To sheath or not to sheath; that is the question.

[mike williams]

As part of a conversation with a new client a few days ago; the question came up," do you always furnish a sheath with the knife"?
Which got us to the question," If I don't want a sheath will you take it off the purchace price? I just throw the sheath in the drawer with the rest of them."
I realize a using/ working knife must have a sheath. And knives with silver sheaths and knives with throat and tip sheaths are very much an intregal part of the piece. There are others that fit this category as well.
That being said.
Do you prefer a leather sheath with collector/investment grade knives? If so; do you keep them together?
Do you not care about the sheath?
Do you prefer some other arrangement?
I would like to hear some thoughts and reasonings from you guys if you would.

thanks
Mike

[Jerry Manuel]

Hey Mike,
Personally I want a sheath whether it be leather, silver, or whatever . IMHO a user, collector, investment grade, etc. should include some type of sheath unless the client wants to have his own custom sheath made - Jerry

[Roger Pinnock]

Hi Mike,

Great to see you here!

I definitely prefer a sheath with a fixed blade knife. Whether I plan to carry it or whether it is purely a collection piece, a fixed blade sans sheath seems conceptually incomplete to me.

I also definitely prefer that the sheath be of a level of quality commensurate with the knife itself. Not all great bladesmiths are great sheathmakers. As a buyer, a quality sheath from Rowe, Treestump or our own Paul Long alongside a nice bowie makes the impulse to part with cash a little harder to resist.

Roger

[Darren P. Reeves]

Hi Mike.
I have to agree with Jerry and Roger.
I would want a sheath with the knife I purchase. and it needs to be up to par with the knife I buy.
Good question, and welcome to the forums. Darren

[Kevin Jones]

As others have also stated, I prefer a sheath with my knives whether a user or collectible/investment grade knife. Obviously, a sheath is a necessity for convenient carry and an appropriate sheath makes a fine accompaniment for a beautiful knife display.

It's not overly important to me (other than for convenience sake) whether the knifemaker supplies a quality sheath of his/her making or from a sheathmaker at purchase or I commission direct from a sheathmaker. Well actually, commissioning from the sheathmaker probably gives the collector more creative input on the overall knife/sheath design if that's important.

Now the exception would be knives from knifemakers who are also accomplished sheathmakers such as Larry Fuegen and Tim Hancock. I could certainly name quite a few others. To take it a step further, I consider both Larry and Tim to be among the very best sheathmakers in the world and would be of the opinion that a Fuegen or Hancock knife to be de-valued to a degree without an accompanying sheath of their making.

I would strongly recommend that if a knifemaker is to supply a sheath of his/her own making to be sure it's of the same quality of manufacturer and degree of aesthetic appearance as their knife.
A few years ago, I purchased a new "MS" hunter which came inside a pouch sheath made by the maker or the maker's wife. The leather inside the sheath was hard/stiff and probably equal to about 60 grit and scratched both the guard and damascus blade. So if I were a maker, I wouldn't waste my time and/or my customer's money by providing a plain $50 sheath with a $1500+ knife or by any means a sheath which quality puts the knife at risk.

Hope this helps.

[Lorien Arnold]

if I can save a little money by not taking a sheath, then I'd usually choose that option because I like to make sheaths myself. But that's in the context of someone who has never spent more than about 600 bucks on a knife. For something beyond that, as an Art piece I'd expect that the sheath would be a complement to the knife and would expect it to be included.

[Jim Treacy]

Mike,

I usually like to receive a sheath with a collector/ investment grade knife, but with the exception of a few I would not keep or display them together.

It is not a deal breaker if I don't get a sheath. I do think that it helps selling a knife if it comes with a sheath.

Sometimes it is a pain in the a** to keep track of which sheath goes with what knife.

[Jon Klein]

Mike,

For me a sheath definitely adds to the whole package. As has been said if it is the maker is not comfortable or able to make a sheath then either the maker or I have one made. I have found that I am now become a sheath collector. As Jim mentioned keeping track of what sheath goes with what knife has been a pain in the past. However, now that I have most of my sheaths made by the same maker I am finding it easier to keep them together.

Jon

[Buddy Thomason]

Mike - given the feedback here maybe you'd like me to send those three bad boys back to you soze you can make sheaths for them. I'd be Ok with that. Just let me know.;);)

[Peter Elovich]

I would agree with Roger and Kevin. Especially that the sheath should be equal to the quality of the knife. I fine knife with a crude utilitarian sheath is undesirable.

Peter

[mike williams]

Thanks you guys for all the insights.
Personally; I've always thought that a knife should have a sheath. My feelings are that a sheath is an important part of the package, especially on knives that don't break in the middle. The conversation with the young man earlier just got me to thinking that maybe I was getting behind the times.
What better way to get the latest than with the CKCA guys here.
Since I don't make my own sheaths, my schedule and Mr. Rowes schedule don't always align in the last few days before a show, so it goes to the show naked.
On those occasions I give the buyer the option of
1. We can take the knife over to Kennys table and get your sheath on order; cost and shipping on me.
2. I will take the cost of the sheath off the knife and you can have the sheath maker of your choice build you one . Or not, if you prefer.

Buddy, if you just wag those big rascals down to Atlanta, you and I will get Kenny to fix you right up.

mike

[Kevin Jones]

Thanks you guys for all the insights.
Personally; I've always thought that a knife should have a sheath. My feelings are that a sheath is an important part of the package, especially on knives that don't break in the middle. The conversation with the young man earlier just got me to thinking that maybe I was getting behind the times.
What better way to get the latest than with the CKCA guys here.
Since I don't make my own sheaths, my schedule and Mr. Rowes schedule don't always align in the last few days before a show, so it goes to the show naked.
On those occasions I give the buyer the option of
1. We can take the knife over to Kennys table and get your sheath on order; cost and shipping on me.
2. I will take the cost of the sheath off the knife and you can have the sheath maker of your choice build you one . Or not, if you prefer.

Buddy, if you just wag those big rascals down to Atlanta, you and I will get Kenny to fix you right up.

mike

I like that.