Typical weight/type leather for knife sheaths... ?

Battle Creek Knives

Battle Creek Knives

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Feb 23, 2010
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Hi guys, I have a shoulder of veg tanned and what I believe to be 6oz not quite sure maybe I could dig up the receipt as it was bought quite some time ago..

anyhow it seems like a fair weight for some bush tools, maybe even a 'chete.. but I was curious what weight and type of leather I should be buying for knives.. ??

I know that some leathers will down right rust a knife out in no time so I want to stay away from that as ALL costs.. !!

And I realize that some knives require heavier material but the knives I'm making are basic bushcrafters 8" OAL and around 3.5/4.0 blades, although I am in the process of making some 14" golok machetes w/ 1/8" steel and would like to offer those with leather as an option..

so what weight/type would you recommend..??
 
I tend to go with 7/8 ounce leather for smaller knives in the 3 to 4 inch blade length. But, the belt loops are always 8/9 ounce for durability.

Larger knives get 8/9 ounce all around.

Tough call on machete's, they're so thin that thick leather seems a bit overkill. With a good stiff welt you should be able to go with 7/8 ounce leather for the body of the sheath, but I would go 8/9 for the belt loop and backing.

WildmanH specializes in machete sheaths, if he can chime in here with his suggestions, I'd love to hear from him on this. :)
 
I use 7/8 and 8/9 depending on the sheath.

The leather that you're referring to that will rust a knife is chrome tanned pieces...not good for sheaths.
 
8/9 myself, Seems to be an all around good weight for me. I've done a couple machetes, I tend to go with heavier stuff to keep the sheath from being floppy.
 
leatherman said:
I tend to go with 7/8 ounce leather for smaller knives in the 3 to 4 inch blade length. But, the belt loops are always 8/9 ounce for durability.

Larger knives get 8/9 ounce all around.

Tough call on machete's, they're so thin that thick leather seems a bit overkill. With a good stiff welt you should be able to go with 7/8 ounce leather for the body of the sheath, but I would go 8/9 for the belt loop and backing.

WildmanH specializes in machete sheaths, if he can chime in here with his suggestions, I'd love to hear from him on this. :)
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Thanks for thinking of my Leatherman! :) I use 8-10oz or 10-12oz Veggy tanned Saddle Skirting. IMO the 8-10oz leather works fine for machete's with up to an 18" blade. For 18"+ you definantly want to go with the 10-12oz leather. Untill recently the only machete sheaths I made were fold over (taco) style sheaths. The fold and a thick welt seems to stiffen the leather a bit, but when you go past 18" IMO thicker leather and a thick welt is a must. A week or two ago I made a pancake style sheath for an 18" Fiddleback machete using 8-10oz leather and the welt was cut from the same hide. Suprisingly enough the sheath wasn't as floppy as I thought it would be. Mind you all my machete sheaths have an 8" to 10" long and 1-1/2" wide Tie down loop on the back. Not only does it give the customer some good lash points but it also helps stiffen the sheath.

Hope that helps. If anyone has any more questions about Machete sheaths, feel free to email me or post in this thread. :)

By the way, I get my Saddle Skirting from Wicket & Craig. You have to buy it by the side, but it's Dang good stuff!! You can get it drum dried Black, Brown, Chestnut or just plain.
 
Already said by others, but I use 8/9 ounce.

I use it for smaller knives too, just because. I like a rigid sheath.

Make sure you use a nice solid welt, and you should be fine.

6 ounce leather for a machete is doable, and better than most sheaths that will come with machetes (if they come with one at all).

You can make up for thickness issues by adding a layer, or adding another layer around the trim on the stitching.
 
I am just realizing what many others have spoken here. When you have to wet form a smaller knife - 8-10 ounce is just a BIT too thick. 7/8 ounce is how I will be ordering it from now on. Right now I need to skive quite a bit to get it to do what I want.


I wish this thread would have been up 6 months ago - it would save me some time these days! ;)

TF
 
K Williams said:
Where do you all buy your leather? What type? Vegetable tanned, latigo, etc.?
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Horsewright (thanks be to him for showing me the way) and I get ours from Hide House here in California. Shipping is super quick so probably still a good choice for someone in NY. I've bought from a few different places and I'm by far happiest with HH.

How much are you buying? What quality and weight? You can be fairly certain (imo) that you'll get good stuff if you go with Hermann Oak or Wickett & Craig. That said I'm really happy with the veg tanned premium double shoulder leather from HH. The price is almost laughably low and quality is high from my limited experience.

Get veg tanned. Shoulders, bend, skirting, it's all good. If you want to make long belts a double shoulder yields good strap/belt options.
 
I use 7/8 oz for the majority of sheaths. I will occasionally use 8-10 oz for bigger heavier knives. Years ago use to use a lot of 5/6oz, then switched to 6/7 oz and finally have settled on 7/8 oz for the vast majority.
 
Are there any companies that sell 9oz USA vegetable tanned leather in small dimensions? Around 24" x24"?
 
Springfield Leather Supply will cut for you if they don't already it cut to that size.
 
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