First leather sheath.

BobbyD

BobbyD

Well-Known Member
Finally got a enough together to start making leather sheaths. After going over Dennis’s tutorials over and over again i got my feet wet today with a small scout carry. I am pretty happy with it. Boy I learned a lot. For one as usual I did not allow enough extra material. I Really did not have enough to sand everything even without getting a bit close. Also the knife needs to seat a bit more into the sheath. What a job getting all six layers to line up. I think I need a stronger awl lol. Anyway. Hopefully the next one will go smoother. Of course any pointers are welcome.

back side:

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Nice work. The stitching looks pretty even. I know it's not easy to get it to look like that across the strap sometimes. Good job.
 
That looks pretty dang good for your first!
it looks like you might have some fingernail marks on the belt loop, if that's what they are the bummer is you can never get them out so you have to make sure your nails are trimmed...sounds silly but it's very true in leather work.

One other thing that I notice is your stitching goes to the very end at the bottom. if you cut your welt just a little short and end with one less stitch you'll have a drain hole for water or dirt that might find it's way into the sheath.
 
Worst that that. When I was punching the holes l just went all the way around not thinking of the bottom point. I was on a roll lol. So I have a empty hole on the top of the point. I did the holes before I glued up.
 
Looks a lot better than my first sheath... or second or third for that matter! Nice job! If you used spring clamps when gluing or wet forming, they can leave indentations too. I use scrap pieces of leather as clamp pads when doing that.
 
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BTW I want to thank scherf68 he sent me a couple of stiching forks and a hammer. All lwhich I used in this project.
 
You did just fine. The first is the hardest one. Now you know what you are doing. Should be smooth sailing going forward. BTW: My first sheath was UGLY!!! Yours is presentable. Just make each successive sheath better and better.
 
I think that you will find that an issue with most stitching chisels out there. Once you have have two layers of the outer sheath and the welt between the sheath is going to be kind of thick. The only thing that I use punching chisels for is to make holes for lacing. What I use for stitching is a curtain needle chucked up in my drill press. I lay out a groove on each side of the edge after the leather and welt are glued together and sanded even. I then use a stitching wheel to lay out the holes. I also have a jig which is nothing more than a board with one 1/4" in the center for punching flat work and another near the edge for punching leather that has been folded. I then use the drill use the press to press the curtain needle through where the holes had been laid out. I don't drill the the holes.

If you don't have one, buy or make yourself a stitching pony. I gives you that third hand you need when stitching.

Below is a picture of what I use to punch the holes for stitching. Yes, I know that the drapery needle was chucked up crooked. Something to check for

Doug

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Outstanding work on the sheaths! If those are your firsts then you are gifted in this area. I can't wait to see the sheath you'll make in a year if you keep at it.
 
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