Basic Blade Carry

Posted on by The Tactical Hermit

(Authors Note and Disclaimer: Before carrying any weapon, you need to check your local, state and federal laws. In TX, it is legal to carry a knife, folder or fixed blade with a blade of 5 1/2″. The knife referenced in this article, the CRKT Dragon has a blade length of 4 1/2″, well below the legal length.)

A Fixed Blade System for IWB Carry

by

Mark E.

I have a question for you. If you go about your day with your shirt un-tucked, and carry a sidearm, is there any reason not to add a fixed blade?

In this post, I’ll outline one option for a very secure MOUNT and a very THIN fighting knife. It happens to be darn affordable, if you can find one ($25-50 on sale). However, the brand and model is not as important as the In-The-Waistband (IWB) set-up and the belt loops I added to facilitate it.
Just so you know, I have lots of folding knives – more than I will ever use to a large degree. And I am fond of mechanisms of all sorts. But when it comes to a fighting knife I prefer a fixed blade – plain and simple.

Where to carry:

Whether I have a pistol IWB at 2 o’clock or 4 o’clock on my waist, I prefer the fixed blade at 830 to 9 o’clock. When I carry a spare double stack pistol magazine, I keep the knife holster at least one hand width apart a little behind the pistol magazine. Mirror the set up if you are a lefty.

front view - carry at 9 o'clock - framed

Dragon framed

My favorite holster/sheath comes with the CRKT Dragon I am using at the moment.

How to carry:

I did not like the bulky mounting system, but loved the sheath. So, I removed the thick quick-release CRKT, belt mount from the sheath. Then I added a pair of Pull-the-Dot belt loops. The belt loops can be secured to the holster in any two of the four slots. The slots could also be used for webbing or MOLLE gear mounts, by the way. The slots are cool and let you adjust for carry height and carry angle to suit your preference.

holster 3 pic block

I currently use the Pull-the-Dot belt loops mounted for a 1.5″ wide belt, even though I have this rig mounted on my 1.75″ Spec-Ops web belt. It makes for a very rigid set up, which I like because of how close to body it keeps the handle. And better yet, is how little this set up moves from the straight/vertical position I start out with. The snaps will only pull off from one direction. I have yet to have one snap come loose no matter the activity or training I’ve engaged in.

The bonus for me is that with this particular knife and holster set-up, is the total rig weight – it’s a mere 7 oz! It is so light that it is almost possible forget it is there when compared to a spare pistol mag or a pistol.

carry 2 pic block

The reasons that this is my every-day-carry (for a Fixed Blade) are many:

*The Blade is always ready

* There is no mechanism to adjust/oil

* My pockets are pretty full already

* The retention is tight and the orientation is super stable

* I can carry a longer knife than I had been carrying as a folder and still stay Legal (atleast in TX).

* I can access and draw with either hand (not always the case with a folder)

Keep your Fixed Blade handy and Stay Dangerous!

154 thoughts on “Basic Blade Carry”

  2. Don

    Thanks for reading first off, secondly, although I cannot speak of Mark E., I can tell you having trained in everything from Keatings Drawpoint to Mccann’s Combative Knife, it behooves the Civilian Operator to have SOME kind of knife training in his toolbox…as I stated in a previous article, the principle of a “Complete Arsenal” includes being efficient and effective with whatever you might have at the time when the poop hits the oscillator…your bare hands, a stick, a knife or a firearm…it simply betters your odds on coming home when your training is spread over a broad area of expertise.

    Stay Dangerous!

  4. Why yes, it would work – with only a change in location of the BladeTech belt loops. I have not done so with this knife/sheath, only due to the overall length being a little long for my likes in horiz-carry. The top of the handle poofs out my cover shirt a bit too much. I like how you think, though, and am a fan of that carry mode! Horiz carry is faster for me to deploy a fixed blade, with less likelihood of getting hung up on the cover garment.

  5. I really enjoyed your review and EDC this same knife horizonal along with a Kershaw Tremor(to me each tool has a purpose whether defense or duty work). for me it is alil tough to carry it IWB but for times i do feel like carrying a knife IWB i carry a CRKT first strike. i found it easier than this one. great review and will continue to read more if you have more.

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