First attempt at this style sheath, Sam Brown stud

[KentuckyFisherman]

Well, I probably shouldn't even post these pics, but I'm pretty thick-skinned and more than willing to learn by having the old hands here comment on my work. I've made four or five holster-style sheaths and I think each has shown improvement. Recently, a friend showed me a Camillus belt knife he'd had since childhood and asked if I could make him a simple sheath for it. I owed him a favor, so I tackled it.

This is my first shot making a sheath for a knife with a guard, so I decided to stay with the foldover style, but stop it at the guard and add a strap with a Sam Brown stud. Lots of mistakes made along the way on this one, but I'm relatively pleased. I covered the Sam Brown screw on the inside with a piece of thin deerskin after doing a little skiving and sinking the screw just a bit below flush.

The owner asked for a simple sheath and as it turned out this one is very narrow, just a bit bigger than the blade; there's not much room for embellishment anyway. Comments and suggestions are welcome.

 

[Bruce McLeish]

I like that the sheath matches the knife. Both look the same age and wear.

 

[John Wilson]

You did a good job on that. Knives with guards most definitely make it more difficult when it comes to sheaths. I like the low foldover strap/stud approach much more than than the wrap-around strap in the middle of the handle, but I make them that way too. Sometimes it’s the best way. The thing about knives is generally you find reinventing the wheel to be a fool’s errand. That’s not to say we shouldn’t strive to do something original, but knives and sheaths have evolved through necessity and practicality over centuries and to ignore that entirely can be plain dumb.

 

[KentuckyFisherman]

Thanks, guys, I appreciate the encouraging words more than you know.

I do have one question you might help me with: What's the right belt strap length? As I was sketching this design, I assumed that if I made the belt loop too short, the whole thing might be top heavy and not hang right. If I made the loop too long, the rig would likely hang vertically but have more sway to it and just feel floppy. I reasoned that the top of the loop needed to reach at least halfway up the handle or a bit more, which this one does.

So, for a fairly standard belt loop like this, do you have any guidelines or advice about length? Pretty basic question, but I'm a noob.

 

[mike miller]

If I had something to change on it, I would make the retaining strap about a thumbs width past the stud to make it easier to grasp.

 

[John Wilson]

Thanks, guys, I appreciate the encouraging words more than you know.

I do have one question you might help me with: What's the right belt strap length? As I was sketching this design, I assumed that if I made the belt loop too short, the whole thing might be top heavy and not hang right. If I made the loop too long, the rig would likely hang vertically but have more sway to it and just feel floppy. I reasoned that the top of the loop needed to reach at least halfway up the handle or a bit more, which this one does.

So, for a fairly standard belt loop like this, do you have any guidelines or advice about length? Pretty basic question, but I'm a noob.

Personal preference, I like the butt of the knife to be at about the top of my belt when I’m wearing it. As you mentioned, sometimes that might make the knife ride funny in the sheath. That’s where a dangler comes in.

I make every belt loop so that it can take a 1-3/4” belt. Most gun belts are 1-1/2” tall and you want a little extra room in the loop so that you don’t have to fight to feed the belt through. A lot of guys who carry wear the same gun belt every day even if they aren’t carrying. It’s a good size to accommodate any belt. FYI that is the size of the belt loops on your jeans.

Here’s a dangler. If you size the leather dangler loop to fill the D ring the knife does not flop around. In fact it’s fairly rigid but the wearer can pull the knife forward to sit down or to get in the truck and drive without taking the knife off.

 

[KentuckyFisherman]

If I had something to change on it, I would make the retaining strap about a thumbs width past the stud to make it easier to grasp.

You are exactly right about the strap being short, Mike. I should have made it oversize and then trimmed it to fit at the end. Also, I bought the Sam Brown stud before I got the sheath roughed out, and I wish I'd gotten a smaller stud. Thanks.

 

[opaul]

You did a good job. I think I would have gone old school and made a vintage looking sheath with the leather strap snap (no stud) higher on the knife. Rather than the vintage slits, a loop would still fit that style.