Kydex Sheath Making Advice/Tips/Hacks

Cliff Carter Knives

Cliff Carter Knives

Knifemaker / Craftsman / Service Provider
Joined
May 30, 2011
Messages
704
Phoning a friend on this one. Having produced many kydex sheathes, I still struggle to repeatedly get solid “click” type results.

I have a kydex press with professional foam, a rivet press and the finished product performs and looks good, but consistency in getting that seamless “click” is driving me nuts.

Any tips/tricks or hacks you all use? Some big secret I’ve been missing?

Anything would be very much appreciated, thanks!
 
What style sheaths are you making, two piece or fold over?
I find that top grommet(s) placement and how far the handle is covered are the key elements for me.
Also, the thickness of the Kydex is a consideration to how well it conforms.
 
SS369 said:
What style sheaths are you making, two piece or fold over?
I find that top grommet(s) placement and how far the handle is covered are the key elements for me.
Also, the thickness of the Kydex is a consideration to how well it conforms.
Click to expand...

I’m using .080 in both taco and pancake style.

Consistency in retention is what’s getting me. Here are the last two sheathes I made for an example of grommet placement.
D4CC1878-59E4-4EC3-9E5C-B143C4A63081.jpeg 8BF62C71-C7FD-4A47-A4F7-5121D84B113C.jpeg
 
I believe this is your biggest issue here:

MwCTjzZ.jpg


You need a much more detailed impression at the choil/heel area of the blade. Also, the impression at the plunge line looks soft. The Kydex really needs to fold over these contours tightly to get a click.
 
Last edited:
i4Marc said:
I believe this is your biggest issue here:



You need a much more detailed impression at the choil/heel area of the blade. Also, the impression at the plunge line looks soft. The Kydex really needs to fold over these contours tightly to get a click.
Click to expand...

Try .060 with a little more heat and a lot more pressure
 
Thank you all for the advice! I’ve been using an old toaster to heat it up and I usually pull it when it’s floppy. I’ll let it get a bit hotter and then apply additional pressure. See how things shake out on the next one.

if anyone else has any tips or tricks that work for them, would love to hear!
 
I put a sheet of metal in my toaster to keep a more even heat. A temp gun is great too. My sweet spot is around 315°.
Marc was dead on about the area you need to focus on.
 
Cliff Carter Knives said:
Thank you all for the advice! I’ve been using an old toaster to heat it up and I usually pull it when it’s floppy. I’ll let it get a bit hotter and then apply additional pressure. See how things shake out on the next one.

if anyone else has any tips or tricks that work for them, would love to hear!
Click to expand...
I use a T-Shirt press to heat my kydex. More uniform heating and very controllable. They can be found very cheaply on Facebook Marketplace or Craig's List.

kd1.jpg

kd2.jpg
 
That rivet at the choil is to high, move it down give the kydex room to flex when inserting and taking the knife out.

I prefer .060 kydex. Be sure to have the blade taped when you set the rivets. I leave it in the press a long time to insure the best impression.
 
Cliff Carter Knives said:
Thank you all for the advice! I’ve been using an old toaster to heat it up and I usually pull it when it’s floppy. I’ll let it get a bit hotter and then apply additional pressure. See how things shake out on the next one.

if anyone else has any tips or tricks that work for them, would love to hear!
Click to expand...

"Toaster", or "toaster oven" ?
 
Thank you for the comments, keep them coming!!

Toaster oven, apologies. Have a funny image in my head of two kydex panels popping up out of a toaster haha

I have a knife I need to make a sheathe for in the next few days. Will see if I can execute on all of the great advice above!
 
Big thank you to everyone in this thread for the advice. Newest sheathe is perfect.

added some heat, but the biggest change was the amount of clamping pressure and more attention to rivet placement. Thanks again all!
 
For smaller knives, I too like the 0.06 thickness.

Despite the frequent reference to using the heavy duty 600lb Quick Clamps, I used all sorts of lighter duty or slower tightening clamps. Finally bit the bullet and sourced two of the heavy duty clamps...wish I had done that years ago. Made a lot of difference! I used to use a home-made hinge press, but changed to a direct book press style, which means I can just keep clamping down, where the hinge type had an optimum where the two press faces were parallel.

While getting a perfect click off the press is the goal, for less than perfect jobs I use hand moulding, wearing two pairs of thin cotton gloves (from local pharmacy store) and very carefully and locally heating the mouth of the sheath. I can tighten or reduce the grip like that.

Leaving the whole lot in the press to cool is good advice from AVigil. Kydex seems to relax away from the knife as it cools if not kept pressed.

Last thing, I tend not to rely upon the blade to give me grip. I much prefer to use the front of the handle and many of my designs have a slight narrowing of the handle that gives the Kydex something to hold on to.
You can see it in the Micarta contour map of these ones.
IMG_1006 by Last Scratch, on Flickr

This one has no finger guard to speak of, and the blade bevels run off without a thick ricasso, but Kydex grip is very positive, pretty much a two hand draw. The very leading edge of the handle is 0.747" and about 1/8th" in front of the black spacer is 0.737". Could probably manage with a bit less click and have even less difference.
DSC01848 by Last Scratch, on Flickr

Best of luck

Chris
 
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