Blade length for Hunting knife, another can of worms?

hi mike
i'm only about 2 hours from you and here in the townships a 3-4" hunter sells well you don't want to go to big the deer are getting smaller:eek:

david
 
Hey ya'll, I am not forging my own blades, yet, but I put together a kaw skinner from Jantz that I used this season here in MS. I really like the way they felt in my hand. fairly thick blade (5/32), 3" x 1" blade with gut hook and dymondwood handle. BTW, I read this forum every day and look forward to using the knowledge I have picked up from reading it.
 
I like the semi-skinner style blade the best as a hunting knife. I've hunted whitetails for 25+ years and tried many different knives. I was never happy with the ones I tried which was one of the reasons I started into knifemaking. 4" is the max I like for a blade. 4" handle or shorter so I can palm the handle. No guards and a sharp cut out for the first finger groove before the ricasso.
Scott
 
Thanks David, do you make knives yourself? You live in a beautiful part of the world.

Thanks Scott, got a pic of one?:D I do not quite know what a semi-skinner is.

Mike
 
This is my version of a semi-skinner miden. This is what I think of as my ideal whitetail hunting knife. :D I do have one with a 4" blade I use also but this one is big enough for me.
Scott

newedc2.JPG
 
Nice knife Scott.
Is blade width a factor? I have noticed most Hunters are fairly wide.
 
A wide blade gives it quite a sweep curve from straight section to tip - a semi-skinner blade. However it's no big deal to skin a deer, mostly pull down the hide cut a bit of membrane and repeat ,no real need for a 'skinner' blade.In fact some will pull a hide off a deer with their truck !! 3/4-1" is all you need for width.
 
I've heard the truck thing too.:D Pulling a deer hide off with very little need for a knife can only be done while the animal is warm. Once the deer gets cold or hangs with the hide on for several days, if you tried to take it off without using a knife....... well good luck. In colder weather I like to leave mine hang for a few days, it relaxes the meat fibers. The best way is to leave the hide on the deer. This has worked for me. Other hunters prefer to skin them right away. I leave the hide on to keep the meat from drying out.
Scott
 
You may want to check out www.engnath.com

Bob Engnath (Grind) was a good man that helped a number of makers start out both by providing blades and information. His wife and son have kept his website going as a memorial.

if you go to the drawings he has blade length and overall dimentions of all of his patterns, some from RW Loveless, one from George Herron, most of the designs have peen proven to work and work well.
 
D.sylvester said:
hi mike
yes i make knives not to well yet. here is a style i like to make for deer.
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Looks like it ought to get the job done just fine. Nice knife. Mike:thumbup:
 
I use my handmade drop point skinner, with a 3.5" flat ground blade, hardened to 62 RC, and razor sharp, to do many moose, deer, and elk, and it performs very well. It goes through a moose, and only needs to be touched up. It has a leather Jap wrap handle. Have a boning knife with a micarta handle, but find it gets too slippery when it's full of blood.
 
Thanks again for your input guys, much appreciated. I know a lot more now than I did a couple of days ago.:thumbup:
Thanks also for the PM's. Take care All.:D

Mike
 
what size. My brother and father are slaughtermen. They work in a factory
because I cant spell abitor. They work on the carcases before the butchers cut it up into small cuts of meat. The answer they would give you is you need three of four knives to do the job properly. So it will not matter a whole lot what you make someone will have an opinion that it should have been more this or more that. So make what you are happy with. I personally
would go 4 or 5 inches. I have not been lucky enough to go tramping a couple of miles with a deer to carry but I think after a while the lighter everything was the better. Having said that I met a goat hunter that welded
a 2.5 or 3 inch wide blade about 12 inches long onto the front edge of an axe

He used it to cut down between the back legs and spine and what ever else
needed cutting into big pieces. I only spoke to him for a bout 20 minutes checking out his workshop 8 years ago so it is a bit fuzzy weather it was for dog meat or human consumption.

He had the best sharpening jig ever. Sorry to go so far of track good luck with what you decide on.
 
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