2011-09-06

Making knife sheath fittings.

I said I would try to explain how I make my fittings for the sheaths. Here is a couple of pictures explaining the method. I am sorry for the quality, they were taken with a cellphone.

First, the chape:

1, I start out with a paper template and sketch out the rough shape of the chape on the leather sheath.


2, Then I put the paper template on a brass plate and transfer the shape.




3, I use different tools to make all the stamped patterns.


4, To make the rough cut I use a small chisel and carefully strike down on a piece of old railroad track.



5, This is how the piece looks after the rough cut.


6, To cut the outer shape I use a hand held pair of straight-cutting snips.



7, After this it´s time to bend the chape around a metal pipe to give it it´s shape.


8, Then it´s time to get going with sandpaper, files and some elbow grease to smooth all the edges and get rid of burrs. This will take some time.



9, The final stage is to give the chape a high gloss polish.


10, And the final fitting on the leather sheath riveted in place. The leather will be cut after to insure a perfect fit.



I hope this is helpful! I also have some pictures of how to make the smaller fittings if you are interested!

10 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Wow, thank you for this detailed tutorial! I made sheaths before but without brass. Maybe I'll have a try on that, wanted to do it for a long time - so, thanks for encouraging :)
    Oh, and I put you on my Bloglist ;)

    Tríona
    http://koboldkerker.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  3. Glad I could help!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hej Edvin!

    Jag har efter mångt och mycket bestämt mig för att försöka våga mig på att pimpa min läderslida till kniven och insåg rätt snart att jag definitivt inte har den rätta knycken när det kommer till nitningen.

    Har nu nått inlägg eller kan skriva ett inlägg om hur fasiken man ska bära sig åt för att få det snyggt....
    För det här vart långt ifrån godkänt ^^

    http://virrigavikingen.blogspot.se/2012/04/massingsbrak-med-massingsplat.html

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hej Caija!

    Roligt att du ger dig på skidan, det är fint med bling (eller "brass is flash" som de engelska vikingarna säger)!

    Jag ska försöka få med mig kameran ut i verkstaden och se om jag inte kan skriva ihop en liten nitningsguide!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Fantastic! Just a quick question. What is the thickness of the brass sheet that you work with? Is it 1mm? Really looking forward to trying it out on a rather large sharp Scramaseax from Armourclass that has a broken back blade.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. About 0,7-0,8 mm is a good overall thickness!

      Delete
  7. hey there i just had a question about the stamping tools you are using. have you made them yourself? if so, how? did you just grind steel to the triangle form?
    i really want to do something like this and i have a workshop available, but i still would like to get some tips about this. searched the google for "diy metal stamp" but didnt find anything.. any help would be appreciated!

    ReplyDelete
  8. This is very helpful! I am making a sheath for a homemade saxe knife, and I will definitely try this! So far, I have only cut sheaths from one piece of leather, fit the knife, and riveted it. it works, but does not achieve the aesthetic awesomeness of a fitted sheath. Thanks again!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm happy you found it helpful!

      Delete