Your favorite Bushcraft style knife sheath design?

rayban said:
My favorite seems to be the ones I make....not sure why....
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Maybe because your's look good and are exactly what you want?



Nothing like making your own sheaths. I prefer leather but whenever available I buy knives with Kydex so I have both to use depending on what I'm doing.

Wrapped this one around a Bushcraft Northwest Kydex sheath.
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Since it was already pretty wide I made loops for the firesteel and a ceramic rod on the back. The utility pouch unsnaps and hangs from the loops on the front of the sheath.
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My fishing rig.
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A flap sheath for the F1.
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Maybe this makes me a heretic, but I don't think it makes a whole lot of sense to have a firesteel on your sheath. It's something only used a small percentage of the time (and, I dare say, never used by many). If you have any other fire starting supplies (waxed rope, tinder, etc.) they're better kept together, and dry.

They do look cool, though -- which probably trumps practicality. Handy for a little flashlight, too.
 
BushcraftBrainTrust said:
Talfuchre, because you are a sheath maker, it bothers me this is the second or third time you have posted "show me your favorite sheaths". We like your sheaths because they are original and the craftsmanship. Some other people make their living making sheaths and .........

People like your sheaths because they are original and the craftsmanship.:thumbup:
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I guess I have always been of the mind that the best way to make something - or something better - is to do research on existing designs. This is what I have been doing with these threads.

I don't think anything I have done has been that original. Maybe variations on a theme - but I don't want to reinvent the wheel or break what works.

Maybe I am misunderstand why this bothers you. Sorry if I am.

TF
 
I agree Talfuchre, you're enthusiastic about leather, that's plain to see, I don't mind if you wanna find pics of other peoples' work. I went through a Krylon camo kick on my rifles, did 9-10 patterns one month just to see what I could come up with. It never gets old looking at other peoples' self-done camo jobs, see how they make them, the color choices they use, the patterns etc.
 
I'm completely torn on the whole sheath question - synthetic or kydex.

I love kydex for its robustness, I like the solid feel of the click of the 'lock-in'. I like the fact that it is low maintenance. I don't like that it is noisy, tends to leave marks or black rub on the blade or enclosed part of the handle. They don't drop down particularly well. You can get drop downs, but their solidity and sometimes tight fit makes wearing as a drop down less functional.

I love the look of leather. I like that it is quiet on the knife draw and re-sheathing. I like how versatile they are worn as a dangler or drop down. I don't like how delicate they are. I've destroyed a few good leather sheaths by not paying attention on re-sheathing and cutting the knife through the material or cutting through the threads holding the belt flap from behind. I don't like how they hold water.

In both cases there are sheaths of either material, well designed and get around some of the handicaps stated above. Still, I can't make up my mind. In the end, unfortunately, I have to say that visuals tend to make the decision. Wood handles tend to be paired with leather and synthetics with synthetics.
 
I like both leather and kydex depending on the carry method. I like kydex for pocket carry of small knives. Nothing beats a sheath made from quality leather. I prefer a simple pouch sheath even for my bigger blades.
Scott
 
PayetteRucker said:
I agree Talfuchre, you're enthusiastic about leather, that's plain to see, I don't mind if you wanna find pics of other peoples' work. I went through a Krylon camo kick on my rifles, did 9-10 patterns one month just to see what I could come up with. It never gets old looking at other peoples' self-done camo jobs, see how they make them, the color choices they use, the patterns etc.
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I think it is great that TF is excited about leather. It shows in his current sheaths.:thumbup: I just think it is interesting that people are offering up Koyote's, Martin's, and JRE's designs and not the sheath makers themselves. W&SS is a generous community, so I'm sure one of them will come on soon to say everything is OK. I personally would just like to see naturally evolve with your customers input.


TF, I've heard nothing but good things about your sheaths.:thumbup:
 
I'll get some pics of my favorite ones up in a bit, but I will just talk a bit for now. My favorite almost always tends to be leather. I only own one kydex sheath, it is is for a neck knife that I seldon use. I typically like my sheaths beeswax dunked. This makes them water proof and really hard, which I like. I also like a dangler sheath, whether it be the traditional scandi dangler or the d-ring drop loop setup. This makes it more comfortable to wear for me. Firesteel loops and piggybacking aren't really my thing, I just never use them. I don't like the idea of putting my two most important tools in the same place (survivalist paranoia I suppose). On large knives my opinions change a little bit, but I think this gives a good summation of my preferences on bushcraft knife (smaller knives?) sheaths.
 
BBT,

I see what you are saying now. That is an interesting approach.

I have to make some sheaths for a Koster's Bushcraft - I think I will let the customer add the details they want and see where it goes.

TF
 
I'm definitely a leather fan. I won't say I hate kydex, I just dislike it very very much. ;) My biggest pet peeve with a sheath is if the handle is higher than the top of my belt and that's almost always the case with a kydex one.

I think this JRE one for my BA Bushcrafter is just about perfect....

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I don't know about toughness of Kydex, I like it and I've used it for my Mad Dog PATAK for the past 10+years, but I need to send it back for the third sheath due to cracks...the design is great, it's just that it doesn't give like leather and develops stress cracks. I've never had a leather sheath "break", but I've had the seems get cut and tears out...that can be remedied even in the field. As to being water-proof, I don't know. Some of the heavily waxed sheaths shed water well, and unless I was spending most of my day in the water, they have held up well. You do have to make sure they get dried out well and if needed, add some more was (I like beeswax).

Depending on the knife size, I like strong side (right) vertical carry or cross draw horizontal carry in the front. Having the dangler option is great when you're carrying a pack and being able to draw and re-sheath your knife one-handed is important to me.

One of the better leather sheaths I've used (haven't got my hands on TF's yet;)) is Rainwalker's sheaths:

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ROCK6
 
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