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I recently was gifted a rondel dagger simulator (Cold Steel model) in my longsword class. This particular dagger design has a pretty, floral/star design on the rondels, which actually are rather jagged and pointy (as you will see below). Those rondels can scratch and scrape a bare arm. I read that some people modify these by taking them to a belt sander and grinding off those tips, but I decided to do it differently. I wrapped the lower rondel (the one most likely to scrape a person's arm) with a leather "boot", kind of like a steering wheel wrap. Then, I thought that I should make a sheath for it, so that I could actually carry it and even use it during longsword practice (as a secondary, backup weapon). But this dagger is triangular in cross section, and those rondels don't lie flat, so what kind of sheath would work? Also, the balance point (where the knife will hang blade-down correctly) is actually on the rondel itself, so any working sheath will have to go past that. But the rondel is round... so...what to do? My brain said, "It's got to go into a little cup, kind of like an inverted ice cream cone (the cake kind, not the conical sugar cone kind.)" A bit of research later on confirmed that this "cup" method is actually shown in medieval art, which made me pleased. And of course I have to break out my tools, to make it look nice: I decided to lace up the triangular portion (since it will likely see some wear), and I actually used my filigree punches for decoration here. The color is a British Tan antique paste, from Tandy, which I have had for...hmm...many years now! I am pleased with the barrel stitching (the round bottom of the cup)-- I have nearly got it figured out! The triangular part (to the left) is not yet riveted to the cup (on the right) in this photo. Here is another shot of the dagger, resting in the cup: And now for a shot of the "boot" around the rondel: The boot also creates a nice friction fit against the sides of the cup. The last thing to do will be to create the hanging loops -- I'm thinking of some way to do a dual system, so I can hang it vertically or horizontally.

13th century dagger scabbard, 2mm veg-tan over a balsa wood core. This was a pain to get right, mostly because I forgot how to get the tip right on the pattern somehow, so I had to throw away a first attempt that was 4mm too tight and wouldn't close at the tip. Also the wood core was 'roughly' cut when it was given to me by the owner, I had to sand it down to its present form and its still not even, so the tooling looks a little wonky now it's around the core. The tooling is based on late 12th/early 13th century finds, applied using tools from the same period and is appropriate for a minor noble or professional soldier. Bit rough and basic, but no better or worse than a number of the surviving examples. The handle wrap is bound .8mm calfskin over leather and cord risers, I'd never attempted something like this before but I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. The risers feel present but not uncomfortable in the hand, comfortable in both forward and reverse grips. Got a few old swords that need refurbishing, so got plenty of chance to practice! Any feedback or critique is greatly appreciated!

I am working on some practice pieces, and I was given a straight dagger to make a sheath for. I found some images online of dagger sheaths that have the style that I am looking for, but I am unsure on how to achieve the form. I know how to wet mold, but how dose one get the pointed end like on these sheaths? Thanks!

This is a new wallet that I am working on for myself. This is designed and drawn by me. I still need to finish the edges but I think it is coming along nicely. Thanks for looking.