rivet or stitch...

P

p'chop

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I'm waiting on delivery of a stag handled fixed blade skinner. The knife comes with a nylon sheath that in my opinion just looks out of place paired up with a traditional looking fixed blade. So i'm going to have a go at making a leather deep pouch type sheath. I'm leaning towards the style of sheath where my belt would pass over the sheath and through the cut out, left side carry for a rt. hand draw. My questions are:


1. What are the pros and cons of using rivets to fasten the pouch opposed to stitchng?

2. Would this method of carry while seated for long periods be uncomfortable ?

An assist from the sheath gurus much appreciated.
 
First, the standard rapid rivets don't hold as well as stitching, nor does it look as good as a nice stitch job.If you are going for a more period look ,the old style copper rivets which are more of a post and washer work well once peened over.Comfort while sitting is depending on knife size and ride hieght, but typically , that type of carry is less forgiving for movement.Dave:)


http://dcknivesandleather.blademakers.com/
 
DC KNIVES said:
First, the standard rapid rivets don't hold as well as stitching, nor does it look as good as a nice stitch job.If you are going for a more period look ,the old style copper rivets which are more of a post and washer work well once peened over.Comfort while sitting is depending on knife size and ride hieght, but typically , that type of carry is less forgiving for movement.Dave:)

Appreciate the insight. I too prefer the look of stitched over rivets. Considered it to be an easier go of the project due to my lack of expierience, but i'll try the stitched method and add a belt loop.Thanks again.
Click to expand...
 
Rivets are faster and easier but they can potentially dull your cutting edge and I think most would agree they do not look nearly as nice as stitching. When I see most riveted sheaths it just looks like something that was thrown together because I know that it is a fast easy alternative to stitching.

I say stitch it.

SDS
 
I would use both. Levi got famous from using rivets to reinforce high stress areas on his jeans and you often see sheaths with this combination - judiciciously placed rivets reduce the risk of cutting the stitches when drawing or sheathing a knife but suggest copper rivets rather than steel or brass.
 
It depends on the style of sheath. I could see a copper rivet at the mouth of the sheath to keep things from coming apart, but a good stitching job and sheath design will keep that from becoming an issue. I've been tempted to rivet that area at times when concerned about the possibility of the knife cutting through the first couple stitches.
 
Use rivets and/or stitching whenever the job asks for it. I'm a big fan of diversity.

To decide what to do you'll have to take a look at how the sheath will be used and carried, and how the grind of the knife is. The entrance of sheath for a very thin slicing knife with an almost zero-edge that will be used under harsh conditions can be more secure with a single well placed rivet..

Stitching alone will do just fine most of the times, and the same goes for well placed good quality rivets.
It's easy to protect the edge from the rivets by using a weld btw. glued welds and rivets go very well together..


Personally I'm a big fan tubular rivets, as they offer many carry options and attachement points for gear and accesories.

KosterTechnicalBushiesheathb.jpg


technicalbushcraft17.jpg



these won't come off, and won't loosen with time..



Though very functional, it doesn't have the looks of handsewn leather ofcourse..

SheathFrej12.jpg



M.
 
I agree with Martin. Stitching looks great but a thick welt will protect the knife edge from any hardware. I personally don't care for the rapid or jiffy type rivets but the tubular rivets are strong as are the copper or brass rivet/washer. Eyelet type rivets are good too but require a rather thin edge as they aren't usually very long (though longer ones can be found). You might want to consider using Chicago screws as well - very sturdy and removeable and no special tools to install. You could also just punch holes and whiptstitch using wide leather or rawhide lace.

The photo shows a cross-section of a rapid rivet on the left and a tubular rivet on the right. You can seen why the tubular rivet is much stronger.

Richard
 

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Great suggestions ! I've definately got some planning to do. The whip-lash style looks interesting. If anyone would care to educate me...When using that method of lashing, what is the technique for starting and finishing the lash (knots...) ? Thanks again
 
Some factory knives used sheaths that were quick and cheap to make using rivets at the end of their stitch line to secure the thread that was not backstitched. Sheaths of this type were rarely stitched with heavy thread and were fashioned without a welt. It was sufficient to carry the knife from where it was purchased.
 
Well, just an update, I found a saddle repair man locally that's going to make the sheath I designed. He's going to do some decorative tooling and "lash" lace the sheath. May still give this craft a try at some point, but looking forward to a quality pouch for my knife. Thanks for the replies and insight.
 
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