kydex sheath materials

OutdoorsFamilyMan4

OutdoorsFamilyMan4

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Jan 20, 2012
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where is the best/least expensive place to get all the kydex materials (sheeting, eyelets, etc...) Also, what is a good thickness to use?
 
I like getting my stuff at Tracy Mickley's website, USA Knifemaker's supply. His eyelet dies are the best. They're pricey, but it's a one time buy. Pick up a set of 1/4th dies and 1/4th Siska rivets. Those don't split or have any finish chipping/wear issues. His kydex/boltaron prices are good too. I'd start with a sheet of .080, or .093 kydex. .060 kydex is hard to work with, and every imperfection (dust, hair, etc) that gets in the press, or on the knife transfers to the finished product.

Get a sheet of foam there and cut it in half. Make a press by getting a couple of foot square pieces of plywood, and some door hinges.

Go with Tracy. His prices are good, he has good materials, and his shipping is fast. Very secure website too.
 
OutdoorsFamilyMan4 said:
where is the best/least expensive place to get all the kydex materials (sheeting, eyelets, etc...) Also, what is a good thickness to use?
Click to expand...

I just ordered some .080 sheets and 1/4" eyelets (size #8-8) plus the dies from knifekits.com. Those seem to be common sizes. Also, I used the coupon code "gavkoo" (do a search on youtube for Gavkoo's channel. Some good tutorials on Kydex, and such) and saved 5%. Might want to pick up some sheath making foam if you're going to build your own press.
 
.080 is probally the best all around size. It is the only size I use and I buy at least 320sqft at a time.
 
Josh Mason said:
I like getting my stuff at Tracy Mickley's website, USA Knifemaker's supply. His eyelet dies are the best. They're pricey, but it's a one time buy. Pick up a set of 1/4th dies and 1/4th Siska rivets. Those don't split or have any finish chipping/wear issues. His kydex/boltaron prices are good too. I'd start with a sheet of .080, or .093 kydex. .060 kydex is hard to work with, and every imperfection (dust, hair, etc) that gets in the press, or on the knife transfers to the finished product.

Get a sheet of foam there and cut it in half. Make a press by getting a couple of foot square pieces of plywood, and some door hinges.

Go with Tracy. His prices are good, he has good materials, and his shipping is fast. Very secure website too.
Click to expand...

I use USAKnifeMaker.com as well...
 
thanks. I am gonna make a sheath for the knife i am in the process of making. I am really tight on funds right now and was looking on here for some tips on making a file-knife. One of the members on here was generous and kind enough to ship me some free material for my first attempt at making a knife. 1/4 in. bar of 1084 and some rosewood for handle scales. And on top of that he packed it in two pieces of foam each about 2 inches thick. He had cut small cavities for the steel and wood to sit in so they didnt bounce around during shipping, but I think I can turn them over and use them for a press. I was just gonna attach the plywood to the sides of the foams that have the shallow cut-outs, stick a pair of door hinges on one end and use a couple large c-clamps that I have. would that work?
 
Couple of things.

The foam for making a Kydex press isn't the same as foam for packing and pillows.

For a single run sheath, you can use gloved hands and/or a folded up old sweatshirt for pressing the hot Kydex to shape. You can go as low-tech as simply putting the warm Kydex on the folded old sweatshirt sitting on the floor, setting the knife in place ,folding the shirt/kydex over the knife, setting a big book over the folded shirt/kydex/knife, and standing on the book. You can use Chicago style screws instead of rivets.

If funds are tight, it may be cheaper to have a Kydex sheath made by one of the folks who do it regularly. Getting the materials and supplies just to do one sheath is not cost effective. Plan "B" might be a leather sheath for the first knife. You can make that yourself fairly inexpensively.
 
You can do the plywood and door hinges method, and just stand on top of the thing for about 5 minutes. Thats what i do...lol.
 
if i use the sweatshirt method for the mold and use the kydex sheath making kit from knifekits.com (.080 size for $11.95) what else would i need?
 
You need the press/mold, a heat gun or oven, and a tool/dies to press the eyelets. Obviously a drill and the right size bit to make the holes for the eyelets, and a way to trim and finish the edges of the sheath. Unless you already have these kinds of items, the investment of time and/or money is going to be pretty steep, if you only plan on making 1 or 2 sheaths.
 
i priced from knife kits the following: (2) 12x24 sheets of .080 kydex, eyelet hand setter kit, Chicago Screws - Black Coated - #8 - (.1875 x .250) - 10 Pack, Eyelets - #8-8 (1/4) - Black Finish - (for .080 KYDEX™/HOLSTEX™) - 100 Pack------all for $50.54---that would be enough for me to make at least 5 or 6 sheaths ( imho)--compared to the cost of having someone make one for me which would be at least 30 plus shipping my knife and return shipping------as far as a press goes, i can go low tech with the sweatshirt method until i can afford to make a proper one. am i missing any parts or tools. I mean no disrespect to the sheath makers on here, i am just trying to be as low cost/ self sufficient as possible. and i can just use my oven in my kitchen to heat it up right?
 
Kydex isfun and not that hard.

Instead of a Tshirt - try the blue sleeping bag foam that walmart sells you will get a much better press.

or the kneeling pad foam that the big box stores are selling now for kneeling in the garden

Instead of the eyelets, try using screws for your first one and get eyelets later if you like it.
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They call these Sex Bolts, Binder Posts, and other names, and you should be able to get a couple sets from those that sell the kydex



Get a toaster oven from the Goodwill for $5 or so
Try and find a heat gun there too.


Edited now that I see we posted at the same time.

Don't try to get that many sheaths from a bit of material, size the kydex large and then trim the edges later
 
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