Help/Ideas/Examples- Designing Boot Knife Sheath

[scorpnsnake]

Hello, Thanks for stopping in.

Long story long, I'm trying to figure out how I should have this sheath made for my boot knife. I've only been carrying it for a few weeks, so don't have experience beyond, well, none really. Also never daily'd any knife in a sheath, so it's all new. I'm sure much comes down to ones preferences, but I need to start someplace.

I work with an excellent upholstery artisan. He works with exotic materials and makes some gorgeous stuff, furniture, car interiors, belts, etc, but not sheaths specifically. Funny story, he almost reupholstered the A pillars in my car with shark skin, but sadly I ended up going another route. lol

I'd love to know your thoughts on materials. Both functionality and style. Considering ostrich, caiman, stingray, shark, lamb, piraruca, top grain, or a combination. Not necessary for something hidden, but may as well while I can have it done for a great price.

Could have the sheath sewn into the boot or universal with clip/clips. If sewn in, I'll cut it out when it's time to trash the boots and have it sewn into a new pair. This idea only interests me because I feel it could possibly make for a less invasive carry with the looser boot barrels. Of coarse it would really limit the possibilities for outside the boot and couldn't be sold along with the knife. Not married to either idea, wide open.

Thoughts on a good method to secure, while being fairly easy to pull?

The knife came with a kydex (I believe) sheath from the maker. It's nice, but not designed for the boot application. It's real wide, clip holds but a bit floppy, takes too much force to lock the blade in or pull it out. I feel like it rides higher than necessary and the material, though not terrible, could be more skin all day friendly.

So, I need to give him a design or at least some direction. I'd appreciate anything from a proven design, pictures of an example, pointers, opinions and what materials you would consider for something unique and interesting.

Here is the knife, sheath and boot barrel. That is about the only place it can ride because of the width of the sheath at the moment. 2 o'clock, outside right. I was hoping that straight down the back would work but no dice.



Hopefully I can take the feedback, make it so and post pictures here.

Your time, experience and expertise are greatly appreciated.

-Tony

 

[Horsewright]

I'd probably stay away from the sewn in option. I was once approached by a friend to do the same thing. He wanted a boot sheath sewn to his tall top cowboy boots. Once we sat down and started talking it through the limitations seemed to outweigh the positives and we never went any further with the deal.

There are some other factors too to consider. It would take a very specialized type of sewing machine to do, whats called a post machine. Your guy may have one and he may not. I know what they are but have never seen one in person. Probably be easier to handsew the sheath into the shaft of the boot but while doable, would be awkward and kind of tough to do neatly and well.

Most of the exotics you listed don't make great sheath leather. I'd consider an inlay or an overlay design with the exotic and doing the construction from reg veg tan.

Look up Ulticlips if you are concerned about the holding power of the regular style clip.

To overcome the top heaviness of clipping to the top of the shaft consider punching a 1" slot part way down from the top, in the shaft. Just the clip goes in the slot and then you'll have the sheath further down in the boot. Ya'd have to be careful not to cut into any of the fancy stitching on your Ariats if you do this, but looks like ya have room near the pull loop. A bagpunch or slot punch is used to do this and most professional leatherworkers will have one in that size. You would use a block of wood on the inside of the shaft for the punch to cut into after it makes its slot.

Hope this helps some

 

[scorpnsnake]

I'd probably stay away from the sewn in option. I was once approached by a friend to do the same thing. He wanted a boot sheath sewn to his tall top cowboy boots. Once we sat down and started talking it through the limitations seemed to outweigh the positives and we never went any further with the deal.

There are some other factors too to consider. It would take a very specialized type of sewing machine to do, whats called a post machine. Your guy may have one and he may not. I know what they are but have never seen one in person. Probably be easier to handsew the sheath into the shaft of the boot but while doable, would be awkward and kind of tough to do neatly and well.

Most of the exotics you listed don't make great sheath leather. I'd consider an inlay or an overlay design with the exotic and doing the construction from reg veg tan.

Look up Ulticlips if you are concerned about the holding power of the regular style clip.

To overcome the top heaviness of clipping to the top of the shaft consider punching a 1" slot part way down from the top, in the shaft. Just the clip goes in the slot and then you'll have the sheath further down in the boot. Ya'd have to be careful not to cut into any of the fancy stitching on your Ariats if you do this, but looks like ya have room near the pull loop. A bagpunch or slot punch is used to do this and most professional leatherworkers will have one in that size. You would use a block of wood on the inside of the shaft for the punch to cut into after it makes its slot.

Hope this helps some

I'm so sorry. I didn't get a notification that someone posted here.

That is awesome sruff. Exactly the type of information I was searching for. You can bet I'll put this knowledge to good use.

Thank you for sharing. I appreciate your time and generosity. I'll post up some pics here when it comes together.

 

[oldmanwilly]

scorpnsnake I'll piggyback on what Dave said above re ulticlips being great for bootknofe sheaths. I specifically order buckaroo style boots so that I have extra mounting options (plus, i think they're usually more durable).

https://imgur.com/xYi5HpC

https://imgur.com/KUOAwBe

I also like pull-the-dot straps, which are uniquely useful in buckaroos.




It's important to remember that carrying a bigger knife may be cool for a while, until you have to walk for miles all day. Then it's just an inconvenience and potentially embarrassing situation, depending on the company you keep. I like carrying a fixed blade in my boot, but I try to stick with lighter, more discreet knives that don't weigh me down and can be easily tucked into a pocket or my waistband if needed.

 

[scorpnsnake]

scorpnsnake I'll piggyback on what Dave said above re ulticlips being great for bootknofe sheaths. I specifically order buckaroo style boots so that I have extra mounting options (plus, i think they're usually more durable).

https://imgur.com/xYi5HpC

https://imgur.com/KUOAwBe

I also like pull-the-dot straps, which are uniquely useful in buckaroos.

View attachment 2447662
View attachment 2447664

It's important to remember that carrying a bigger knife may be cool for a while, until you have to walk for miles all day. Then it's just an inconvenience and potentially embarrassing situation, depending on the company you keep. I like carrying a fixed blade in my boot, but I try to stick with lighter, more discreet knives that don't weigh me down and can be easily tucked into a pocket or my waistband if needed.

Thank you, and roger on all. Surely appreciate the visuals as well.

10-4 on the more practical choice. I always start silly and end up smart with such things. More than anything, I wanted the knife and it had to have a purpose to justify the purchase. lol

Great looking gear and boots Sir!

Sure happy you guys showed up. I was starting to think people didn't carry knives in boots anymore. Not much information floating around about them.

 

[oldmanwilly]

scorpnsnake we're a secretive bunch, we who carry knives in our boots. My photos will self destruct at midnight.

I've been in your shoes before (heh): got a cool fixie and want to carry it discreetly but not exactly sure how. Boot carry is a viable option, but it's really not worth it if you're carrying the wrong knife. At some point it slips from practical to a tacticool hindrance. Play around and you'll find the right fit.

 

[scorpnsnake]

scorpnsnake we're a secretive bunch, we who carry knives in our boots. My photos will self destruct at midnight.

I've been in your shoes before (heh): got a cool fixie and want to carry it discreetly but not exactly sure how. Boot carry is a viable option, but it's really not worth it if you're carrying the wrong knife. At some point it slips from practical to a tacticool hindrance. Play around and you'll find the right fit.

Oh crap. I blew your cover.

 

[7stitches]

scorpnsnake I'll piggyback on what Dave said above re ulticlips being great for bootknofe sheaths. I specifically order buckaroo style boots so that I have extra mounting options (plus, i think they're usually more durable).

https://imgur.com/xYi5HpC

https://imgur.com/KUOAwBe

I also like pull-the-dot straps, which are uniquely useful in buckaroos.

View attachment 2447662
View attachment 2447664

It's important to remember that carrying a bigger knife may be cool for a while, until you have to walk for miles all day. Then it's just an inconvenience and potentially embarrassing situation, depending on the company you keep. I like carrying a fixed blade in my boot, but I try to stick with lighter, more discreet knives that don't weigh me down and can be easily tucked into a pocket or my waistband if needed.

These are Rios Buckaroo boots that I recently purchased. The Utiliclip is a good idea, but the boots are 16", and would be quite difficult to draw from. It would be a possible backup to my carry gun.

 

[Horsewright]

Oh crap. I blew your cover.

Now that was funny!

Yeah tall tops really only work if ya shotgun em (tuck in the pants leg). We'd carry that way at a branding because it would put your castrating knife right near your hand when the calf was down and needed cutting. We prefer tall tops for riding and almost alwasy shotgun em. But seldom will wear those boots for anything else but riding.

 

[scorpnsnake]

Now that was funny!

Yeah tall tops really only work if ya shotgun em (tuck in the pants leg). We'd carry that way at a branding because it would put your castrating knife right near your hand when the calf was down and needed cutting.

Oh dang. That's a hell of a rig. Real deal Cowboy work right there.

I'm loving this thread.

 

[Horsewright]

Oh dang. That's a hell of a rig. Real deal Cowboy work right there.

I'm loving this thread.

Thanks. We're recently retired cattle ranchers. The blue tall tops are my wife and she did most of our cutting of bull calves turning them into steers. I'd made her a specific knife for that job, basically just rounding off the tip of one of my paring knife designs designs. The boot sheath was a prototype and not any improvement over our standard boot sheath so its a one and only. I didn't do much calf cutting as I was usually roping:

Should mention that my wife does EDC carry but not in her boot. That was only for branding:

Branding btw can refer to the actual job of marking the calf as well as to the whole process of taking care of a group of calves. Kinda like dancing. You can dance and you can go to a dance.

 

[scorpnsnake]

Thanks. We're recently retired cattle ranchers. The blue tall tops are my wife and she did most of our cutting of bull calves turning them into steers. I'd made her a specific knife for that job, basically just rounding off the tip of one of my paring knife designs designs. The boot sheath was a prototype and not any improvement over our standard boot sheath so its a one and only. I didn't do much calf cutting as I was usually roping:

Should mention that my wife does EDC carry but not in her boot. That was only for branding:

Branding btw can refer to the actual job of marking the calf as well as to the whole process of taking care of a group of calves. Kinda like dancing. You can dance and you can go to a dance.

Boy I bet she keeps you in line.

I'd like to throw in my hat with a name for that blade. "Oyster Harvester".

 

[Horsewright]

That would be a good one. There are already a subset (in the cowboy world), of these type of knives, called bull cutters. In the vernacular, “nutters.”

 

[Horsewright]

These are Rios Buckaroo boots that I recently purchased. The Utiliclip is a good idea, but the boots are 16", and would be quite difficult to draw from. It would be a possible backup to my carry gun.

Very nice boots. I’ve heard good things about the brand

 

[Horsewright]

scorpnsnake I'll piggyback on what Dave said above re ulticlips being great for bootknofe sheaths. I specifically order buckaroo style boots so that I have extra mounting options (plus, i think they're usually more durable).

https://imgur.com/xYi5HpC

https://imgur.com/KUOAwBe

I also like pull-the-dot straps, which are uniquely useful in buckaroos.

View attachment 2447662
View attachment 2447664

It's important to remember that carrying a bigger knife may be cool for a while, until you have to walk for miles all day. Then it's just an inconvenience and potentially embarrassing situation, depending on the company you keep. I like carrying a fixed blade in my boot, but I try to stick with lighter, more discreet knives that don't weigh me down and can be easily tucked into a pocket or my waistband if needed.

My son had a pair of Drews tall tops. Black foot with red shafts.

 

[oldmanwilly]

My son had a pair of Drews tall tops. Black foot with red shafts.

They're awesome! In fact, I think you recommended them to me. I love my high tops; they're perfect for dealing with thorny brush, cactus, ticks, chiggers, etc. I think I'm due for another pair.

 

[7stitches]

Very nice boots. I’ve heard good things about the brand

They are very good quality. Made in Texas.

 

[Horsewright]

They're awesome! In fact, I think you recommended them to me. I love my high tops; they're perfect for dealing with thorny brush, cactus, ticks, chiggers, etc. I think I'm due for another pair.

Good deal!

They are very good quality. Made in Texas.

My wife got a pair of the Macie Bean boots (ladies version of the Rios), in Vegas this year at the NFR. She really likes them.

 

[scorpnsnake]

This is a silly idea but hey.. Don't know until I try. lol

Got a deal on a MT Exocet double action, arriving in a few days. Curious how it will ride in the boot, hope the wide clip helps. Thinking it will be easy to grab and serve as a good little stealth back-up when I have a bigger fixed on the belt.

Folder in the pocket and larger fixed in the boot or big guy up top and discreet back-up in the boot. Options never hurt.

 

[scorpnsnake]

Also on the hunt for a David Mary that will be a good fixed boot option.