After three-plus years and literally thousands of draws, my original horizontal kydex EDC sheath has become so broken-in that I fear a serious forward tumble with a hard bump on the botttom of the handle could cause the knife to pop out and possibly do some unwanted slicing if you get my drift. I want to emphasize that the kydex sheath is not loose by any means, but a close call in the snow got me thinking about something new that is a little more secure. My first thought for this particular sheath project was Dave Ferry (a.k.a.
Horsewright
here on the forum.)
I first met Dave about a year-and-a-half ago at his ranch house to discuss and finalize several sheath projects. Prior to that I read a number of his posts on the “Sheaths & Such” subforums where he is most active. Super nice guy to work with as is his equally talented wife Nichole who does the fancy custom leather carving if your project includes that option.
The sheath I ordered for my favorite EDC 1 was his standard horizontal cross-draw in Hermann Oak leather. This is one of the most popular sheath styles he makes, particularly among the professional Cowboy crowd who need an easily accessible knife that stays secure if horses and/or cattle do unpredictable things with the rider still attached. I am no professional Buckaroo by any means. Urban cowboy very lite maybe since I feed and muck for my wife’s horse Toby. The bottom line is that a secure, compact, and accessible sheath is a nice thing no matter your profession.
My sheath turned out very nice indeed. Dave custom shapes the leather and fits each sheath to a specific knife. No generic pouchs here. He incorporates a Loveless style cam inside the sheath whenever possible to ensure that the knife stays put through any hard bouncing around until you reach over to pull it out.
Toby must have caught a whiff of new leather “tack” when I was down at our barn feeding him the other day. He actually gave up eating to come over and check it out. I dare say he approved of the sheath.
If you are in the market for a custom sheath, give Dave’s website a look to see if one of his models suits your needs. I am very happy with mine.
Phil