The sheath for the knife can be made of a variety of materials. And the most popular are wood, genuine leather, plastic. When choosing a material, the main thing is that the instrument reliably "sits" in them - so you definitely will not lose it.
In this review, the master makes the sheath of the thermoplastic Kydex material. This is a sheet made on the basis of acrylic and PVC. Of the distinctive characteristics of this material, it is worth noting the impact and wear resistance, long service life.
First of all, it is necessary to cut off a piece of thermoplastic sheet with a small margin in size, and the knife must be glued with several layers of masking tape.
Kydex thermoplastic sheets are used in the manufacturing process of knife scissors, holsters for pistols, covers, etc.
The obvious advantage of the material is that it does not soak, does not dry out like a tree, and does not crack with time. And thanks to the leather upholstery, such a scabbard will serve faithfully for many years.
Step-by-step knife sheath manufacturing process
A piece of thermoplastic material must be heated in the oven. Moreover, the temperature of "baking" is different, and depends on the thickness of the sheet itself. If the thickness is less than 1.5 mm, then the temperature should be 165-175 ° C. With a thickness of 2-3 mm, the material must be heated at a temperature of 180-200 degrees.
The thermoplastic sheet can also be heated with a construction hairdryer. We bend the heated sheet in half, insert the knife inside and clamp everything in the press, which consists of two pieces of chipboard and two pieces of thermal foam.
You need to wait about half an hour, after which you can remove the clamps, and in the end you get an almost finished cover. It remains only to process it and fit it with genuine leather (or other material).
At the next stage, the master cuts the sheath in the shape of a knife and processes the edges with a drill. Then you need to cut a piece of leather and stick it on the scabbard. Leather upholstery will give the scabbard a more original look.
At the end, the master installs special rivet buttons with a through hole for brass studs. They are needed in order to fix the sheath on the belt.
For details on how to make a sheath for a knife from a thermoplastic material with your own hands, see this video.
