Advice requested: light camp and non-filet fish knife

L

Lawndart_78

Joined
Mar 3, 2005
Messages
5
Hi guys. Getting ready to order some stuff. My Dad and I clean a lot of fish each summer, mostly Bluegills and Crappie. He hits them with the electric scaler and I cut the heads off and gut them. We soak them in salt water for a day then fillet them. We've used Rapalla fillet knives forever and I like them. It's the head cutting that is the problem. To do this step of the cleaning process I cut from ass to gills, then cut from the top of the head down by the gills, stopping just short of clean through. Then I just grab the two fish halves and pull. The fish head and guts go one way, body the other. I usually use whatever POS he has laying around for that. Last summer it was an old serrated POS folder that he didn't care if it got filled with guts and scales. I have plenty of nice folders and some nice FB knives of the tactical knife variety, all of which are a little large or unsuitable for this. I'm not going to use a folder for beheading fish and the smallest FB I have that would work is probably my beater SRK.

I sell a few knives as a hobby, so I buy at wholesale. I'm trying to stay below $100 wholesale on this. I'm looking for 2.5" - 3.5" blade length and enough of a point for the gut insertion and enough meat in the handle that beheading 100 Bluegills doesn't make me want a new hand. Easy cleaning is also a plus, as is stainless. Knives I've considered are the Spyderco Moran up swept, Foster Weishun Hunter, TOPS Bird & Trout, Fallkniven F1 or H1, and maybe some of the Barkies, though most are A2 and almost all have those damn hollow pins which look like a great place for gore to deposit. I'm avoiding anything with a recurve in the blade. I have a Sharpmaker but I get such nice edges with my big DMT DuoSharp.

This will also get used for light camp duty/food too. If I need heavy camp or chopping I'll use my Entrek Ranger or hatchet.

Summing up:
Moran Featherweight - Looks like a great cutter, heard good things. Never owned a Spyder before (I've sold them though) and will it handle hacking through the fish?

Foster - I like the look of it, but I've never even SEEN one. Handle may be a little squared on the edges. Out of stock with wholesaler.

Tops Bird & Trout - Like the look, like the look of the sheath. Seems like a nice design. Not sure about 425M. This seems like a step below 440C.

Fallkniven F1 & H1 - Seem like good functional knives. Heard good things. Never seen one. Wholesaler is out of plain blade F1 and I don't like black blades because the finish comes off, regardless of manufacturer claims.

[Insert your suggestion here] Feel free to point out anything in my choices or make some of your own.

And this is why I've never posted before. MUST STOP TYPING. Sorry for the long post. :D

PS- Never used a Spyderco before but part of my next order is going to be a Caly3. It wants in my pocket.

Thanks.
 
A.G. Russel's Woodswalker is well below 100.00, but is a nice little FB that should handle fish just fine.

If you're willing to go fixed, you can't go wrong with Bark River either.
 
As of today, I am the proud owner of my second F1 (there are members here that have up to seven of them). I don't think it gets much better than that for light camp use. I have not handled an H1 but would expect the same. Your ideas and some of these other suggestions do all sound good though.
 
Andrew - The Canadian Sportsman does look like a nice knife. And 12C27 too. Good suggestion. And BRKT needs to update their damn web page.

Ender - Saw the Woodswalker in the last Russell catalog a friend gave me. Looks like a neat knife. Unfortunately Russell doesn't sell them wholesale.

tka1 - I have wanted an F1 for ages now. I just quit buying fixed blades if I couldn't think of something I needed it for. Now that I rationalize, er....I mean realize that I do have a use for a small one that's why it ended up on my list.
 
I would use a hatchet to chop off heads.

When cleaning sacalait (crappie) and blue gills, I filet them completely after descaling if I am not going to cook them on the bone. What is the purpose of leaving the meat on the bone when you are brining then remove the filet? It adds flavor?
 
All the choices mentioned seem appropriate, and I'd like to add a Greco, like the stainless dangler. I don't know what steel he uses, but I have one in 52100 and it is an awesome little knife. 3" blade, within your price range. I actually have the Caper and would recommend that one as well.
 
The Stainless Dangler mentioned above is a really nice looking knife. I might have to pick one of those up myself! Definitely curious what the steel is, though.
 
http://japaneseknifedirect.com/Page58.html

This is a double-beveled light camp knife with the profile and feel of a deba. The steel is G-1 (which also goes by the name G-2) and it is excellent. A deba is a traditional japanese fish-butchering knife. It's used for chopping off heads, gutting, and even filleting. The Japanese people know their fish and they know their blades. They know what works and what works perfectly. Believe me, this knife is in the latter category.

The vendor is named Koki Iwahara and he's just great to deal with . Wherever you are in the world and no matter how much you buy from him, shipping costs $7.00 flat and takes 3-5 days. That's $7 FOR EVERYTHING and not $7 per item. If you're buying a whole bunch of knives, you will probably be able to convince him to give you a discount on the unit price. He's a very agreeable guy.
 
dePaul - Never thought of the F2. This is probably exactly the kind of thing this knife was designed for. The first time I saw a pic of the F2 a couple years ago I thought it looked like an F1 after someone got carried away with a bench grinder. I guess that's why I quit looking at it.

JimMLa - I guess I should have used the word "cut" instead of "chop". After scaling we cut of the heads and gut them we soak them in salt water for a day or so. My Dad says they're easier to fillet after that, firms them up a little. We pretty much only cook fillets, breaded and fried.

jthomas - Those look like neat little knives. Bookmarking for future reference.

DocNightfall - That looks neat as hell. Is it beveled on both sides? I have a little deba I bought for $5 at a renfest years ago, believe it or not. It was one of many crammed in a coffee mug. Had I known how nice it is I'd have bought them all. No brand, no frills, cheap wood, but damn it holds an edge and slices like no other. This makes me look at that a little more seriously than if I had never used a deba. If they just made it in Micarta....
 
Shockingly, The Moras by Ericksson spring to mind. The Stainless is perfect for fish and there are several filet knife blade sillhouettes.
Frankly, I find that those handsome thick bladed knives are - well, TOO thick to be as effective on fish! Besides, at the price of the Moras, you could stock on them big time- around 1/6th the cost of the fancier knives.I've been hugly impressed with their performance in the field as well as in the kitchen. Your profit margins could be really huge as well. The guy I buy from visits Sweden and hauls them home himself. No duty etc...
 
Moodino - I'm not looking for a filet knife. I have several, all made by Marttiini in Finland. I want something for heading and gutting plus some camp type chores. I've sold many Marttiini hunting knives. I've just haven't had much practice sharpening that kind of edge. I'll probably pick up a small Marttiini as well to use it to get better at sharpening that kind of edge.
 
Lawndart_78 said:
DocNightfall - That looks neat as hell. Is it beveled on both sides? I have a little deba I bought for $5 at a renfest years ago, believe it or not. It was one of many crammed in a coffee mug. Had I known how nice it is I'd have bought them all. No brand, no frills, cheap wood, but damn it holds an edge and slices like no other. This makes me look at that a little more seriously than if I had never used a deba. If they just made it in Micarta....
Click to expand...

Yes, it's double beveled, unlike true old-school debas which are chisel ground. It's really a deba / camp knife hybrid. Comes with a pretty good sheath, too.

Why pass it up just cause it's not micarta? Cocobolo's pretty damn good for a handle material.
 
DocNightfall, is there anything on the top of the handle or blade to aid in getting a good purchase with the thumb? Thanks.
 
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