Advice on new knife purchase

D

Doc in PA

Joined
Dec 14, 2005
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3
I'k looking for a new knife for the primary purpose of field dressing and skinning deer, price range up to $100. Ideal characteristics: ability to take and hold a very sharp edge, ergonomic handle, aesthetic beauty. I'm also interested in hearing experiences good or bad with gut hook knives.

thanks in advance for your feedback. -- Doc in PA
 
Bark River Knife & Tool-Fox River. 4.3" blade of A-2 tool steel. Multiple choices of handles from stabilized burlwood to different colors of g-10 and micarta. You just can't beat BRKT for customer service. (ivory micarta-89.95 @ knifeworks.com)
brk130-ai.jpg
 
cleaning deer can be done with any knife and my old man is a perfect example. He has carried a old timer stockman style pocke knife my entire life and he has cleaned everything encluding a Elk with it. I might add that he is also a butcher. Knowing how to use a knife effectivly is more important than the knife. His stockman's largest blade is about 2in long. But as far as your question the only part that I can answer right now is that gut hooks work well, if you know their limitations. Look into a wyoming knife, best little skinner around and cheap too, but not good for quartering or cutting meat.
Hope that this helps, and maybe try to be more specfic or everyone is going to give you a different opinion of what knife you should get.
Wade
 
Doc,Wade is right on the money,everyone is gonna have a favored knife,but it's about how you use it.I like to choke up on the blade for the gut-slit,I cover the tip w/my index,and slit with my finger in towards th deer's insides,this way you can't puncture the intestines.When I get the deer back to camp,then I or we go over it again,that's when we break the breast bone&stuff,so out in the field,I don't need a heavy blade or a big one either ,3-4".Now,inexspensive,a Buck, A.G. Russell Deer Hunter ,3 steel chioces,the Bark River stuff is good,for alittle more,David Winston#14 D-2,a little more $ Bob Dozier good selection of blades,D-2 of course,and the best kydex sheath's.There has to be a lot more selections but these are some fav.'s of mine. Now,if you only take 1 deer a year,the Winston,and the Dozier are delivered so sharp,you probably would only have to touch it up every 3-5 years,IMO.
 
Boozoo -- the photo you show certainly meets the "aesthetic beauty" requirement.

Wade -- I have field dressed perhaps 120 deer, and of course you are right about knowing how to use a knife. I use a Case XX 316-5 that I found in the woods almost thirty years ago, and it was old then. It takes and holds a very sharp edge. I am looking to buy a knife as a present for one of my hunting buddies who lost his. Its primary use will be field dressing and skinning deer; I want it to feel good in the hand with blade turned up as well as down; overall length should be 7 to 9 1/2 inches, and of course I want it to take a very sharp edge without having to work on it for an hour. I would like it to look good especially because it is a present -- function comes first.

I have never tried a gut hook and don't really need one, but I am open to trying new things. I don't particularly like the aesthetic appearance of the guthook but if it really is an advantage, and doesn't ever get in the way, I would consider it.

thanks
 
Bark River does make excellent knives. And for aesthetics, they make each model with an astounding variety of handle materials. You can find a good selection here:
www.dlttrading.com

Best Wishes,
Bob
 
Well, I just got my Lone Wolf T2 today with cocobolo handles. WOW:eek: This is one hell of a knife, and very good looking too. Might be a little expensive for a gift but fits your requirements. Its a folder, but I cant wait to open a deer with it. Very strong and sharp too, already cut myself to make sure. Actually Im a dumbass and didnt move my thumb out of the way when I closed it, cut like a charm. I didnt think that I had been cut until I started to bleed. Check into them I ordered from gpknives.com and it cost $137. And worth every penny. I might add that it is one of the most comfortable folders I have ever held.
Wade
 
Spend 79 bucks on a gerber field dressing kit with all the items you need. not 100 bucks on some knife your gona ruin with blood and guts.
 
Gerber Gator is a great knife. Only about $35, I love it for how cheap it is. Keeps a good edge, strong lock, great grip, and a 4in drop point blade. Some one took mine, and I think it was my hunting buddy who would not shut up about how much he liked it after I loaned it to him for a hunting trip.
Wade
 
Cold steel knives are right on budget (Master Hunter series and Peddleton hunter)

As for added aesthetics, can't beat Bark River knife and tool. Like skinners? The Wolf River skinner is the sweetest skinning knife around and can be had in a mind bogling array of exotic woods. Give BRKT a look.
 
BARK RIVER, large selection great knives, I dont like Kraton so no CS for me but there good knives too, I just like the look and feel of BR.
 
Bark River is the one for you!

search them you can get a great deal and one hell of a user/looker.

Mike Stewart and his crew are good people.

welcome to the forums!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
I appreciate everyone's input. Any more comments on guthooks? Has anyone found that they get in the way doing other tasks? How well do they work?
 
Doc in PA said:
I'k looking for a new knife for the primary purpose of field dressing and skinning deer, price range up to $100. Ideal characteristics: ability to take and hold a very sharp edge, ergonomic handle, aesthetic beauty. I'm also interested in hearing experiences good or bad with gut hook knives.

thanks in advance for your feedback. -- Doc in PA
Click to expand...

I'll also vote for a Bark River knife but one with a blade guard. I'm not a big fan of stitches, emergency room, and I like my fingers attached to my hand. One slip onto a sharp knife blade while working blind in the slippery chest cavity could be disasterous. No sense taking such a risk. Get a knife with a blade guard. Hand surgery doesn't come cheap these days!!!

The gut hook is really used more as a skinning tool acting as a zipper to open up the skin. The last think you want to do when gutting an animal is to cut into the "gut" or any of the organs. If you dress out the animal the right way the whole insides will all plop out in one big gooey mass.

I usually have two knives (I don't want to mess around sharpening one or looking for something if one breaks) and a small bow saw which is great for bones and quartering. I can't imagine quartering a big animal like an elk or moose with a folding pocket knife, I'm sure not that good. Even with a big honker of a bowie knife it can be very difficult sometimes.

http://www.barkriverknives.com/

I like their "gameskeeper" model. Not too big, not too small, nice handle, etc.

http://www.barkriverknives.com/gameskeeper.html

The only thing to worry about with Bark River knives is that they are extremely sharp because they are hand ground and have a great convex edge. You just have to be careful with them. The "A2" tool steel is a very tough strong steel yet somewhat easy to sharpen. It holds a great edge.
 
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