A knife that can both fillet a trout, and baton a decent piece of wood...?

I use a mora stainless as my fishing knife.

At $20 bucks doesn't matter if I lose it in the drink.

If I broke it batoning, then there's no stress (maybe some tears).

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The bad thing is, if you ever use one, they are REALLY hard to get :mad:away from!

Dozier KM8

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Ooops, did'nt see the "Baton" part of your post.
I am sure there is a model for that also though.
 
Bark River has several knives that may fit what you are looking for, Fallkniven is worth looking at as well. Honestly, I've yet to find the "one knife" from any maker but I gotta say that my Busse BATAC comes somewhat close. Batons like a beast, chops surprisingly well for its small size(could never compete with a real chopper however), is very capable when it comes to fine work and, yes, can fillet trout-sized fish(but not as well as a real fillet knife). The BATAC is probably one of my favorite fixed blades right now so I figured I'd give it a plug here since you are looking for a versatile blade in that size range.

If I were you I'd take another look at carrying more than one blade. As a backpacker myself I understand the problem of weight vs. usefulness but i never skimp on blades. My last trip I actually ran with a Barkie Golok/Aurora combo and a small saw, it was fantastic.
 
f I were you I'd take another look at carrying more than one blade
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Beautiful.
710 M2 HSS on my pocket, and S1 in my pack.
Done it for many years, I am a 2 blade type myself.

Very well put.
I carry nothing on my belt, but my pack is a different story.
Only way to fly IMHO, plus it gives you a reason to look for a 2nd blade!:D
 
There's nothing like the "perfect" fixed blade and when I have been doing the same thing as You describe,I have had 3 differrent knives with me.

1. A Leatherman Charge,perfect for many things when fishing!
At one occasion I was unfortunate to hook a watersnake (not a venom specie) in the skin and succesfully unhooked the snake with the LM pliers.

2. A small 3" blade for foodprep at camp.

3. A Fällkniven S1 together with the Laplander saw worked very well on both batoning firewood and cleaning Trouts.


Today I use a rehandled Fällkniven F2k for both batoning firewood and preparing the Trouts.
The F2k is the older discontinued version, with 4,5 mm spine.
It is smaller than the S1 but in my custom version it has a 4,8" bladelenght.
I just love the feeling of the Sambar stag and nickelsilver fittings, inspired by the Scagel knives.

The pic is from a daytrip to a Rainbow Trout lake 3 weeks ago.

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Regards

Mikael
 
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This thread reminds me of an old riddle... "What can you sit on, sleep on, and brush your teeth with?" -- "A chair, a bed, and a toothbrush."

Back on subject, you can filet a trout with just about any knife (may not be pretty, but it'll get done.) There is the newer Mora "Black Carbon" Bushcraft knife. Haven't had the chance to handle one, but it supposed to be thicker than the usual Mora. Don't know if it is full-tang or rat-tail.
 
The main skill that guy on youtube has is sharpening, because to do what he did with that style of blade on that video requires a blade so sharp you could tree top a pubic hair free hand in a wind storm.
 
This one here would be my suggestion.

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Moose
 
Almost any decent knife will do both... but won't be the very best at either.

I like knives with a 4-5" blade, about an inch and a quarter wide and definitely no thicker than 3/16", made of tough steel like O1, 3V or Elmax with a full-flat or full convex grind and a thin edge. That describes what I carry daily and it's good for everything that doesn't require a big honkin' chopper/axe/saw.
 
MikeC said:
The main skill that guy on youtube has is sharpening, because to do what he did with that style of blade on that video requires a blade so sharp you could tree top a pubic hair free hand in a wind storm.
Click to expand...

I beg to differ. No doubt it is probably sharp as hell but geometry is the name of the game. I've had thick bladed mirror edge knives of good steel and good temper get out performed by a 5 dollar no name knife of mystery steel from the fubon that was DULL. Geometry is the leading factory on how well a knife performs IMO.
 
The new Fallkniven F2 and F4 fishing knives have blades that are 2.5 mm thick. These are great for cutting up fish, but I wouldn't try to hammer the blade through a hunk of firewood.
 
Wow I am surprised no one has said Spyderco's Southfork designed by Phil Wilson. It is %100 the knife you are asking for, your specification is the intent of its design.

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"Phil Wilson technically was bitten by the knifemaking bug in 1985 while filleting cod. He discovered painfully, and first-hand, that he preferred knives with a finger-guard segregating the blade from the handle which stopped the hand from sliding forward onto the cutting edge. The result of his preference is his Southfork fixed blade with an obvious finger-guard to position the fingers on the handle in a safe ergonomic cutting position. Phil Wilson’s passion for fishing motivated him to start crafting fillet knives that are now used by serious fishermen all over the world. In addition to fishing, his keen interest in metallurgy led him to experiment with grinding and heat treating techniques to make long blades hard enough to hold an edge, yet offer some flexibility. For this he has become well regarded for his outdoor sports and fishing blades. The blade sweeps upward at the tip with just the right amount of belly for field dressing, cleaning and any outdoor chore".
 
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