alter chemicals in leather sheath?

R

rramjet

Joined
Oct 2, 2009
Messages
139
I purchased a leather sheath from SOG with the plan on using it for my Tomcat folder. But, I was advised by their customer service people to use the nylon sheath instead. They explained that the chemicals used in tanning their leather sheaths would attack the steal after awhile. The problem is I really like the looks of the leather sheath with their logo and it fits the knife so well. Is their something I can soak the sheath in or apply some sort of coating to it so that the tanning acids will not harm the knife?
 
It's possible, but really only if you store the knife in it and never use it.

~Noah
 
No, a kydex insert would not fit. I don't plan on storing the knife in the sheath. Are you saying that it would probably be ok for daily use? That is what I was thinking... SOG probably had to say that to cover their bases.
 
The chemicals in leather are slightly acidic and if left in a sheath over an extended period of time, a blade can be damaged. If you use the knife, then you are most likely going to be taking care of it (cleaning it after use, for instance), and so you are going to avoid those sorts of problems. Alternately, you could wax the sheath, but depending on how they treated the leather, it might not take too well.
 
Thanks for the advice. I will wipe down the knife daily and keep a close watch on the metal surfaces.
 
FWIW

I wouldn't worry to much about that as long as you do a bit of housekeeping for your rig.

*Keep the sheath dry and clean. Never store or allow your knife to sit in a wet/moist sheath . A little bit of pure neetsfoot oil omce in a while will keep your sheath happy

*Keep your blade dry, wiped down, and clean. After I clean my blades I wipe down with a bit of mineral oil.

*If your not going to utilize your knife and sheath for extended periods of time, remove knife from sheath and store.
 
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