Review: Savage-Made sheaths

John in AR · 05-14-2012, 06:04 PM

Received a couple Savage-Made sheaths and thought I’d post a first-impression review of them here. The two knives were a Super SOG Bowie and a Marbles Ideal with 7” blade (now unfortunately discontinued).

Background – I’m naturally left-handed, so most fixed-blade knife sheaths either don’t work for me; or at best, work poorly. I’ve made a few of my own that are fine, but wanted to try something different this time; and found Savage-Made thru a typical internet search, looking for left-handed knife sheaths. I’m not connected with them, never met them (or ‘him’ – the proprietor’s name is Harry Savage, and it may be a one-man operation for all I know), and have no vested interest there, so no reason to be less than objective in my impressions of them.

Short version: very happy with them. (Details to follow

)

One thing I was impressed with was his willingness to work with me to get something that he’d never done before. Many knife sheaths come with a pocket for a small stone on the front, and that’s all well & good. But I hugely prefer an EZE-Lap hone to almost anything else for sharpening a fixed-blade, and he was able to incorporate that into the design at my request.

This is both knives in the Savage-Made sheaths, with the factory sheaths alongside. (Pardon the poor lighting & reflections):

Better pic of the new sheaths. I went with the spear-point version for the SOG, so it can also be used for right-hand use; hopefully by one of my sons someday. The half-guard of the Marbles makes that impossible unless using an around-the-handle strap, which I don’t like. The SOG one is an old Randall style design, for anyone familiar with them:

This is a big part of why I like them so much. Instead of a front pouch for a stone, I had him put a thin sleeve on the back, sized for an EZE-Lap. Took a little explaining on my part, as he wasn’t familiar with the EZE-Lap before this. They’re just 1/8” thick or so, and with the thinner leather he used for the sleeve, the result is exactly what I hoped for. It’ll let me keep my favorite (and small, thin, lightweight) sharpener with the knife completely securely, yet it can be removed & used easily by just removing the knife, up-ending the sheath (while still on the belt), and pulling it out. Love the result:

If the knife used were shorter, there wouldn't be enough room on the back for a full-length EZE-Lap, but even if the lap had to be shortened an inch or even two, it'd still be worth it to have that particular sharpener onboard; I'm that much of a fan of them.

Edge view of the sheaths. Six layers of leather at the top on both of them, tapering down to the typical three:

I’ve already ordered another one, for my 8” Marbles Ideal. Very impressed with both the product and the turn-around time. Accepts paypal so paying is easy & probably as safe as it gets, and they showed up Priority Mail less than two weeks from order date.

http://savagemadesheaths.com/

jasper · 05-15-2012, 06:55 AM

Thanks for the look John. I have a couple old knives without sheaths that I might talk to them about....

John in AR · 05-15-2012, 07:49 AM

Didn't think to include the prices. They were $55 each, with $7.50 combined shipping; $117.50 total for both. Not really bad, considering it would probably take me 8-10 hours (plus cost of leather, cording, stain & hardware) to make & finish both of them myself.

John in AR · 07-06-2012, 08:06 AM

Fwiw, one more Savage-made sheath; for a Fallkniven SK6 "Krut" this time.

Black factory sheath & brown savage-made sheath. You can see that the fallkniven sheath is made to ride quite low on the belt; lower than most sheaths I've encountered. The savage-made version rides more normally, which is probably a good thing with a knife this small.

One neat feature of the factory sheath is that it can snap on & off, but still be very secure due to the way the top welt is made; making it almost impossible to dislodge even if both snaps came accidentally undone. Same EZE-lap hone sleeve on the back of the savage-made sheath. I've really come to like having the hone right there with the knife; it's always easy to find yet out of the way.

Wish fallkniven made a slightly larger version of the SK6. If the blade were between 7.5 & 8 inches (rather than this 6.3"), it would be closer to my preferred size for a woods knife.

money30 · 07-12-2012, 06:33 PM

One thing I was impressed with was his willingness to work with me to get something that he’d never done before. Many knife sheaths come with a pocket for a small stone on the front, and that’s all well & good. But I hugely prefer an EZE-Lap hone to almost anything else for sharpening a fixed-blade, and he was able to incorporate that into the design at my request.

05-14-2012, 06:04 PM	#1
John in AR Registered User Joined: May 2004 From: Central Arkansas Posts: 2,398	Review: Savage-Made sheaths Received a couple Savage-Made sheaths and thought I’d post a first-impression review of them here. The two knives were a Super SOG Bowie and a Marbles Ideal with 7” blade (now unfortunately discontinued). Background – I’m naturally left-handed, so most fixed-blade knife sheaths either don’t work for me; or at best, work poorly. I’ve made a few of my own that are fine, but wanted to try something different this time; and found Savage-Made thru a typical internet search, looking for left-handed knife sheaths. I’m not connected with them, never met them (or ‘him’ – the proprietor’s name is Harry Savage, and it may be a one-man operation for all I know), and have no vested interest there, so no reason to be less than objective in my impressions of them. Short version: very happy with them. (Details to follow ) One thing I was impressed with was his willingness to work with me to get something that he’d never done before. Many knife sheaths come with a pocket for a small stone on the front, and that’s all well & good. But I hugely prefer an EZE-Lap hone to almost anything else for sharpening a fixed-blade, and he was able to incorporate that into the design at my request. This is both knives in the Savage-Made sheaths, with the factory sheaths alongside. (Pardon the poor lighting & reflections): Better pic of the new sheaths. I went with the spear-point version for the SOG, so it can also be used for right-hand use; hopefully by one of my sons someday. The half-guard of the Marbles makes that impossible unless using an around-the-handle strap, which I don’t like. The SOG one is an old Randall style design, for anyone familiar with them: This is a big part of why I like them so much. Instead of a front pouch for a stone, I had him put a thin sleeve on the back, sized for an EZE-Lap. Took a little explaining on my part, as he wasn’t familiar with the EZE-Lap before this. They’re just 1/8” thick or so, and with the thinner leather he used for the sleeve, the result is exactly what I hoped for. It’ll let me keep my favorite (and small, thin, lightweight) sharpener with the knife completely securely, yet it can be removed & used easily by just removing the knife, up-ending the sheath (while still on the belt), and pulling it out. Love the result: If the knife used were shorter, there wouldn't be enough room on the back for a full-length EZE-Lap, but even if the lap had to be shortened an inch or even two, it'd still be worth it to have that particular sharpener onboard; I'm that much of a fan of them. Edge view of the sheaths. Six layers of leather at the top on both of them, tapering down to the typical three: I’ve already ordered another one, for my 8” Marbles Ideal. Very impressed with both the product and the turn-around time. Accepts paypal so paying is easy & probably as safe as it gets, and they showed up Priority Mail less than two weeks from order date. http://savagemadesheaths.com/

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05-15-2012, 06:55 AM	#2
jasper Registered User Joined: Mar 2005 Posts: 433	Thanks for the look John. I have a couple old knives without sheaths that I might talk to them about....

05-15-2012, 07:49 AM	#3
John in AR Registered User Joined: May 2004 From: Central Arkansas Posts: 2,398	Didn't think to include the prices. They were $55 each, with $7.50 combined shipping; $117.50 total for both. Not really bad, considering it would probably take me 8-10 hours (plus cost of leather, cording, stain & hardware) to make & finish both of them myself.

07-06-2012, 08:06 AM	#4
John in AR Registered User Joined: May 2004 From: Central Arkansas Posts: 2,398	Fwiw, one more Savage-made sheath; for a Fallkniven SK6 "Krut" this time. Black factory sheath & brown savage-made sheath. You can see that the fallkniven sheath is made to ride quite low on the belt; lower than most sheaths I've encountered. The savage-made version rides more normally, which is probably a good thing with a knife this small. One neat feature of the factory sheath is that it can snap on & off, but still be very secure due to the way the top welt is made; making it almost impossible to dislodge even if both snaps came accidentally undone. Same EZE-lap hone sleeve on the back of the savage-made sheath. I've really come to like having the hone right there with the knife; it's always easy to find yet out of the way. Wish fallkniven made a slightly larger version of the SK6. If the blade were between 7.5 & 8 inches (rather than this 6.3"), it would be closer to my preferred size for a woods knife.

07-12-2012, 06:33 PM	#5
money30 Registered User Joined: Jun 2012 From: VA Posts: 54	One thing I was impressed with was his willingness to work with me to get something that he’d never done before. Many knife sheaths come with a pocket for a small stone on the front, and that’s all well & good. But I hugely prefer an EZE-Lap hone to almost anything else for sharpening a fixed-blade, and he was able to incorporate that into the design at my request.