I don't have any real experience with kydex sheaths but I'm considering trying one out as they seem to be much more quickly available than leather and I don't want my 511 to get cold waiting months for a set of pants. I'm hoping some of you guys that use/love kydex can answer a few questions for me.

1) what are the differences between a taco style and pancake style? Any functional difference at all?

2) How exactly does a tek-lok work? can they be used to carry horizontally? If not, is there another way to attach a kydex sheath to a belt that allows for horizontal carry?

3) is it any more or less bad for a blade to leave it housed in a kydex sheath for a long period than a leather one?

Thanks ahead of time for taking a look and any insight you can provide!

1. Taco is one piece of kydex folded in middle and eyelets/ rivets are attached to close open end. Pancake is two pieces of kydex sealed with eyelets on both sides. But I have seen pancake made from one large piece of kydex riveted or eyelet on both sides for attachment points.

Taco is lower profile and compact,
the pancake is easier to attach to packs and to attach pouches to since tou have the double attachment points.

2 tek looks et you put it on your belt without threading it thru like a traditional leather loop. They attach to the sheath with screws and can usually be placed horizontally or vertical.

3 if the knife or sheath is wet it's bad no matter leather or kydex.

Kydex does not retain moisture like leather but you still have to maintain your knife. Clean and dry and make sure kydex is clean and dry before you store.

Hope it helps


Pics help more than words sometimes

Here is a taco, the desert camo one and a pancake the all black





Here is a close up of a tex lox open in the vertical position




Here is a horizontal tek lok



here is a pancake from one piece of kydex from the above pic

Sar5

1) A taco style one is I believe one single piece of kydex, which has been folded around the spine of the knife and attached with rivets by the edge side. A pancake one is one that consists of two pieces of kydex stacked on top of each other around the knife and attached by rivets all the way around. The good thing about the pancake is that it has holes all the way around it and more places to attach para-cord or other carry devices. The good thing about the taco is that it is not as wide and doesn't take up as much space.

2) A tek-lok is a device with hinges that you close around your belt to secure it tightly after you attach the sheath to it. It has multiple holes allowing horizontal, vertical and diagonal carry, with the handle pointing in any direction. A G-clip is a simpler, slightly less bulky device, which also allows any position carry, even though it doesn't lock quite as tightly to your belt as the tek-lock.

3) From what I've heard, storing the knife in a leather sheath for a long time may cause a risk for rust if not attended, since leather is a living material. I don't believe this same sort of risk exists with a kydex sheath (given that you keep the knife in a dry place). The only real risk from use with a kydex sheath is that the blade might get some minor scratches from it.

Here's a pic of the G-clip too. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />:

Thanks guys, that's exactly what I was looking for. Much appreciated!

well sar and doc beat me to it. said pretty much everything I was going to say...

Hi Jason I am no expert but i do use kydex to carry a lot of my tools, most of my knife sheathes are taco or 1 piece fold over which i like the looks of, your two piece construction will give you more options for molle adaptation. I do not own any tek-lok so i am not the one to give you a honest answer. Your third ? depends on your steel, how well you clean it before putting it up,Leather can hold moisture if not thoroughly dried out. I hope this helps some check around we have some talented leather and kydex makers here that can take care of most of your needs.

pics for you buddy and welcome to the yard! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Thanks for the pics, Sar. Very helpful!

The posts above pretty much nails the point of your question.
So not really relevant to your question, I find the taco style to be the cooler look, IMO. A long with the tek-lok it makes for a smooth combo.

Thanks for the pic, Doc. Are g-clips harder to obtain? The makers I've looked into seem to only offer tek loks.

PM sent.

thread gets more interesting by the post...

g-clip??? think I know this one... basically a kydex oval right?

isnt there a clip from spyderco thats been pretty popular?