much for design in both my art and leather work. :)
 
I used a stamp for the basket weave and laid out light pencil lines with a ruler. They are kinda sorta lined up but nowhere near perfect.

The sewing was with a Tandy awl with the spool supported in the contraption. It worked fine. The stitch spacing was marked with a common table fork.

He wears that sheath everyday.

Edit: Thanks for the kind words on my first day on this forum!

Leatherman, I have found that if I have no defined plan, the project always ends badly. So it gets drawn up with any mistakes easily resolved with an eraser.

When I'm asked what I do for a living my standard reply "I draw pictures and talk on the phone". Oh how I wish it was all that easy!
 
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No no, sorry, I didn't mean to imply that they weren't perfect.

Hopefully this picture shows what I mean by lined up. There are plenty of examples layed out just like yours. Neither are right, or wrong. Just different. :)

itm


Edit- rats. Gotta find another pic.

Let's try this.

ic
 
I did not take it as criticism. This was my first attempt at leather craft.

I like some type of pattern. I figured that stamping in a basket weave would be easier than cutting in a design and shading it.
Here is what I learned:
  • If the leather is to wet, the design goes deep into the leather and spreads it along with the design unless you hammer softer
  • If the leather is to dry, the design does not go deep enough into the leather unless you hammer harder
  • The leather drys a lot more quickly than anticipated and changes the required force of the hammer
  • Getting good stamp alignment in a pattern is tough because the stamp is face down when you position and hit it
  • The stamp must be hit squarely
  • A second hit on the same spot looks different
  • Watch the borders so the pattern stays within them

Who knew there would be all that going on? :eek:

It went easier on the second sheath, so practice builds skill level.
 
Easier, but never easy. :)

A truly perfect basket weave I've never seen, so it makes it easier to accept an order for one. :D

Yea, I shiver when I see stamping of any kind on my order log, much prefer free hand carving.
 
Zaper, Thanks. It says 8-9 oz 100% natural vegetable tanned top grain cowhide. That's a mouth full! It was a cream color. The pattern was antiqued with the balance getting a brown stain and a finish top coat over the entire exterior.

leatherman, What is a good leather weight for a 4" blade or shorter fixed blade knife sheath? There is a good bit of the 8-9 oz left over!
 
4" or shorter is a toss up, If you like the look of the thicker leather then your good to go. I usually use a 7/8 oz for the fronts of the shorter knives though. I've tried thicker and it just gets clunky to me. The backs I still use 8/9 oz because I like the heavier leather for the belt loops. If your making a sheath that rides up on the handle I'd definitely use 7/8 as it molds a lot better, you get sharper lines.

If your at Tandy/The Leather Factory, look for the gold stamps on the back of the shoulders, its the square foot mark. They are from a much better tannery than their lesser cost leather. The feel and density is very nice for the price. The cheaper stuff is stiff and not flat at all, not worth the money imho.
 
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