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The inspiration for my MCS System came to me in the late 1980s when I saw a picture of an outdoor/utility knife in a leather sheath that was made wide enough to completely fill the wearer’s pants’ pocket. The idea was that the knife and sheath would not shift around causing discomfort or annoyance to the wearer. It immediately appealed to me because I’d often been similarly irritated when carrying a knife in a standard-sized sheath.
At about the same time, I became aware of the use of kydex for sheaths, having seen them at knife shows on Bob Terzuola’s and Tom Maringer’s tables. I was really impressed with the sheaths they were turning out using this material and decided to experiment with this new product. I made many phone calls to suppliers, manufacturers, etc., until I located the best source for kydex.
Next, I decided to combine the width feature of the leather sheath I’d admired (turning it into a breast pocket flap made of kydex designed to fill the breast pocket of a suit, sport jacket or windbreaker) with the durability and stability of kydex (which doesn’t stretch, corrode, stain, etc.) to create a slim, lightweight carry system designed expressly for jacket carry. For easy access to the knife, I decided the sheath should hang inverted outside the pocket (where the knife can be withdrawn quickly) attached to the breast pocket flap which can be placed inside the pocket.
After weeks of trial and error, which included burning my fingers on hot kydex fresh out of my kitchen oven, days of doing a “tap dance” on a jury-rigged press consisting of plywood and foam in an effort to “mold” my newly invented sheath to my newly designed 3 1/2” Aikuchi, I finally finished nine knives and sheaths. I brought them to the inaugural ECCKS show in March of 1989.
I should mention that at that point in my knifemaking career I had been fairly successful at making and selling hunting and fishing knives, kitchenware, steak knife and carving sets, etc. at high- quality craft shows around the country and had begun only recently to try my hand at selling in the knife world. I went from being a “big fish in a small pond” to the opposite “small fish in a very big pond,” and suffered the anonymity that goes along with it.
So, off I went to the East Coast Custom Knife Show with my new inventions in hand. Incredibly, in the first hour of the show, my nine Aikuchis and nine basic MCS Systems were snapped up.
I made a bunch more, improving my techniques as I went along, and brought this new batch to the California Custom Knife Show in the fall of 1989. At that show, a knife manufacturer offered to buy my sheath idea outright. When I refused to sell it, he bought a knife and MCS System paying for it with a check that bore the legend “sheath prototype” in the memo section. At that point, I decided to see a patent lawyer and when I got home, I immediately made an appointment. Four years later, I received my patent.
The original MCS System utilized a rare earth gold-plated magnet along with several attachments, also constructed of kydex. The MCS II, uses Dual-Lock™, a revolutionary, industrial grade, adhesive-backed material which can be “stuck” to almost any surface and is nearly impossible to remove. It consists of 400 tiny mushroom heads per square inch which, when forced together, interlock. It is significantly stronger than Velcro and, unlike Velcro, is self-mating. The original system required screwing and unscrewing an attachment to reposition the sheath; with the MCS II, many of the carry positions can be achieved by simply pressing the sheath into the Dual-Lock™ on the belt clip provided, thereby “locking” them together. We’ve altered the shape of the sheath, making it less boxy, giving it a more rounded, slimmer profile and the end result is a more secure fit for the knife, eliminating the need for the magnet.
The MCS II consists of a Dual-Lock™-covered sheath, extra pieces of Dual-Lock™ and four attachments which provide a variety of carry positions. The breast pocket flap is designed to fill the breast pocket of a suit, sport jacket or windbreaker. The “barbed” belt clip is for inside the pants, belt, boot or armhole of a vest and is particularly effective when worn with sweat pants, running shorts, etc. A 30 lb. test ball chain is for a neck carry and a small, Dual-Lock™-covered kydex tab facilitates a horizontal, small-of-the-back carry. An optional leg strap provides an inverted carry, outside the boot.
The original System pretty much limited the user to five handle-down positions and four on-the-belt positions. The beauty of the MCS II is that the versatility of the Dual-Lock™, in combination with the belt clip, allow for many more positions – you simply angle the clip to whatever position works best for you
The two pieces of Dual-Lock™ included with the MCS II System facilitate off-body applications on any flat surface including the dashboard or sun visor of your car, backpack frame, parachute harness, body armor, motorcycle, kayak/canoe, etc.
To sum up, the MCS II offers many new possibilities in on-the-body concealed carry and an added bonus is the variety of off-body positions and the comfort of knowing your knife is close-by. With the use of your imagination, there’s no limit to your personal security.
Some of the carry positions are the direct result of suggestions/feedback from undercover police and other law enforcement personnel. As a result, many of my sheath systems are used as back-up weapons or “final options” by undercover police, SWAT teams, FBI agents, etc.
Undercover law enforcement officials have told me the slim, lightweight sheath system has undergone pat-downs undetected. I’ve received letters from grateful undercover policemen stating that in difficult situations, the MCS System came through for them and saved their lives. A few years ago, an undercover agent in Norway was carrying one of my 5-inch Kinzhals in the breast pocket of his jacket and actually used the knife to cut his way out of the roof of a Toyota van when it ran off a bridge into an icy river during a chase. Fortunately, the majority of my customers have not had to use their knives in such extreme situations. But they say they feel secure wherever they go because the System adapts to so many lifestyles – business suit at the office, leather jacket/windbreaker at a sporting event, in a boot or armhole of a down vest in the woods, etc.
Over the years, I’ve been fortunate enough to get a lot of good press for my MCS System and my production knives. Each article or photo in a magazine or newspaper about my work and about me helps to spread the word about the merits of my invention. In the words of the Norwegian undercover agent I mentioned above, “The money I laid out for [the Kinzhal] was the best money I ever spent.” My goal is to evoke a similar response in each and every customer. I’m happy to report that judging from the many positive comments I get from satisfied customers, I’m close to meeting that goal.