Most of the sheaths I make are pancake style kydex. I like to be able, especially with kydex, the ability to pull the sheath apart to clean grit out. It is for this reason I use the common kydex screws rather than rivets or eyelets. I have found all these screws to have rather large, like 10mm heads, this requires are wide seam at the edges of the sheath. I was wondering if anyone had tried screws with a smaller head diameter? That would allow for a thinner seam. Anything countersunk would just pull through under pressure, but a smaller flat head should work. I was thinking smaller button heads with threaded tube as a post. Or even a metal seam that smaller screws can thread into, looking for ideas to thin out those seams and make nice narrow profile sheaths. I love the sleek look and feel of a taco but I find they get grit in the seams.
Small kydex screws
- Thread starter elasmonut
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RokJok
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How committed to finding an alternative are you? How complex/expensive a solution can you tolerate? Do your sheaths have a welt/spacer on the edge side of the pancake?
Here are some off the top of my head thoughts.
- chuck Chicago screw parts (one side at a time) in a drill press or clamped down hand drill and use a file to reduce flange diameter of the spinning part to a size you like. Sandpaper to polish if you think it appropriate.
- * complex approach *. Grind opposite edges of Chicago screws m/f part flanges into more rectangular shape aligned with edge of sheath to allow trimming off more of sheath edge. To do this, you'd mark & drill sheath with wide sheath flange not yet trimmed up. Establish & drill fastening screw holes as close in as you'd like. Insert & tighten screws to final tension. Now mark screw flanges top & bottom of sheath *in line parallel with eventual edge of sheath* to outside diameter of female threaded post. For marking I recommend Dykem layout fluid & scratch awl. Now unscrew each screw, keeping each pair together, because the orientation of each screw vis-a-vis eventual sheath edge will be unique. Grind/file circular screw flanges to scratch lines & reinsert screws in their particular hole. Now trim excess sheath flange close to rectangular'ish screw heads.
Edit to add: Now that I thought a bit more, it would be easier, simpler, and more efficient to simply simultaneously grind sheath edge & screw flange to final profile at the same time. That avoids all the complex sequential steps of this option.
- drill & tap a metal strip to sandwich between the front & back of the sheath along the line of screws, sorta like clip nuts as used on cars. Alternate screw locations to avoid butting the screws into each other. Drills & taps can be found in very small sizes (think jewelers and optics worlds). I've gotten a tap set M1-M3.5 by Wolfride on Amazon, along with appropriate size drill bits. Yakamoz is another brand there that gets good grades. I used M2 tap IIRC to tap inside of a *tiny* roll pin in an ignition assembly so I could use itty bitty screw to extract the pin. I used a 1/4" hex converter mini chuck as the tap handle. Just spun it slowly & carefully in my fingers. One turn in, half turn out, one turn in, half turn out, ... and being VERY sensitive to tactile feedback from my fingertips. *TAPPING FLUID IS MANDATORY!* Those tiny taps can snap at a thought.
- if money is no barrier, machine shop can make/modify a fastener to meet your needs. But $$ there could be used to buy more knives. So low priority on this option.
Here are some off the top of my head thoughts.
- chuck Chicago screw parts (one side at a time) in a drill press or clamped down hand drill and use a file to reduce flange diameter of the spinning part to a size you like. Sandpaper to polish if you think it appropriate.
- * complex approach *. Grind opposite edges of Chicago screws m/f part flanges into more rectangular shape aligned with edge of sheath to allow trimming off more of sheath edge. To do this, you'd mark & drill sheath with wide sheath flange not yet trimmed up. Establish & drill fastening screw holes as close in as you'd like. Insert & tighten screws to final tension. Now mark screw flanges top & bottom of sheath *in line parallel with eventual edge of sheath* to outside diameter of female threaded post. For marking I recommend Dykem layout fluid & scratch awl. Now unscrew each screw, keeping each pair together, because the orientation of each screw vis-a-vis eventual sheath edge will be unique. Grind/file circular screw flanges to scratch lines & reinsert screws in their particular hole. Now trim excess sheath flange close to rectangular'ish screw heads.
Edit to add: Now that I thought a bit more, it would be easier, simpler, and more efficient to simply simultaneously grind sheath edge & screw flange to final profile at the same time. That avoids all the complex sequential steps of this option.
- drill & tap a metal strip to sandwich between the front & back of the sheath along the line of screws, sorta like clip nuts as used on cars. Alternate screw locations to avoid butting the screws into each other. Drills & taps can be found in very small sizes (think jewelers and optics worlds). I've gotten a tap set M1-M3.5 by Wolfride on Amazon, along with appropriate size drill bits. Yakamoz is another brand there that gets good grades. I used M2 tap IIRC to tap inside of a *tiny* roll pin in an ignition assembly so I could use itty bitty screw to extract the pin. I used a 1/4" hex converter mini chuck as the tap handle. Just spun it slowly & carefully in my fingers. One turn in, half turn out, one turn in, half turn out, ... and being VERY sensitive to tactile feedback from my fingertips. *TAPPING FLUID IS MANDATORY!* Those tiny taps can snap at a thought.
- if money is no barrier, machine shop can make/modify a fastener to meet your needs. But $$ there could be used to buy more knives. So low priority on this option.
Last edited:
RokJok
Gold Member
- Joined
- Oct 6, 2000
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- 3,601
Perhaps some help in this old post here on BF.