My Homemade Kydex Holster

I have seen a few threads here lately discussing kydex flashlight holsters, and it gave me the motivation to try making my own. I didn't want to hijack any of the threads currently running, so I thought I'd start a new one to show my little project.

I have only made kydex holsters for handguns so far, so this was my first attempt at a light holster. I went about it the same way I do with my gun holsters, which is cutting, heating and pressing 2 pieces of kydex around the object, then cutting, sanding, and securing them together with rivets and screws. The entire project from start to finish took me about 2 hours, including making the belt loops.

For a first attempt, I'm actually pretty satisfied. The retention on a standard Surefire P bezel is perfect. The light "clicks" securely into the holster, and you can turn it upside down and shake it as hard as possible, and the light stays put. When you want to quickly draw the light from the holster while on your belt, it pops out very easily with a light tug. I gave it a pretty aggressive forward cant, and it helps with the speed of both the draw and the re-holster.

It works perfectly with C and P bezels, holds a G bezel just fine (but without the satisfying "click" of retention) and even holds a G2X pretty well. Anyway, here are some pics:

Here are some more pics, with other Surefire lights:

Look real good JL. Did you use a press to shape the kydex around the light or form it by hand? It looks like the press used for making a holster doesn't work for a light.

DWood said:

Look real good JL. Did you use a press to shape the kydex around the light or form it by hand? It looks like the press used for making a holster doesn't work for a light.

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Thanks! Yes, I use a press. It consists of my cement garage floor, then multiple layers of closed-cell high-density foam, then a slab of 2x12 wood plank, then me (175 pounds, standing on it for 10 minutes) .

I like this style of kydex holster for handguns, as it spreads the kydex over a large flat surface, making it very easy to work with the rivets. And it hugs the handgun so tight to your body. For a tube shape like a flashlight, the placement and execution of the rivets gets tricky, especially since I'm using a little hand riveting tool and die with a hammer.

Perhaps the "taco" style kydex holster works better on small cylindrical objects such as a large flashlight. I might try that design next.

What I like about this design, is that it is bezel down, canted forward, allows quick-draw and quick re-holster without looking, and does not extend anything below the belt line - which makes it a very good concealment holster when wearing a long shirt or jacket. It's also very sturdy and could take quite a bit of abuse. Think of it more as a fast-draw, concealed light holster for harsh environments.

Nice work. I am impressed . I have also tried making variuos sheaths and holsters for lights and knives using Kydex and used very similar methods as you. Let me say it is not an easy task to end up with a nice piece like what is shown in these pics. I had to laugh cause I did the same thing with cell foam and a board and me ontop of the whole sandwich device with my cell phone clock as a timer. and using those stupid hand held taps with the rivets and a hammer? tedious and frustrating to say the least . especialy when you hit them offcenter .
My stuff came out like dog crap!!!

I like that desert camo with the texture to it. where did you get that stuff? what thickness are you using?

purelite said:

Nice work. I am impressed . I have also tried making variuos sheaths and holsters for lights and knives using Kydex and used very similar methods as you. Let me say it is not an easy task to end up with a nice piece like what is shown in these pics. I had to laugh cause I did the same thing with cell foam and a board and me ontop of the whole sandwich device with my cell phone clock as a timer. and using those stupid hand held taps with the rivets and a hammer? tedious and frustrating to say the least . especialy when you hit them offcenter .
My stuff came out like dog crap!!!

I like that desert camo with the texture to it. where did you get that stuff? what thickness are you using?

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Thank you. I had to laugh about using your cell phone timer - that's exactly what I do! I usually end up playing a game of solitaire on my iPhone while I stand on the board, trying to keep still for 10 minutes.

Yeah, the rivet tap and die and hammer routine is getting really old, but it was by far the cheapest way to do it. When you're only making a holster a month, and only for yourself, it's not worth the investment in a press. On my handgun holsters, I'm getting pretty good with it, but this holster proved to be a challenge. The steep curves of the flashlight bezel caused issues with the rivets. They aren't very pretty on the back side!

There are a couple of good sources for kydex sheets on the internet, but I don't really get what the rules are on CPF about linking or mentioning sources or prices of products. It seems to be frowned-upon. :shrug:

I am using .08" thick kydex sheet for the holster, and usually use .125" for belt loops on my gun holsters. I just used .08" for the belt loops on this one since they support hardly any weight.

That looks great! Have you thought about make an inside waistband version? I was curious how that would work, similar to the holsters that companies like comp-tac sell.

jonesy said:

That looks great! Have you thought about make an inside waistband version? I was curious how that would work, similar to the holsters that companies like comp-tac sell.

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Thanks!

Well, the only thing an inside waist band holster would do that an outside waistband wouldn't is conceal about 1" of bezel. I don't really see much benefit. But, if the demand is there, perhaps, a design is there waiting...

Nice work, are you planning on offering them for sale ?

I could do with a nice holster for my 9P
Currently looking at the raven concealment one, but I prefer the rake of yours

Johnny, have you tried any one piece designs that don't need riveted belt loops (like the one in my thread that you posted in)? They take up less room on the belt but are still very secure. They also go on and off without removing the belt which is really convenient.

Your holster work is awesome and looks bombproof, but there are times when narrower is nice.

The holster I use works on my light because the light is 1" diameter for the full length of the light. You obviously have good skills working with kydex. I'd love to see a one piece, bezel down holster that holds a light with a head larger than the battery tube.

PS IWB for a light holster would not be something I would want, but I'm sure you could do do it.

PSS For those that didn't see my other post, I'm asking if Johnny has ever experimented with a one piece design like the one I use for EDC:

DWood,

I do really like your holster. It looks very secure and well made.

I think my next light holster will be a 1-piece "taco" style kydex holster with rivets on 1 side. For now, I'm out of rivets and am waiting on an order of more. When I make my next attempt, I'll post my results.

I made several versions of a Kydex tube which was mounted to a Tek-Lok for carrying an E2e after refining the design which was originally thought up by a guy in Canada. If I must say so myself they were all quite good but I found out that Kydex is easy to work for simple shapes and much more difficult for complicated ones. I really like the simple design of the one which Dwood has. Minimalist, but still effective AND what's more it looks really professional!

dougie said:

I made several versions of a Kydex tube which was mounted to a Tek-Lok for carrying an E2e after refining the design which was originally thought up by a guy in Canada. If I must say so myself they were all quite good but I found out that Kydex is easy to work for simple shapes and much more difficult for complicated ones. I really like the simple design of the one which Dwood has. Minimalist, but still effective AND what's more it looks really professional!

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dougie, the kytex gear holster is an example of simple beauty in function and I have carried every day for the last several months. He ships quickly and it's about $16 shipped. It's probably harder to make than it looks. I was hoping JohnnyLunar could make something similar with bezel down carry for a light with a head larger than the battery tube. Johnny's holster looks like it is good stuff. I have toyed with the idea of making my own kydex holsters and Johnny's work is inspiring.

That's really neat! Can you get kydex in stores? Or just online?

Kydex in the UK is usually imported from the States so I assume it is easier to obtain there? I suspect a quick Google will provide you with loads of places that do it. However, it may be that you have to buy it in larger sheets than you think so it might be better to ask on a knife forum if anyone can sell you some smaller pieces. Most knife forums have people who make Kydex sheaths so they should (or would) be my first port of call!

Yes, kydex is an online-only product, unless you buy 32 square feet of it or more!

I buy it in 1 square foot pieces (anywhere from $5-10 per sq. ft.), as I like to try different colors before I buy larger amounts. So far my favorites are Desert Sand, and the Digital Camo in my pics above.

Once you have all the necessary tools and equipment, and enough space to work, making kydex holsters is very easy, and very fast. Things go much smoother and faster if you take the time to set up a dedicated small toaster oven, a good sturdy press with plenty of quality foam, a belt sander and bench, a Dremel, basic tools, and the rivets/riveting tools. If you don't have most of these things already, the investment to get setup may be too much for the casual holster maker. A standard oven or even a heat gun can be substituted for the toaster oven, a few planks of wood with some camping mat foam on a hard floor can be substituted for a press, etc.

The Dremel is probably the one tool I couldn't live without when making kydex holsters. It really allows you to cut, shape and smooth large or small sections quickly.

I did a lot of research, and gathered all of the necessary tools, equipment, and materials before I attempted my first kydex holster, so I feel like I got a bit of a head start and picked it up very quickly. Once you get going and see how many cool custom holsters you can make, it becomes kind of addicting!

For me the hardest part with a simple tube for a flashlight holster in Kydex was getting the "spring" tension just right. There are also rubber washers that can be used which allow you to adjust the tension on a wraparound holster design. I have found these very useful but they do increase the width a bit on that side though not drastic.

I got frustrated and gave up on doing knife sheaths myself , I just couldnt get the Kydex to mold tightly around the blade all the way around and always ended up with varying degrees of "rattle" . The blue cell foam I used from Wallie world just seemed to "stiff" to realley get the Kydex to mold.

A heat gun is really an essential tool especially f you are doing things like the integrated wrap around belt loop like seen above. You can only do so many things in one heating.

Something else I have found, repeated heatings/coolings of Kydex and reworking of the material will eventually cause it to become "brittle" or weak and result in breakage.

There a re a cpl knife sites online that sell everything from the Kydex to the hardware to very nice complete mold presses with nicer foam for making Kydex stuff.

just search Knife Kits or something. A word of advice though, dont just get 1 sheet and expect to get it right . get at least 1 or 2 extra squares cause you will have a learning curve to work thru

purelite said:

I got frustrated and gave up on doing knife sheaths myself , I just couldnt get the Kydex to mold tightly around the blade all the way around and always ended up with varying degrees of "rattle" . The blue cell foam I used from Wallie world just seemed to "stiff" to realley get the Kydex to mold.

A heat gun is really an essential tool especially f you are doing things like the integrated wrap around belt loop like seen above. You can only do so many things in one heating....
...
A word of advice though, dont just get 1 sheet and expect to get it right . get at least 1 or 2 extra squares cause you will have a learning curve to work thru

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Yes, I tried making my first knife sheath the other day, for a little fixed blade Kershaw skinning knife. Although the holster has decent retention, and a good solid click when inserting the knife, the blade does have a little wiggle inside the holster. I may try reheating it with a heat gun while the knife is in the holster, and really forming it around the blade. I've never tried this technique before.

I agree on the heat gun. I did my first 4 or 5 handgun holsters without one, actually using a hairdryer to heat and shape corners, edges, etc. A heat gun really is one of the essential tools when making kydex holsters. I wish I had a little pen-style heat gun also, for concentrating on tiny areas without losing retention of the surrounding areas.

I also agree on getting multiple sheets of kydex when you're starting, because chances are it will take you a few attempts until you get the hang of it.

The best foam I found, came from an interesting source. I went scrounging through storage one day, and found an old child-size water sports life preserver. It has 1" thick neoprene foam sheets throughout. This is the good stuff, as it's not too soft, not too hard, has a little bit of memory to it, withstands heat well, etc. I use it as my final layer between a few pieces of the camping mat foam.

My latest replenishment order of kydex and rivets should arrive today. I also plunked down the $35 for a set of better rivet setting dies, which should greatly increase the quality and consistency of my work. I'll put some various holsters together in the next week, and post pictures.