$100 fixed blade hunter?

S

savageman

Joined
May 27, 2005
Messages
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I am looking for a good drop point fixed blade hunting knife for deer, moose and bear. I would like it to be in the 4"-4.5" range and have a nice comfortable handle on it. I also would need a good comfortable sheath for it cause this would be my hunting/camping knife in the bush. I would like to get out under $100 for both knife and sheath.

I have looked at a few online:

Cold Steel Master Hunter, Benchmade Rant DPT, Kershaw Bear Hunter.

Is there any others that would fall into this category? Is one any better than the other that I have listed?
 
Is this knife going to be the one you gut & skin with ? Check w/some of the custom makers on here...you'de be surprised what you might find ;)
Just a few to name is
Breeden knives - Siciley02 on here
Koyote knives - Koyote on here
JK knives - Stomper on here
These are some of the guy's that I've done business with.
Another one to look at is Condor...Their new line of bushcraft type knives are out !
 
There are much better knives then those mentioned in the OP's post for $100 or really close to it. Maybe stretch your budget about 10 bucks and you could definently get a Rat Cutlery RC4. I love mine. They are highly reccommended.
 
Beretta Loveless Hunter
Spyderco Moran
Fallkniven F1 (highly recommended, and you get a choice of leather or thermoplastic sheaths)
Entrek Javalina
Buck makes several models of dropped point blades
 
013934500-big.jpg

Kershaw Bear Hunter 2 today I change edge angle whit some DMT diasharp, sandpaper and stroping - it can split hear and it's strog enought for laight duty outdoor tasks
 
Buck 119, great all around knife, it was my first fixed blade knife and it's still one of my favorites. Watch the sheath though, my new one rattles badly when worn on a belt. But, the knife is a pretty common size so you can probably pick up any old hunting knife sheath that will stop it from rattling. I stick it into a sheath from a cheap winchester knife, it holds it nice and tight.
 
I agree with the OP that the three knives he is looking at are very good ones. I also like the Buck Vanguard Alasksn Guide series. Here's the description:

Sporting a 4-1/8" drop-point crafted of strong S30V steel, the Vanguard has a rosewood handle and a polished brass butt and guard. Available in a rubber-handle Vanguard version with Cordura® nylon sheath. Developed by Crucible Steel, S30V is made up of metallic powders fused together under intense pressure and heat. It is tempered under extremely high temperatures then cooled in a cryogenic freezer. The resulting metal delivers a fine combination of edge retention (45% greater than 420HC), flexibility and hardness (59-61 Rockwell) while remaining easy to sharpen with conventional stones. This steel also has a high chromium content for oxidation resistance. For even greater corrosion resistance, each knife is treated with a titanium aluminum nitride coating. Our field testing and independent Cutlery Allied Trade Research Association tests prove these knives outperform those crafted with other blade metals. It also has a leather sheath. Made in USA.
Overall length: 8-1/2".
Weight: 6.3 oz.

buck-Vanguard-31.jpg


http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/t...indexId=cat602777&hasJS=true&_requestid=75099

I also highly recommend the RAT RC-4. If I could only own one knife, this would be it.

http://www.ratcutlery.com/rc-4.htm

rc-4_image2.jpg


Specs:

Overall length: 9.0"
Cutting Edge Length: 4.06"
Blade Length (end of handle to tip of blade): 4.5"
Blade Width: 1.25"
Weight (knife only): 7.4 ounces
Drop point blade style
Available in plain or partially serrated edge
Maximum thickness: .188"
1095 Carbon Steel - 57 Rc.
Removable lined Micarta handle slabs
Rounded Pommel w/ lanyard hole
Formed Ambidextrous Kydex sheath
MOLLE Locks, lanyard and cord lock included
Vertical and horizontal carry
Optional equipment: Jump-proof MOLLE Back
 
The good news: There are a lot of great choices in fixed blade knives for $100 or less.
The bad news: The number of choices can make for a difficult decision :)

If you can find one, the older Carbon V Master Hunter is a very good knife. I'm partial to carbon/tool steel, but Fallkniven makes some good stuff in VG-10. You might also take a look in the Knifemakers For Sale Area under the fixed blade section.
 
RC-4 gets my recommendation, but to tell the truth the RC-3 makes a much better skinning knife I'd say.

The Spyderco Moran drop point would be a great blade. Many other great suggestions are posted. Also keep your eyes on the Fixed Blade for Sale subforum in the Maker's area. Check out blades by GL Drew, DP, koyote, David Farmer etc. who often put up skinning/hunting blades at about that price point. If you have a question about a knife maker's blades, just post a thread in General ask.
 
The RAT RC-4 is made of 1095 carbon steel with a black coating. Is this a good steel for cleaning big game animals? Seems to me like a stainless might be a bit better for a hunting knife, but im not sure.
 
If you intend on putting your knife in your sheath bloody - not good (for any blade). If you wipe your blade before re-sheathing it you are fine with 1095. Don't worry about it.
 
If you like the style of the Dozier knives but don't want to spend the coin, Boker makes a knife that is a Dozier design.
I have only seen it in the Cabelas catalog. IIRC it is AUS-8 and was around 80 bucks.
 
In that price range , 0f all I have seen mentioned here, The Moran drop point would be my first choice. That said, The Mora Clipper will do a great job for the hunter for 20.00 delivered. For pure hunting, you don't need a big dollar knife. Most are used once or twice a year. Of course there is nothing wrong with using the best knife that you can afford.
 
Have you looked at the Knives of Alaska Trekker Series?

I recommend the Elk Hunter in D2, although it only has a 3 1/4" cutting edge

The handle offers good grip with wet/bloody hands and it has a nice finger groove/choil on the blade that allows you to choke up on it for technical work. Also, its available with a bright orange handle so you can easily find it if you drop it in the woods! I use mine for whitetail processing and it has never failed me. I got it at Cabelas for around $85.00

-Gabe
 
To me, for a hunting knife the steel is very important and there are plenty of good knives in your price range. For me that would be;

- Spyderco Moran Excellent Steel (VG-10) and Great Sheath!
- Buck Vanguard (only in S30V as mentioned) Good knife.
- Ros Arms (plenty of Med size Models) Very good steel and Ex+ Handles
- Mora - Any of the Carbon steel models. Try 3 or 4 different models as they are very inexpensive but are real workhorses.


Good Luck.
 
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