Sheath for Horseman

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ruppe
  • Start date Start date
I would suggest leather with a snap-down strap over the guard for retention or Kydex. Let me know if you'd like to collaborate on the sheath. I currently have black and gray Kydex and black, woodlands camo and desert camo Concealex. If you want some design tips or something then just let me know, too.

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My Custom Kydex Sheath pagehttp://www.geocities.com/CollegePark/Lab/1298/knifehome.html
Palmer College of Chiropractic
On Two Wheels
 
Personally I'd opt for leather... Something about the cowboy persona and kydex that just doesn't fit. I'd keep it simple, no tooling, and probably a fold over Loveless style without a strap or snap. This would keep the knife high on the belt to prevent chaffing or wear on the horse and saddle and minimize problems with dust/dirt and snaps.

Steve
 
Ron,

In looking at your site the smallest bowie was a 71/2" blade. Given that all your bowies have double guards it would be difficult to do a fold-over loveless type sheath. Why type of guard are you doing on this blade? How long is the blade? I would go with a 5-6" blade, single guard, loveless type sheath to prevent constant flapping while in a trot or gallop. Being seated on a horse doesn't allow for a tiedown strap on the leg and I feel horizontal carries are cumbersome, especially while riding a horse or vehicle.

The other option is carry the blade in a saddle bag or integrate the sheath as part of the saddle... Hmmm, the integrated sheath/saddle would be super custom cool. That would allow for a larger blade.

Steve
 
The knife will have about a 5.5" blade with small straight guard. I am not sure whether it will be single or double at this time. The handle will be iron wood and deer crown similar to Sam's Bowie on my site. Or the Royal Bowie on my knifeshow site. Thanks for the information so far.

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Ron Ruppé
www.ruppe.com/Knives/index.htm
 
I think I would feel real nervous about carrying a fixed blade aboard a horse -- you'd certainly want a cut-proof sheath in case you ever inadvertently got separated. Tumbling downhill in the company of a large quadruped might lead to more than bruises.
 
Ron,
Ed has a GREAT point here. In constructing a sheath for any knives that will possibly take an impact you should concider the possibilities of puncturing the sheath. One of the attractions of kydex is that it does not puncture easy. This is what makes a kydex sheath "jump qualified" for the military. If you inspect the Camillus pilots knife sheath you will notice that the leather sheath is designed with steel reinforcements.... jump qualed! Several other sheaths come to mind as well. Some vintage sheaths such as the Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife. A possible solution is a kydex lined, light hide, sheath. Sheep or eel skin is very workable with out heavy stitching. I would suggest contacting Jim March (moderator of the Community Center) as he has done a lot of this type of stuff for LARGE knives.

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>)-RadarMan-(<


 
It would take a big man to to comfortably belt carrier even 51/2" blade on a horse for very long. May I suggest that you attach the sheath to the back cinch or the billet straps. Another option is a bandolier type sheath.
 
Ron,
There is a another thread in this forum on the pros and cons of lining kydex with leather. I personally do not recommend it, as stated in this thread http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum12/HTML/000717.html
Edge Works manufacturing produced a lined sheath at the request of a now defunct knife manufacturer. The sheath was dubbed "the whisper sheath", it was absolutely the quietest kydex sheath I have seen to date. It was absoulutely the hardest kydex sheath to keep clean that I have seen to date.
I also believe that the "kydex scratching" is over touted and is mostly a result of construction details, improper cleaning of the sheath (primarily at the manufacture level), and in some cases poor blade coating. I am sure a man on a horse, carrying a bowie on his side, having to cut a piece of rope, will not stop to worry about a few blade scratches....... will he?

p.s. Aren't Bowies those knives I keep seeing people trying to cut up Coke cans with
wink.gif

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>)-RadarMan-(<




[This message has been edited by RadarMan (edited 31 July 1999).]
 
As a biker who designed my own sheath for a large Bowieoid, I think I should speak up here.

You *need* riveted Kydex. It can be leather-covered for looks, but you need Kydex.

I personally came up with an oddball "grip down" configuration with an "out the side" draw sequence that allows the grip to poke out from under even a longish coat and you don't have to sweep the clothing away to perform the draw. Rather than re-doing a lot of picture links and descriptions, here's a wormhole to a thread on the HI forum that has all that in it:
http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum26/HTML/000306.html

One of the ways I carry this rig is with the tip end of the sheath tied to my belt and a leg lashdown tied at mid-thigh. On a horse, that would be VERY comfortable as nothing will dig into your mid-torso as you sit with legs straddled outwards.

Jim March
 
Is this horseman a cowboy or a pleasure rider?
does he usually were chaps? I have seen both holsters and sheathes that were sewn to the legs of chaps in positions that were convenient to access both standing and riding.
 
The Kydex with a leather cover is the way to go use Leather weld to adhere the leather to the kydex and it will work fine. You may want to put some tiedown holes where it can be tied to a saddle bag. Had a customer discussing this with me just yesterday.

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Curtis Wilson
 
Couple questions I would ask. What is the 'build' of the guy requesting the sheath, and is he concerned with quick access to the knife?

If possible, I'd go with a single, small, straight guard on the knife. That way you could go with a pouch style sheath that would cover at least half of the handle too. With the flare at the end from the stag cap, withdrawing the knife from the sheath shouldn't be a problem.

If the customer's waistline allows, one thing that works well to keep the knife high and out of the way is a wide belt loop stitched to the back of the sheath, below the handle. That way it rides like a pistol holster, out of the way of a seat or saddle. You can also cant the loop a bit to tilt the handle forward for easier access. For the really svelte types, a simple loop on the edge, with the sheath riding inside the belt holds it even tighter to the body and out of the way.

I have a friend that does his sheaths out of 12-14 oz. harness leather. When a knife slides into one of those sheaths it literally snaps into place, and it is so stiff that I can't imagine something like that needing riveting or a kydex liner.

To really be on the safe side, a thong hole drilled through the handle, and a corresponding leather thong loop on the sheath is a simple, but almost foolproof 'keeper' in case the horse does some antics. You push the loop through the thong hole, then drape the loop over the top of the knife. I had an old Puma White Hunter like that, and if the snap provided on the sheath failed, the loop would keep the knife blade from retracting more than a half inch or so from the sheath.

madpoet
 
As an ex working cowboy that used to ride 10 to 14 hours a day 7 days a week I may have some good advice here.

I always carried a good fixed blade when riding, folders werent accesible enough when it was below 0 due to all the clothes, and fixed blades are just so much stronger. I made a high ride sheath but soon went to a low ride sheath for 2 reasons. The second reason was it was hard to get to under a coat, and the first and best reason was that I got bucked off one day (saddle leaked) and when I hit the ground I landed on my right side and the handle of the knife broke one of my ribs! No more high ride sheaths for me ever! Still brings tears to my eyes thinking of it! ha ha Anyway, something to consider.

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www.simonichknives.com
 
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