Are leather sheaths becoming obsolete?

Doesn't absorb sweat, won't rot, can't be poked through, impervious/resistant to most chemicals, better retention, more compact form factor...that kind of thing.

:p

Thanks, though I was curious to hear if hickory had a justification.

For the record I do very much prefer a leather sheath if the snap is treated correctly. No "bare" snap scratching the blade!!!
 
Thanks, though I was curious to hear if hickory had a justification.

For the record I do very much prefer a leather sheath if the snap is treated correctly. No "bare" snap scratching the blade!!!

I love leather, though I strongly prefer kydex for daily carry and usage. I just find a lot of the 'hate' here amusing.
 
To answer your opening question NO!. Leather is my favorite option. It carries well, is easy on the knife, looks best (this of course is subjective - sheath maker/style etc. - some are simply awful) and is "quiet".

Kydex and other hard sheaths are NOISY and scratch the blade. On the up side, they themselves can be used as weapons in a pinch o_O, but all in all - not great for wood walking type activities, if stealth is important.

Ballistic nylon is my next favorite, over leather and sometime my preferred.

One man's 2¢

Ray
 
I love leather, though I strongly prefer kydex for daily carry and usage. I just find a lot of the 'hate' here amusing.
I don't hate it at all, and if I had a blade that would get wet a lot I'd probably want it.
I think some hate comes from poorly made sheaths that either rattle or dull the blade, or moulded frn sheaths that dull the blade which people mistake as being kydex.
I know some vendors will equate any plastic type sheaths to kydex.
Leather is just a preference of mine.
 
Thanks, though I was curious to hear if hickory had a justification.

For the record I do very much prefer a leather sheath if the snap is treated correctly. No "bare" snap scratching the blade!!!
I'll pass on Snaps when ever possible, I prefer the Frog post on Sam Brown rigs for my Closers on a sheath or Holster...lined of course as you implied!1awebbwn-032319_6.jpg
 
I had a sheath maker that could put those Frog posts on my Sheaths and you could, Open, rotate the strap behing the sheath and slide out your knife or re scabbard your knife without fear of cutting the strap! Smooth & quiet!...

The guy disappeared off the face of the earth in 2008 with the meltdown!
 
What hate? I just see opinions.

Hence 'hate.' Heavy bias is probably more accurate, as explained below.

I think some hate comes from poorly made sheaths that either rattle or dull the blade, or moulded frn sheaths that dull the blade which people mistake as being kydex.
I know some vendors will equate any plastic type sheaths to kydex.
Leather is just a preference of mine.

And that's mainly my point. Kydex does some things great, just like leather, but people handle bad kydex and then make a sweeping judgement on all such sheaths, which is just as ridiculous as it would be for someone to do the same with leather if they had never handled a truly great leather sheath.
 
Don't judge all kydex based on poor makers.




I don't need my sheath or holster to have soul....I need it to safely retain the item.

Kydex doesn't equal 'bad' just like leather doesn't equal 'good.' A bad sheath is a bad sheath regardless of material.




Like sticking a Bagwell damascus Hell's Belle in this plastic sheath?



Mikes Southern Comfort Sheaths are nice and I have one but I still prefer Leather by a lllllllong mile :)







 
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Just out of curiosity, how often do you use the large knives you carry for defense? I know you have them sent out for top notch sheaths, but I have a hard time seeing you using your large fixed blade for dirty tasks everyday. Seems more like you have them there but they stay clean.

I could be wrong, maybe you are on a safari everyday, where you stick animals and put your knife back in its leather sheath. From your vids I know you hunt.

I just find personally for a user knife:

A. Scratches don't matter.

B. Cleaning a knife out where ever I am before it goes wet, dirty, bloody, back in its sheath is silly.

Don't get me wrong, I love and own leather sheaths. But kydex has uses beyond being tacticool, while active duty and deployed I never saw a single soldier carrying a large fixed blade the size of which you carry.

I should add, I do a quick wipe before putting it back into its sheath, just to get fur and the majority of what ever else off it before it goes back in kydex.

Leather for town, where it doesn't see dirty use. Kydex for dirty use. That's how I use them.

I carry and use custom knives every day from eating a steak in a restaurant to skinning a deer. Just today I had to cut a thick piece of NYlon rope on a deer feeder and all I had on me was a 357 in Leather :) and a NYS in Leather ..... a very defense oriented design but makes a dandy little edc



I wipe the blade off on my pants and put it in its sheath and might tend to it later if it’s real bad

When I’m expecting to be getting a knife bloody in the field in my day pack or pocket there is usually an alcohol pad to clean the bulk of tallow or blood

I’ve lived in the bush on 4 continents for extended time and been able to maintain my kit from freezing conditions to tropic









You have to remember long before plastic sheaths and modern rust inhibitors men really used their knives ...... at sea ...... war ..... daily chores and their knives were in Leather and were made of carbon steel

So I’m not alone

Like I said Kydex is great for fishing and marine applications other than that not a big fan but if it works for ya it’s a good thing :)
 
A well made kydex sheath with some type of leather, pigskin/goatskin lining to protect the edge/blade. Would that not be the best of both worlds?


I have a few like this

This is a piece of PVC heat molded and covered in leather from Marchand

It’s incredible in the retention area and suits this piece well .... but a hard scabbard always works well with short swords :)



Folders in Leather are nice too

 
Doesn't absorb sweat, won't rot, can't be poked through, impervious/resistant to most chemicals, better retention, more compact form factor...that kind of thing.

:p


Kydex on a bowie worn in waist band for me is to slick almost warranting a static line

Due to its slick nature it also moves around to much for my taste when worn iwb being hard to position and I have to readjust to much

A good frog sheath made out of Leather holds its place better for me and the doesn’t wreck Leather car seats near as bad as poking it with a plastic sheath

But hey I’ve played with them and they work


 
This just wouldn't look right in Tupperware pants.

xz7qaCW.jpg
Yeah! I hate when I see men in Tupperware Pants:confused:o_O:thumbsdown::rolleyes: Clases with a nice leather sheath;)
 
I carry and use custom knives every day from eating a steak in a restaurant to skinning a deer. Just today I had to cut a thick piece of NYlon rope on a deer feeder and all I had on me was a 357 in Leather :) and a NYS in Leather ..... a very defense oriented design but makes a dandy little edc



I wipe the blade off on my pants and put it in its sheath and might tend to it later if it’s real bad

When I’m expecting to be getting a knife bloody in the field in my day pack or pocket there is usually an alcohol pad to clean the bulk of tallow or blood

I’ve lived in the bush on 4 continents for extended time and been able to maintain my kit from freezing conditions to tropic









You have to remember long before plastic sheaths and modern rust inhibitors men really used their knives ...... at sea ...... war ..... daily chores and their knives were in Leather and were made of carbon steel

So I’m not alone

Like I said Kydex is great for fishing and marine applications other than that not a big fan but if it works for ya it’s a good thing :)
I never said leather doesn't work in those applications, It is my opinion kydex is easier to maintain and clean in those applications. Leather was used exactly as you described for a very long time, but they didn't exactly have kydex back then to chose did they?

In those times they also used poisons as a medical treatments, just because people did it many years ago doesn't mean it was ideal or even correct.

I'll stand by cleaning and maintenance and overall cleanliness puts kydex a notch above leather to ME. I realize they didn't give a hoot about cleanliness back then, but they also were clueless to many diseases and lots of people died off from illnesses that better hygienic practices could have prevented.

And I'm not saying every one who used leather died of illness lol but arguing the ability to take soap and water to a sheath that had organic material from a wild animal or other living creatures isn't a bonus, doesn't make sense to me.

Like I said, I own and use both. My preference for dirty, grimy, bloody use is kydex.

The assertions made that kydex is just tacticool was dead wrong. It has valid benefits over leather, just the way leather has valid benefits over kydex.
 
Oh well the point of this thread was the OP wondering if leather sheaths are becoming obsolete and by the response it would seem they're not. Back in the day it was pretty much expected that when you bought a fixed blade it would come with a sheath but now it's a bonus being as some brands sell only the knife.That's the reason for the mashed cat kydex sheaths that carry a few of my blades. Joe Paranee brought up a good point about how nowadays people are so concerned about owning a carbon steel knife when in the days of my father stainless didn't even exist.
 
I never said leather doesn't work in those applications, It is my opinion kydex is easier to maintain and clean in those applications. Leather was used exactly as you described for a very long time, but they didn't exactly have kydex back then to chose did they?

In those times they also used poisons as a medical treatments, just because people did it many years ago doesn't mean it was ideal or even correct.

I'll stand by cleaning and maintenance and overall cleanliness puts kydex a notch above leather to ME. I realize they didn't give a hoot about cleanliness back then, but they also were clueless to many diseases and lots of people died off from illnesses that better hygienic practices could have prevented.

And I'm not saying every one who used leather died of illness lol but arguing the ability to take soap and water to a sheath that had organic material from a wild animal or other living creatures isn't a bonus, doesn't make sense to me.

Like I said, I own and use both. My preference for dirty, grimy, bloody use is kydex.

The assertions made that kydex is just tacticool was dead wrong. It has valid benefits over leather, just the way leather has valid benefits over kydex.


Fair enough :)

I think the two main reasons plastic sheaths have become so popular are that they are cheap and easy to make

I think in prouduction knives it is easier for a company to produce a better quality plastic sheath than a Leather one.

As for sheath makers it is a very small investment for a guy to get into Kydex sheath manufacturing where it is a bit more involved in cost and talent level to do Leather

so it makes sense that one would be more popular when most people buy a prouduction fixed blade with a poor quality leather or factory plastic sheath to have a Kydex sheath make 35 to 55 bucks vs a high quality leather sheath say 100 to 300 bucks

Also there is a number of Kydex benders that keep a large amount of prouduction knives on hand to use as molds and most Leather smiths ask for the knife to be sent in

So time and cost wise it’s easier and quicker to go with plastic

I’ve traveled the globe and I’ve seen many Proffesional outdoorsmen and in my experience they all seemed to prefer Leather and took the approach that it had to be maintained much like their leather boots, saddles, etc

I have been involved in the world of knives for 4 decades and I’ve worked the largest knife show in the world for many years where I have the opportunity to meet and see many people and what they are carrying. Regretfully to add to the tacticool comment when I’m at a show and someone shows me a nice fixed blade in a Kydex sheath it’s usually being carried by someone who is also carrying the 2 pound over built folders and I’m not gonna say much more about that :)

Yes I have seen some very well made carry systems based around Kydex but for me nothing will ever carry or feel like Leather. I carry center line and for the same reasons a leather belt feels better than a nylon one a plastic sheath with clip will never pull into your body and move with it the same as Leather

Like I said for me plastic has its benefits like marine applications and certain military applications where it is being mounted to Molle gear etc but even than the hybrid Kydex and Leather creations available today like from Daniel Winkler are imho much better options

So a simple answer is when your looking for a cheap , quick sheath option or a marine application Kydex is king. But to each his own
 
Mikes Southern Comfort Sheaths are nice and I have one but I still prefer Leather by a lllllllong mile :)







This has got to be the ultimate bowie, just love it. Thanks for the awesome pic of this one Joe with the nice leather sheaths also.
 
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