I was wondering if anyone here still makes/sells sheaths for the 15 inch Irwin handsaws.
Thanks

Been wondering this, also. If so, I'd like to get one.

I could possibly make leather sheaths. I would have to come up with a design. Any suggestions would be helpful.

Carl

Not beautiful, but I use the cardboard cover it came in. It used to slide off a bit and the first few teeth would catch on things. I extended the bottom of the cover with a piece of duct tape. Probably 4 inches long using 6 inches of duct tape. Two inches taped to the end, bottom. Four inches doubled over on itself to it doesn't stick. It forms a U around the start of the handle.

I put a twist-tie through the hole in the end to hold it on. It has survived a half dozen trips and shows no wear.

I'm not super weight conscious, but some of the covers people make weigh as much as the saw itself.

Can send a pic if you want when I get home.

RedLakePaddler: "I could possibly make leather sheaths. I would have to come up with a design. Any suggestions would be helpful.


Carl"

Thanks for the offer but I was thinking more along the lines of a plastic type of sheath.

I may explore using the cardboard sheath it came in if the plastic ones are not available.

I've also had a thought of building one out of flexible cutting boards. If you could attach them in such a way that they would work as cutting boards, it would be lightweight and do double duty.

Make out of something like this

I took a piece of plastic from the packaging for my table saw blade, cut it to shape, then duct taped the edges together. It ain't pretty, but it weighs next to nothing and nothing gets cut or scratched up.

I thought it looked pretty dumb, but my brother liked it and thought it was clever. "If it's stupid but it works, it isn't stupid."

Used the cutting board method. Traced the cardboard sheath on the plastic, cut, put pop rivets along the edge, covered edge with electrical tape and done. Ain’t pretty, but functional. Edit: Wasn’t actually cutting board, but an old top to a storage tote.

Here are a couple a friend of mine made out of a gutter down spout and a heat gun.

It was Ragged who was making and selling some really nice sheaths. But last post I can find was a few years ago and he was selling a final batch and then stopping that model. The reason was that it took a lot of effort to make them. He held out the possibility that he might come up with a new, more minimal model but also had a second kid on the way. So I think it is down to DIY right now. I'm glad to have my Ragged-sheath because it is really nice and also a bit of bwca.com culture. But some of these molded ones look good too.

I just traced outline of saw on some HDPE and put some rivets around edge. Old strap with buckle to hold in place

Sounds like I will be making one myself.

Thanks for all the replies and ideas on how to make the sheath.

I believe Ragged used to make them. Not sure if he still does.

I made mine out of a chainsaw blade cover.

Old Scout sells the Irwin saw and plastic sheath as a unit. Maybe he'd make one for you?

Contact Old Scout

I used a hockey skate blade cover and a small bungee. I don't have a photo, but it's light, and works great!

I appreciate the kind words from OneMatch, but I'm not making Irwin Saw Sheaths for sale.

I have made a number of them and have found that a flexible plastic cutting board works well for the material, get the thickest ones you can find (Wal-Mart).

The first thing you do is fold the cutting board in half long ways using a hot air gun to warm the plastic along the fold. Be careful with the heat it doesn't take much to melt the plastic.
(Edit: place a 1/4" thick piece of wood along the fold to keep it from closing down too tight. You want the saw teeth to be able to slip in and out easily)

After you have it folded over use the cardboard sheath to outline the shape of the sheath and add about 1/4" to the top edge for the pop rivets you will use to finish the sheath.

Clamp the top edge together and using a snap knife or dremel cut-off wheel to cut along the lines.

I use 1" webbing and 1" snap buckles to secure the saw.

Thanks for the instructions OldScout48.
That is exactly what I was looking for!

Leather may not be the lightest option but it is a fun project and looks pretty cool

Stimpy: "Leather may not be the lightest option but it is a fun project and looks pretty cool
"

Lookin good!

I wonder if you could do it yourself using a “flying carpet plastic snow sled”. Seems to me that this might be faster, lighter, and cheaper than using cutting boards.

There was a previous thread on this where I saw a pvc conduit design by I think fishonfishoff, which inspired my version:

RunningFox: "I wonder if you could do it yourself using a “flying carpet plastic snow sled”. Seems to me that this might be faster, lighter, and cheaper than using cutting boards.
"

That stuff is HPDE, and cowdoc posted a photo.One thing Ragged did with his Kydex (??) sheath was to add a divider layer between the 2 sides making the saw easier to draw or replace.

butthead

I made my first one from the lid of a large plastic storage tub.

Stimpy: "Leather may not be the lightest option but it is a fun project and looks pretty cool
"

You better guard those - they are collector's items!

Definitely not making the last iteration anymore, still get a fair amount of people asking for them but they are really kind of ridiculous (ridiculous like a Rolls Royce) and so very much overkill (on purpose) So many great options out there for a functional DIY version. If I ever made something again I’d likely explore going a completely different direction, lightweight, cheaper, laser cut vs CNC machined (so hard to say goodbye to those beautifully chamfered edges) likely ship to the end user as a simple kit where I produce the nicely made “flats” and have the folks on the other side do some simple assembly.

For those with access to vinyl siding, a piece of undersill trim makes a pretty good blade guard. It is kind of self-clamping. I don't know how well it would stay on in a pack. Maybe add a rubber band or two. Just the trim stays on well enough on my pruning saws to prevent those errant lacerations while digging around on the workbench for something else.

Little bit off topic, but I need a sheath for my knife, and I have been looking at using an old ball glove. Haven't quite got all the details down yet, but I have a good idea of what I want to do. BTW, it isn't one of my gloves.