2021: Sheath dulling issue, first time I observed it for myself; EDIT: made a leather sheath

The Hawk said:
I bought a Cold Steel Warcraft Tanto last year and noticed the poor quality of the secure-ex sheath. The knife fits too tight and the blade pushes against the sheath too much. I ended up getting someone to make me a new sheath. I am much happier with the new sheath. Too bad Cold Steel keeps selling these crummy sheaths for their fantastic knives.
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The Warcraft looks like a great knife. Sucks that out of the box, the knife is held back by a subpar sheath.
 
deadzonepatrol said:
There's definitely some dulling from the secure ex plastic, whenever the edge makes contact with it.

I know this ain't going to be a popular answer, but the solution is simply to buy a leather sheath. Try evil bay or any of the large retailers' websites. Just get the best fitting leather sheath available for your budget. I had to get sheaths for my Busses, TOPS, and Ontarios. If budget allows, you can get aftermarket sheaths designed for your knife model. It's a pain in the ass, but leather is the way to go. CS ain't the only company to skimp on the sheaths. Other than the Kabar, Bark River is the only one that gives you a quality leather sheath.

CS Laredo bowies used to come with leather sheaths. These unfortunately scratch up the sides of the blade, but at least they don't dull the edge.
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Lionsteel sheaths are very nice. So are the sheaths on Blackjack and even Condor. If freaking Condor can give you heavy leather or Kydex then Cold Steel has no excuse.
 
Chris_Texas said:
Lionsteel sheaths are very nice. So are the sheaths on Blackjack and even Condor. If freaking Condor can give you heavy leather or Kydex then Cold Steel has no excuse.
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I agree, Chris. What’s even nuts is that they used to offer cordura sheaths. I don’t see why we can’t go back to that.
 
DangerZone98 said:
I agree, Chris. What’s even nuts is that they used to offer cordura sheaths. I don’t see why we can’t go back to that.
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That might be fine on their inexpensive stuff, but high end knives deserve a high end home. Gorgon Ramsey doesn't serve Michelin Star meals on paper plates. He would tell you that the food and his customers deserve the best he can do.

Cold Steel seems to have forgotten this, and when you are trying to sell two and three and four hundred dollar knives the best is what people expect.
 
Secure-Ex sheaths always dull the knife in my experience, some more some less. Because I really like many of their designs, I bought the materials to make my own kydex sheaths. But it's a pain to do and it shouldn't be necessary.
I don't understand why they don't simply change the material to remove the glass fiber. Yes, it would make the sheath less rigid. Who cares? Leather sheaths aren't rigid and no one complains. I doubt the tooling would even change. Other manufacturers use non-glass reinforced plastic, why can't Cold Steel? I think they're just being stupid.
 
I have a San Mai Tai Pan that I bought about a year and a half ago that gets mildly dulled by its sheath. I still need to make a leather sheath for it. I was planning on that this past winter, but time got away from me. I don't like it, but it's not a huge deal right now. The knife doesn't get carried much at all, and for its intended purposes, razor sharp or only just really sharp, it would be monstrous in a fight.

Still, it needs a new pair of leather pants before I fine-detail the edge.
 
Steely_Gunz said:
I have a San Mai Tai Pan that I bought about a year and a half ago that gets mildly dulled by its sheath. I still need to make a leather sheath for it. I was planning on that this past winter, but time got away from me. I don't like it, but it's not a huge deal right now. The knife doesn't get carried much at all, and for its intended purposes, razor sharp or only just really sharp, it would be monstrous in a fight.

Still, it needs a new pair of leather pants before I fine-detail the edge.
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This is the issue that has prevented me from buying the Tai Pan. With single edged blades you can often protect the edge as you draw or sheath the weapon. That isn't possible with dual edged products.
 
Chris_Texas said:
This is the issue that has prevented me from buying the Tai Pan. With single edged blades you can often protect the edge as you draw or sheath the weapon. That isn't possible with dual edged products.
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I would still give the Tai Pan a shot if the fancy strikes you. It really is a pretty marvelous fighting knife for the price. The fit and finish is spot on, and it balances like a dream if you are into semi neutral heavy-ish knives.

The sheath is a bucket of suck, but the rest is pretty doggone good.
 
Steely_Gunz said:
I would still give the Tai Pan a shot if the fancy strikes you. It really is a pretty marvelous fighting knife for the price. The fit and finish is spot on, and it balances like a dream if you are into semi neutral heavy-ish knives.

The sheath is a bucket of suck, but the rest is pretty doggone good.
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I will probably get one when I know I will have time for a new sheath. I know how angry I would be if I bought an expensive knife and the sheath ruined it. My last Cold Steel fixed blade, a 3V Master Hunter, is completely worthless thanks to the sheath. No matter how careful you are you simply cannot use the sheath without it dulling the blade almost instantly. I am talking razor sharp to failing to cut paper in only a few trips in and out of the sheath. It is complete crap, and that Master Hunter wasn't cheap.

On that same order I also got a Bark River Chute Knife and a Bark River Sandstorm (I think it's called). Both of those came with seriously high end leather sheaths designed for both vertical or horizontal carry. Both had perfect fit and finish, both came laser sharp and they still are today -- despite me actually using them. The Master Hunter is now dull, sitting in storage, and has never been used because the sheath is a piece of trash.
 
Mark Spark said:
Secure-Ex sheaths always dull the knife in my experience, some more some less. Because I really like many of their designs, I bought the materials to make my own kydex sheaths. But it's a pain to do and it shouldn't be necessary.
I don't understand why they don't simply change the material to remove the glass fiber. Yes, it would make the sheath less rigid. Who cares? Leather sheaths aren't rigid and no one complains. I doubt the tooling would even change. Other manufacturers use non-glass reinforced plastic, why can't Cold Steel? I think they're just being stupid.
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My experience as well

(Imo) Knives kept in secure-ex sheaths long term are good for heavy duty use and thrusting/piercing but not fine slicing/cutting
 
PQGK said:
My experience as well

(Imo) Knives kept in secure-ex sheaths long term are good for heavy duty use and thrusting/piercing but not fine slicing/cutting
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To be fair there is luck involved. If you get lucky you will get a great knife and sheath and never experience any problems. My Drop Forged Hunter is like that, and I have others as well. Most have been okay. On some,, like my mini tac tanto, the sheath is absolutely perfect.

If you are less fortunate you will get a sheath that will dull the blade as fast as grinding the edge on sandpaper or a diamond grit stone -- which is basically what you are doing when you use one of these that doesn't fit properly.

Rolling the dice MIGHT be fine when you are talking about a twenty dollar mini tac. It is not fine when you are considering a three hundred dollar Tai Pan. Cold Steel really needs to fix this issue.
 
Chris_Texas said:
To be fair there is luck involved. If you get lucky you will get a great knife and sheath and never experience any problems. My Drop Forged Hunter is like that, and I have others as well. Most have been okay. On some,, like my mini tac tanto, the sheath is absolutely perfect.

If you are less fortunate you will get a sheath that will dull the blade as fast as grinding the edge on sandpaper or a diamond grit stone -- which is basically what you are doing when you use one of these that doesn't fit properly.

Rolling the dice MIGHT be fine when you are talking about a twenty dollar mini tac. It is not fine when you are considering a three hundred dollar Tai Pan. Cold Steel really needs to fix this issue.
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True .
My Bowie Spike and mini Tac tanto were ok but koban, warcraft and best pal all lost their fine edge
 
PQGK said:
True .
My Bowie Spike and mini Tac tanto were ok but koban, warcraft and best pal all lost their fine edge
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Oddly enough my MiniTac Tanto was one of only two Cold Steel knives i have ever purchased that arrived completely screwed up. In the case of the MiniTac it was never sharpened at the factory -- it arrived complete dull. At the time I didn't care as I always re-sharpen my knives anyway, but I kinda wish now that I had left it as it came (it was unique and kind of cool). As cheap as they are I should have bought another for use and kept the defective one as a collector.

Once I put an edge on it, it has kept that edge astonishingly well despite actual use.

For anyone who doesn't own any the MiniTac series are simply fantastic. If you can, get them in Aus8a if those are still available. You will want the small C clip for belt carry I believe. Double check that to be sure.
 
Hey everyone. I’m gonna try to craft my own leather sheath and see how this goes. Honestly, I got only the basic foundational skills and tools, but my focus will be on functionality and reliability right now. The fancy artsy stuff can wait, lol. I just want a good sheath that doesn’t dull my instrument.

I’m gonna pattern it after the Ka-Bar leather sheath. The official Ka-Bar sheath doesn’t fit the GI because of the knife’s wide blade. If it works and doesn’t look too horrible, I’ll share pics.
 
DangerZone98 said:
Hey everyone. I’m gonna try to craft my own leather sheath and see how this goes. Honestly, I got only the basic foundational skills and tools, but my focus will be on functionality and reliability right now. The fancy artsy stuff can wait, lol. I just want a good sheath that doesn’t dull my instrument.

I’m gonna pattern it after the Ka-Bar leather sheath. The official Ka-Bar sheath doesn’t fit the GI because of the knife’s wide blade. If it works and doesn’t look too horrible, I’ll share pics.
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I want to learn that myself. Keep us posted!
 
Hey everyone. The leather sheath I’m making is coming along nicely. I think I’ll just place the pics here when it’s ready rather than starting a new thread. Now I’m just waiting for the tools for installing snap buttons.

The Secure-Ex dulling issue sucks, but at least sheath-making made for a fun project (and it’s way easier making knife sheaths than knives lol).
 
It’s finally more or less done! It’s not perfect, but it was quite fun to make. It isn’t quite obvious, but welts are included for some added reinforcement. Next time, I’ll rivet the belt loop on the body of the sheath itself.

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Learned plenty of things, and there’s a lot more left to learn. My thoughts as a novice maker, leatherwork is a test of patience and meticulousness. It’s rewarding when you take your time and really plan out the next two or three steps, and at the same time quite punishing if you rush seemingly basic steps. Having the right tools right from the beginning is also extremely helpful.

Thanks for reading! Constructive criticism is more than welcome.
 
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