River City Sheath with Accessories

M

MNH

Joined
Jul 6, 1999
Messages
949
Sometime during the middle of August I acquired a new Benchmade Nimravus Cub in M-2 high speed steel. The sheath that came with the Nimravus Cub from Benchmade was serviceable, but only just. Although the sheath was well made, of good quality material the design was overly limiting. Made of black kydex, it was a simple fold design with two Torx bolts holding a drop style belt loop also constructed of black kydex to the back of the sheath. The sheath was ambidextrous in that the belt loop could be unbolted from one side and reattached to the other. The original sheath was also less than secure. The knife could be removed with almost no resistance, and it carried the standard Nimravus sheath warning against carrying the knife inverted.

<a href="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29905220&Sequence=7&res=high"><img src="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29942530&Sequence=0&res=high" align="right" alt=""></a>


The sheath could perhaps have been tightened up with a good hair drier set to hot to soften the kydex before pressing the sides together, or by the addition of a pop rivet near the top. That not have solved the other problem however, which was the limited design of the original sheath.

Within the first few days it became clear that an aftermarket sheath was going to be the way to go. Happily, having been a fairly active member of Blade Forums for the past year I had a pretty good idea where to start looking.

I began exchanging emails with Mike Sastre of River City Sheaths (P. O. Box 421 Hamilton, Ohio 45021 or VideoSAS@aol.com). We quickly decided that Mike's "Drawpoint" sheath was what I was looking for, in its standard configuration with the addition of his "Sports clip" which allows the sheath to be clipped to the waist band rather than fastened to a belt.
<a href="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29905358&Sequence=0&res=high"><img src="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29946129&Sequence=0&res=high" align="left" alt=""></a>
The bulk of our email concerned an additional accessory for the sheath that I wanted to try. I asked Mike if he could make Concealex rectangle that could be slipped into a hip pocket with the sheath attached. For lack of a better term we have been calling this a "Pocket plate". The pocket plate is made of a single thickness of concealex which has been cut to the shape of a hip pocket on a pair of jeans. It has been molded in a gentle arch to follow the curve of the hip, and has been drilled to allow the Drawpoint sheath to attach to it with two Chicago screws.
The sheath came assembled with the snap on belt loop for IWB carry attached, which is how I carried it for the first few days. Mike's Drawpoint sheath has gathered a well deserved reputation for excellence here on Blade Forums, and in the knife community in general. The IWB configuration for the Nimravus Cub works every bit as well as you would expect, however, once I attached the sheath to the pocket plate it was all over. Aside from my photo session for this review the sheath has not been removed from the plate.
<a href="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29905595&Sequence=0&res=high"><img src="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29948255&Sequence=0&res=high" align="right" alt=""></a>
<a href="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29905436&Sequence=0&res=high"><img src="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29948042&Sequence=0&res=high" align="left" alt=""></a>

(Part two follows)



[This message has been edited by MNH (edited 10-05-2000).]
 
Part Two


he pocket plate with sheath attached slips completely into the hip pocket, with only the top two thirds of the handle showing above the pocket. The plate keeps the knife in place and standing upright. Drawing the knife seems perfectly natural to me as I always carry my primary folder in my left hip pocket. The knife draws from the sheath with almost no effort. The pocket plate holds the sheath in place throughout the draw. The plate and sheath remain in position in the pocket. It is essentially just like drawing a folder except there is a little more to grab, and I don't have to open the knife once I have it out. Resheathing the knife takes no more effort than resheathing any fixed blade.

<a href="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29905627&Sequence=0&res=high"><img src="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29949384&Sequence=0&res=high" align="right" alt=""></a>
<a href="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29905609&Sequence=0&res=high"><img src="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29949436&Sequence=0&res=high" align="left" alt=""></a>
src="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29949436&Sequence=0&res=high" align="left" alt=""></a>


The beauties of this system are several. First, this is even more comfortable than I envisioned. I can stand, walk, sit at my desk, drive a car, (even my wife's Subaru with its tight bucket seats) and never know the knife is there. The knife conceals easily with any cover garment, and the knife, sheath, and pocket plate can be easily removed from the pocket simply by drawing the knife normally with the index finger extended between the plate and the outside of the pocket. It can be dropped in my briefcase or the glove box if I need to go somewhere without it. Even though the plate was designed to work in the hip pocket of a pair of jeans it works equally well in every pair of pants in which I have tried it.
<a href="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29905479&Sequence=0&res=high"><img src="http://albums.photopoint.com/j/View?u=222207&a=9199751&p=29949476&Sequence=0&res=high" align="left" alt=""></a>

As a matter of fact I like the pocket plate so much, that I have another project in mind that I have only discussed with Mike in the most general terms. This is to be a stand alone pocket plate with no sheath, to be used for hip pocket carry of any folder with a pocket clip. The Idea of this new pocket plate is to allow a folder to be clipped inside the pocket to the plate rather than to the pocket. A small notch in the top of the plate will hold the clip in place, preventing it from sliding back and forth. This devise will serve several purposes. First, it will protect my pocket from the ware and tear form the pocket clip. and from the bottom edge of the folder. Second, it will protect furniture, upholstery and car finishes from the clip. Third, it will allow semi to complete concealment of the folder, while keeping it more accessible than deep pocket carry. Last, and being left handed, not the least important to me, is that it will allow any right hand folder to be converted instantly for left hand carry simply by clipping the knife inside the pocket, but outside the plate, with the clip facing in.

The major problem with the pocket plate for folders is that it needs to be adjustible over a range of 1 1/2" to 2 1/2" to accomidate differences in pocket depth, and and to accomidate differences in clip placement on different folders. My thought at this point is to have the plate made in two horizontal, overlapping pieces of concealex that could be fastened together with a pair of Chicago screws in adjustment holes or slots.

View


What I would like to know is if you think this idea has legs? Is this an accessory that Mike Sastre should think about adding to his regular line? What do you see as liabilities of the "Pocket Plate" idea that I have overlooked?


Mike




[This message has been edited by MNH (edited 10-05-2000).]
 
I have a River city neck sheath for an Al-Mar SERE 2K on right now and it's excellent. Very comfortable and wearable.He makes excellent products.
 
Mike, first I want to echo your praise for Mike Sastre's work. I have several of his sheaths (follow the "toy" link in my sig for some pics) & his rigs are really top quality in every way. Moving on, I really love your pocket plate idea for small FBs. I'll have to try fashioning one myself.

I think the concept of a pocket plate for folders is also very viable and the overlapping pieces of concealex, as you described, should work very well. I would want to ensure that the upper piece is deep enough so that the pocket clips would not have to go over two layers of material when the plate is collapsed to minimum height. Since concealex is more slippery than fabric, a series of small horizontal slots, closely spaced in a direct line under the notches, could help to keep the knife in place.

Best of luck with the idea! Please keep us informed of your design progress.

------------------
Cheers,
Brian

He who finishes with the most toys wins.
 
Brian,

Followed your link, you definately have more toys than I do!
smile.gif


Thanks for your observation on the folder pocket plate. I would have caught that problem on the Mod.1 Mk.I

I need to get ahold of Mike Sastre and see how he is doing on his REKAT project. See when he has time to give this a try.


Mike
 
What a great idea. Simple and practical for everyday carry of fixed blades. Mike should make this an option for his IWB sheaths. I want one for my Typhoon and my Bladeart Cokum/Greco 50/50.
 
You're welcome, Mike. I think it is a good idea & was happy to contribute.

I know Mike S has been very busy but, on the surface at least, it doesn't look to me that the design would be terribly complicated to produce. I'll be very interested to follow developments.

------------------
Cheers,
Brian

He who finishes with the most toys wins.
 
Sounds like a great idea. For the folder model, what could be done to offset the removal resistance of the clip? What I mean is, the clip would be pulling up on the pocket plate. So, what holds the pocket plate in the pocket?

[This message has been edited by RDaneel (edited 10-07-2000).]
 
great post.

looks like something that would be useful while camping or woods walking, too
 
RDaneel,

The plate is snug enough in the pocket that stays put buy it self. The Nimravus cub will snap out of the Drawpoint sheath with almost no movement.

I tried clipping a folder to the same plate, and it seems to work well. the Concealex is slick enough that the clip slides off with little effort.


Mike
 
Mike,

When I first started reading your post and checking the pictures, I had a little trouble figuring out the whole outfit, till I realized you're a southpaw, like myself. Excellent ideas! Right now, I'm seriously considering an e-mail to mr. Sastre.

Regards,

Leo Daher

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"Though the meek shall inherit the Earth, they won't keep it past Saturday night..."
 
Leo,

Interesting that you and I are both left handed, yet we are so used to seeing right handers that we think each other strange.
smile.gif



Mike
 
Excellent idea!
I think maybe the addition of a loose pair or better yet, three, of complete Chicago screws would also allow many to adapt their own existing Kydex or Concealex sheaths to be used in conjunction with the pocket plate. It's always easy to index and drill a few holes to suit any hole spacing or orientation. I know I'd like to have one set up that way, so I could adapt the removeable part of my Kydex (or is it Concealex, I dunno)HALO III sheath to it when I'm not wearing a belt for the lanyard set-up. Belt loops alone aren't always strong enough, or located right for proper pocket depth with the lanyard set-up.

I know I'd buy at least one.


------------------
George
StarPD
 
Mike (Sastre) drilled two holes in mine for initial setup, but no more. It is easier to drill you own holes where you want them than to put a lot of holes everywhere for multi-position carry. I lucked out, as Mike put the holes right where I needed them.
smile.gif



Mike
 
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