Boot knives in the Old West?

[Judge Jake McCord]

I've been thinking about getting a boot knife to use at events, both for the "look" and for use (already got a ton of stuff on my gun belt, and this would beat reachin' into a pocket).

Does anyone know to what extent the Cowboys of old carried boot knives?

Judge Jake McCord

[St. George]

They show up in period artwork often enough to suggest moderately wide use - though for how long a period is anyone's guess.

'Most' of the illustrations seem to be of those working in the Southwest and 'far' West - more towards California, so perhaps it had a regional aspect to it - or a Mexican influence.

Belt knives were just that - sheath knives carried on the cartridge belt.

Pocket knives were more often carried in the vest pocket, since anything carried in a trouser pocket would prove somewhat difficult to retrieve when mounted - and it'd be held tight enough in a trouser pocket so as to be uncomfortable.

A boot knife would fall into the area of 'in-between' sizes - 'usually' - with shorter blades than Bowies - and with longer blades than the bigger single-jack folders, though a pair of high-topped, cathedral-stitched boots would accomodate a longer weapon.

If you're going to wear one - be certain you've got a secure method of attaching it to a boot top.

You don't want it to 'walk out' - nor do you want it to 'drop in'.

In the former - you could be out a nice piece of cutlery - and in the latter - fishing it out could prove tedious.

Good Luck.

Vaya,

Scouts out!

[Judge Jake McCord]

Pocket knives were more often carried in the vest pocket, since anything carried in a trouser pocket would prove somewhat difficult to retrieve when mounted - and it'd be held tight enough in a trouser pocket so as to be uncomfortable.

A boot knife...

...If you're going to wear one - be certain you've got a secure method of attaching it to a boot top.

You don't want it to 'walk out' - nor do you want it to 'drop in'.

In the former - you could be out a nice piece of cutlery - and in the latter - fishing it out could prove tedious.

Good Luck.

Vaya,

Scouts out!

Good ideas there, Pard, thanks!

Judge Jake McCord

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[Frenchie]

Can't remember where, but I've seen a modern-made, Western-style boot with a sheath stitched to the inside near the top. It seems to me that there were enough people with enough talent at working leather that a man with enough brains to think of such a thing could describe it to a man with enough ability to make it. I figure we ain't no smarter than they were and they could do cool things with leather too, so this would fall under the "makes sense even if we can't find a picture of it" umbrella.

And no, that umbrella does not cover shotgun shell belt slides, because they didn't make no sense nohow until $A$$ came along.

Ding! Just remembered where I saw it: The Leather Shop, Centreville Road, Manassas, Virginia, circa 1995. If you're in the neighborhood and it's still there, walk in and buy something, they're good folks and they always did right by me.

[St. George]

One of the ways a scabbard was made to allow for non-belt carry - was to forge a metal 'tongue' very much like the ones seen on the scabbards of  WWI German Close-Combat daggers - to act as a 'clip-on'.

Will and Fincke from San Francisco was a notable maker of concealment weapons and I've seen that sort of thing on their Push Daggers.

You're only limited by your imagination - as was a saddle maker of the time - who probably made your sheath.

You could hold it strapped against your upper calf with a small belt - and you could make the sheath big enough to hold in place by mere friction, too.

Remember, though - you want to be able to both draw the weapon 'and' replace it - preferably one-handed - and without having to fight the sheath, itself.

As to sewing it to a boot top - the easiest way is for the sheath body to be attached to a leather strip that can be stitched across the boot's top on the inside - and any shoe repairman can do that.

So can you - go visit your local Tandy's.

Good Luck.

Vaya,

Scouts Out!

[The Elderly Kid]

Another way to attach the sheath to the boot is to attach a stud to the sheath - a Sam Browne belt stud from Tandy's works fine. Then punch a hole of the appropriate size in the top of the boot.

[Steel Horse Bailey]

Howdy!

I bought a short hand-made knife that a friend ( Landgrabber ) had made using one of the "Green Mountain" brand blades as sold by Dixie Gunworks.  It is the Green River style blade, a straight bladed affair about 4" long.  A very basic knife and it just screamed  "Boot Knife" to me.  I got some scrap thin leather (2-4 oz. I believe) from my friend Jeff Spoor, the man behind Cumberland Custom Leather, and a genius with leather, especially regarding saddles.  I then made a simple basic sheath with one side wider than the other and used latigo "lace" to put it together.  I then punched a small hole in the wider side of the sheath and another on the strap on my boot (I have 3 pair, 2 of which I wear with my trousers tucked into my boots) and with another short piece of latigo to lash the sheath to the top of the boot.  I had wet the leather and formed it to "lock" the blade into the sheath, and it does a great job of holding the knife securely but not so tight that I need 2 hands to retrieve it or return it after use.  It serves me very well and let me tell you;  those Green Mountain blades are made of some really good high carbon steel and it will, if I do my part with the stone, shave hair on my arm very easily.  Being non-stainless, it has developed some really nice looking patina and looks very much at home as a period knife and is a real workhorse!  The whole thing cost $10. Which is also what the blade costs from Dixie.  (According to my Dixie catalog of 2002 or 3, so the blade may be a dollar or two more now.)  It is nothing special, but it has become one of my favourite knives.

Just thought I'd throw that in as another suggestion which is pretty simple to do and requires little ca$h or leatherworking experience.

[St. George]

If you don't want to buy the device that'll be used for the installation of a stud - just sew in a button to a boot top with waxed thread (dental floss) and make an appropriate slot in the scabbard.

The button'd be about the flattest thing you can put on and you can sew it to a boot pull.

Good Luck,

Scouts Out!