Cross Draw Knife Sheaths

[RoseWolf]

Greetings,

Just finished designing a couple of cross draw knife sheaths for a Buck 119 and was looking for some input on them.

Essentially I took the basic cross draw designs I've found and added a swell to the bottom of the sheath. A spacer piece of leather is stitched between the edges to protect the rivets and stitching from the knife blade. After this I cut the belt loop with a bit of a curve in it to sharpen the angle the sheath has on the belt and attached it to the swell with two Chicago screws. The snap closure is connected to the belt loop itself so the blade of the knife doesn't contact any metal while in the sheath.

The coloring on the right hand cross draw didn't come out quite as sharp as I would have liked, but I definitely like the coloring of the left hand sheath. Any thoughts or suggestions welcomed.

[malabar]

Sorry that no one has responded.

I like the design. Good sheaths are more complex to make (and more work) than many realize. The way that you use the attachment loop is smart -- it enables you to keep the snaps from rubbing against the blade without having to line the sheath body. OTOH, it means that the sheath rides at an acute angle. Is that really desirable for your use? There are a couple of reasons why it might be desirable -- to clear a very long blade, to enable it to be worn at the back or midsection, or because the user has very limited arm movement.

The rivets add a kind of rustic look that you might or might not want. You typically find rivets on cheaper sheaths that don't have

a stitched-in welt. The welt protects the edge and keeps it from cutting through the thread, which is also what the rivets do. You'll rarely find rivets on sheaths for custom knives because they don't want the edge of their expensive custom knife rubbing against the rivet.

One last thought: It's hard for me to tell from the picture, but can you easily access the snap on the safety strap when you grip the knife?

Keep up the good work!

tk

[RoseWolf]

Greetings Malabar,

Thanks for the comments. On the angle, me personnally I prefer a sheath that's comfortable to sit with in the truck as well as ride around on horseback. I have done some with a flatter angle, but most the folks I've sold sheaths too prefer the more prounounced angle to the sheath. For the safety strap, it's designed to be an easy open with maximum holding power. Accessing it from the hilt of the knife...maybe, if you have long fingers. Otherwise just pop the snap open, grab the hilt and draw the blade, at the angle and given the form fit of the sheath the knife isn't going to fall out unless one is doing a hand stand , in which case I question their capability and/or sanity to be handling a blade in the first place.

Thanks,

RoseWolf

[malabar]

Rosewolf,

gotcha. I can see where that style would be a big plus for being behind the wheel or on a horse. I really prefer crossdraw for my fixed-blade knives, but my customers don't wear them for work (although we do have some bug cattle ranches less than an hour from here).

Thanks for the explanation.

tk