- Joined
- Feb 28, 2007
- Messages
- 9,786
KSF Leather Izula Sheath Review
Thanks to Derrick Bohn, owner of Knivesshipfree.com, I was provided with KSF Leather Belt/Neck Sheath made by Sharpshooter sheath systems. The sheath was given to me as part of a contest winning offered through the Rat Cutlery sub-forum on blade forums.
When I first saw this sheath on the internet I have to admit that I thought it was a bit strange looking. The small snap tab at the spine of the knife and raised back tab looks different from what you typically see on a knife sheath. However, that snap tab is part of the true innovation in knife retention that is provided by this sheath system.
Once you start to get used to the shape of it, the KSF leather Izula sheath really has a snazzy look to it.
The stitching is nice and even and the sheath itself is very stiff and highly water repellent. Following the pictures, I oiled mine up with some mineral oil and it took on a nice dark hue to it. I really like looks of this sheath. It almost makes the Izula look dressy!
The sheath include a small fire steel loop. The fire steel loop will only hold a very small firesteel, not a standard LMF rod. However, you can, with some effort, fit the small mag bar/firesteel rod that comes with the full Izula kit into the firesteel loop on the sheath. It fits in there tight, but you can get it in if you are determined to do it. To remove the rod you also need to put in some effort, e.g. by pressing the bar against a solid surface you can work it out. This is both good and bad. Good because you are guaranteed not lose your small firesteel from the loop. Bad because it is somewhat difficult to pull it in and out of the sheath during routine use of the firesteel. If you consider this an emergency firesteel option than you are fine.
The sheath contains a belt loop on the back side of it and three rivets. Two of those rivets are at the bottom and designed to hang the knife inverted as a neck knife. The rivets are large enough to thread in paracord. The balance of the blade is good when used in this manner. When the knife is locked into the sheath via the snap tab, there is simply no way to remove the locked blade. This makes for very secure carry either in upward vertical orientation on your belt, in your front pocket or during upside down carry in neck knife mode. I put about 10 pounds of force trying to pull the blade from the sheath while it was locked and it simply will not let go.
To release the knife, you simply hit the larger back tab with your thumb, pushing the back tab backwards until the snap disengages. This is a simple one handed operation and is very fast and intuitive. The knife slides out of the opened sheath by slipping the spine sideways away from the firesteel loop.
After a week of carry I found that I developed good muscle memory for withdrawing the knife from the sheath one handed whether the knife was fixed to my belt or in my pocket. There is no need to look down at your hands at what you are doing. Your hand simply finds the handle, thumb pops back the snap and you remove the knife. Reinserting the blade is slightly more tricky because it requires you to re-snap the locking tab. I found this to be a bit difficult at first partly because of the stiffness of both the leather and snap. However, over the week the action is starting to loosen and I find I am now able to reinsert and re-snap the locking tab one handed and without looking where as earlier in the week I had to look at what I was doing or use both hands to re-lock the tab.
Here are a couple of side views of the sheath and knife. The sheath provides very little bulk relative to most leather sheaths. This is great for carrying in your front pants pocket.
A couple of contrast shots between the KSF Leather Izula sheath and the original molded sheath that comes with the Izula are provided below. The leather sheath is somewhat more bulky than the moulded plastic one, but the amount of excess bulk is minor. If you want an ultra small sheath, then you are probably best to go with a form fitting kydex sheath. However, the kydex is not likely to be as versatile in belt + neck carry as this one, nor in my opinion, will it look quite as classy as this leather one.
Thanks to Derrick Bohn, owner of Knivesshipfree.com, I was provided with KSF Leather Belt/Neck Sheath made by Sharpshooter sheath systems. The sheath was given to me as part of a contest winning offered through the Rat Cutlery sub-forum on blade forums.
When I first saw this sheath on the internet I have to admit that I thought it was a bit strange looking. The small snap tab at the spine of the knife and raised back tab looks different from what you typically see on a knife sheath. However, that snap tab is part of the true innovation in knife retention that is provided by this sheath system.
Once you start to get used to the shape of it, the KSF leather Izula sheath really has a snazzy look to it.
The stitching is nice and even and the sheath itself is very stiff and highly water repellent. Following the pictures, I oiled mine up with some mineral oil and it took on a nice dark hue to it. I really like looks of this sheath. It almost makes the Izula look dressy!
The sheath include a small fire steel loop. The fire steel loop will only hold a very small firesteel, not a standard LMF rod. However, you can, with some effort, fit the small mag bar/firesteel rod that comes with the full Izula kit into the firesteel loop on the sheath. It fits in there tight, but you can get it in if you are determined to do it. To remove the rod you also need to put in some effort, e.g. by pressing the bar against a solid surface you can work it out. This is both good and bad. Good because you are guaranteed not lose your small firesteel from the loop. Bad because it is somewhat difficult to pull it in and out of the sheath during routine use of the firesteel. If you consider this an emergency firesteel option than you are fine.
The sheath contains a belt loop on the back side of it and three rivets. Two of those rivets are at the bottom and designed to hang the knife inverted as a neck knife. The rivets are large enough to thread in paracord. The balance of the blade is good when used in this manner. When the knife is locked into the sheath via the snap tab, there is simply no way to remove the locked blade. This makes for very secure carry either in upward vertical orientation on your belt, in your front pocket or during upside down carry in neck knife mode. I put about 10 pounds of force trying to pull the blade from the sheath while it was locked and it simply will not let go.
To release the knife, you simply hit the larger back tab with your thumb, pushing the back tab backwards until the snap disengages. This is a simple one handed operation and is very fast and intuitive. The knife slides out of the opened sheath by slipping the spine sideways away from the firesteel loop.
After a week of carry I found that I developed good muscle memory for withdrawing the knife from the sheath one handed whether the knife was fixed to my belt or in my pocket. There is no need to look down at your hands at what you are doing. Your hand simply finds the handle, thumb pops back the snap and you remove the knife. Reinserting the blade is slightly more tricky because it requires you to re-snap the locking tab. I found this to be a bit difficult at first partly because of the stiffness of both the leather and snap. However, over the week the action is starting to loosen and I find I am now able to reinsert and re-snap the locking tab one handed and without looking where as earlier in the week I had to look at what I was doing or use both hands to re-lock the tab.
Here are a couple of side views of the sheath and knife. The sheath provides very little bulk relative to most leather sheaths. This is great for carrying in your front pants pocket.
A couple of contrast shots between the KSF Leather Izula sheath and the original molded sheath that comes with the Izula are provided below. The leather sheath is somewhat more bulky than the moulded plastic one, but the amount of excess bulk is minor. If you want an ultra small sheath, then you are probably best to go with a form fitting kydex sheath. However, the kydex is not likely to be as versatile in belt + neck carry as this one, nor in my opinion, will it look quite as classy as this leather one.
