PROJECT - fixed blade EDC

Spyderco South Fork w/ customized IWB carry solution. 

We're big on EDC here, and big on cutlery, two things which should surprise nobody. The issue at hand is how to discretely carry a nice fixed blade such that it can be carried comfortably and drawn/sheathed quickly, easily, and without a risk of slicing anything. 

Simple enough concept. Fixed blades in their common kydex (or comparable) sheaths are a pain to carry IWB. And this is odd, because firearms in my humble opinion, are far and away the easiest to carry IWB. Knives though are just uncomfortable, difficult to re-sheathe, and you're always at risk of slicing one of those sexy love-muffins you have hanging over your belt from a few too many cheeseburgers. 

All the hardware needed to mount a kydex sheath on an Aliengear backer. 

So enter our idea of making a hybrid sheath carry system. We could have scratch-built this, but Aliengear stuff is so cheap and convenient we decided to start there. One hardware pack, two clips, and a large backer. For this grand experiment I'll use a personal favorite of mine, and one of the best screaming deals in the cutlery industry, the Spyderco - Phil Wilson collab: the South Fork. 

Conveniently one of the mount holes for the Spyderco G-clip matches, so secure that first, adjust cant to your preferences, and prepare to drill the second mount hole. 

Step one was easy. The existing "shell" mounts were in the correct alignment, and the sheath already had a mounting hole in a good location from it's use of the G-clip, so I started there. Now to make another hole to fit the other mounting screw and alien-green standoff spacer. Those standoffs are critical here because they allow you to space the knife up off the sheath. This gives you that critical distance you need to not only avoid muffin-slicing, but allow for easy re-sheathing of the knife even with your belt pressing it inward. 

Pilot hole is drilled with an under-sized bit through the fastener hole from the back. This assures correct alignment. 

Positioned the sheath at the angle I wanted, and made sure the hole would clear the blade, before drilling a pilot hole from the back.

Pilot hole has been drilled, and will act as a center for a larger bit that'll open the hole up to its final diameter. 

Pilot hole from the back down, now use that as a center to drill the correct size hole in the front. 

Full diameter hole has been drilled. 

Tada, done. Just add another standoff and screw and it is ready to go. 

Mounted. Knife on IWB backer? Done!

Done. Seems like all that extra space on the side is just begging for a mount for a spare magazine. Either way though, I'm calling this project a success. Now the knife is comfy to carry IWB and can easily be inserted or removed form the sheath. The standoffs add a little thickness, and the extra leather above separates those love-muffins from the blade path. Took less than 15 minutes. You'll note I didn't trim the excess leather below. My thought is that this could be fairly modular. Instead of having a backer for every knife, as long as I have mounting holes in the sheath I can swap any knife I want onto the backer. Perhaps it wouldn't quite accommodate a Busse Battle Mistress, but a quick look suggests it'll happily fit an ASH1. Wouldn't that be a thing to add to the EDC lineup? 

Looks to me like it is just begging for a mag carrier combo. 

Spyderco South Fork w/ customized IWB carry solution.