What is the best way to carry a fixed blade (4"-5") while backpacking?

Sesoku

Sesoku

Joined
Oct 19, 1998
Messages
498
I wondered if anyone has had much success attaching the sheath upside down on the shoulder strap of thier pack. What did you use to secure the sheath in place? Hip belt placement may be a viable option, but might need some modification to the belt or sheath. I have an Osprey Silhouette backpack.
 
I carry my Chris Reeve MK-VI upside down on my shoulder strap. It has a snap closure that keeps the knife secure and I attach it with heavy duty rubber bands that I made from old mountain bike inner tubes. I want to eventually replace my leather sheath with a custom kydex one.
 
The inner tube rubber bands don't cause the shoulder strap to chafe your chest? I am trying to think of something that can be removed fairly quickly and easily so I can wear the knife around camp once the destination is reached. I think I read something about rip-offs straps? Can anyone comment on these?
 
I would have a friction fit kydex sheath made for the blade to lace to the pack strap, and carry the regular sheath on the your belt. Then you have the best of both worlds. In packing situations, my preferred method for folder carry is friction fit kydex on pack strap. When the pack gets to its resting spot the folder is clipped in my pocket.

Jeff

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Randall's Adventure & Training
jeff@jungletraining.com
 
I usually carry fixed blades in the pack, especially when bushwacking in thick cover. For occasional access, one of Normark's Concealex sheaths, IWB vertical carry on the right side, or for quick access, just left of the front belt buckle.
 
I carry my coldsteel trailmaster on my shoulder strap upside down I use plastic ties

those black plastic garbage bag ties but more heavyduty. electricians use them. I put them through the holes in the kydex sheath and attach it to some hardware on my back pack. it is comfortable and fast to draw the only problem is it isn't family friendly
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I've got a Busse #5, and the factory kydex sheath is attached to the left shoulder strap/pad of my Astralplane Overkill. The sheath has tie-down points all the way around. Too bad I never get to use the damn thing since I practically live at work.
Got a On/Scene Tactical sheath for when it's not on the pack (99.9999% of the time, unfortunately).
 
Get some Velcro strips at a material store, you might even be able to get it at K-mart or someplace. Cut it to size or use several smaller patches. Sew or cement the 'hook' part to the pack strap where you want it and cement or sew the 'fuzzy' part to the back of the sheath. You can carry it in all different positions and pull it free for belt wear when you set up camp.
 
Depending on what kind of a hike I'm going on I either have my Busse #5 or Natural Outlaw strapped to the shoulder strap of my backpack.

For ages I wondered about the best way to attach the knives and then I discovered gaffers tape. It's kind of like duct tape, except it's cloth and doesn't leave a sticky residue like duct tape (also it's black).

I simply put on my gear, figure out the best position for the knife, then tape it in place. Works great, holds well and doesn't leave a residue on either the sheath or the pack.

Hope this helps.

[This message has been edited by Johan (edited 12-01-2000).]
 
For a right hander I concur with most of the others that upside down on the left shoulder strap is the way to go. For my most oft carried camp knives, the sheath keeps the knife secure for upside down carry. My pack has a D ring at the shoulder of each strap. A tie from the bottom of the sheath (through a gromet or ring on the sheeth) keeps the knife up high tied to this ring, and prevents the sheath from slipping down when the knife is drawn. To hold the sheath firmly to the strap so it doesn't bounce around I use either a small strap I have for that purpose, or a quick wrap with a piece of electrical tape, or even a small piece of string, just about anything will work.

For me the trick is to do the tying and securing in a way that permits convenient removal and reattachment because I wear the sheath at my right side (rightside up) on my belt when I'm not wearing the pack.
 
Black wire ties (which are not as UV sensitive as the white ones) work well. When I want to remove the sheath, I simply cur and discard them as they are cheap. HomeDepot and electrical supply stores sell them. They are great for many camping, survival and "you'd be surprised" uses. They can be hooked together to make longer ties.

The idea of a Normark sheath on the pack and the standard sheath on the belt is a practical alternative that I have been using for some time.
 
Forgot to mention, I sometimes wire-tie the sheath knife horizontally accross the top of the pack, the area where the straps meet the frame or pack. The knife is easily accessible and is less Rambo-ish to sheeple as it is out of sight for the most part.
 
What about attaching it with a fastex quick release thing like on the hipbelt? That way the knife is pretty secure and it can be removed very fast to be attached to another fastex piece on the belt.
Dirk
 
I like to eliminate the need to transfer the knife from pack to belt....so I usually keep a small fixed blade or folder attached to the shoulder strap; this is helpful because the right or left hand can draw it.
I carry a larger, 'primary' knife on a thigh sheath, dropped down from my belt in a kydex sheath with leg straps. this allows me to carry a larger knife for machete-type uses and keeps it out of the way...also distributes the weight and even when I ditch the pack i have a full size knife ready for use.
 
Hey Guys....

Thanks for all of the kind comments...
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The nice thing about being a sheathmaker is that if I need a sheath to do a particular job,, I just make one mission specific...

I have a small day pack that I carry my Busse #9 on,,in the back...
It has a series of horizontal loops running down the back,,which I have made two concealex loops for..

These loops a specific to the Busse #9 Concealex sheath. One holding the bottom in place, and the other locking into the G-clip on the sheath itself..

This means that all I have to do is unhook the G-clip from the loop and slide the knife out of the carrier loops...

It works Great,, but need the pack and or the sheath to custom fir carrier loops to it...

Many people have asked me how I suggest them to fasten their sheath to their packs and such...

As Jeff has stated he lashes his blades down...

Now Jeff has Eaten Far,, Far more dirt than I could even imagine, and I'm not questioning his judgement,,,and I'm not saying that lashing doesn't work..It just Doesn't Work for me.

In all the years I've carried a blade upside down,, I have Always used 100mph tape to keep my knife in place. It can mess up the pack straps a little but the security of the knife being where you want it is a small price to pay.

I still have my Gerber MKII to prove it.

Lashing to me is an unsecure cumbersome way of securing a knife to any type of gear...

Zip Strips is another form of securing a blade as well,,but I've always backed that up with tape as well.. LOL

If the sheath is made properly,, you should Never have a problem with Inverted carry...
Dummy cord your gear just to be safe...

ttyle

Eric....



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On/Scene Tactical
Leading The Way In Quality Synthetic Sheathing
 
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