Could you please help me to advice the best heavy duty skinner?

F

Falcenberg

Joined
Mar 29, 1999
Messages
330
Hello friends,

a very dear friend of mine, a skilled hunter, asked me for an advice about the best heavy duty skinner. It will be used to gut and skin wild boars of up to 90 kg, and medium size game.

More or less 30 years ago he asked for a heavy duty hunting and trekking knife, I told him to buy a Busse Battle Mistress and he was/is very happy with it (just to give a suggestion about his "tastes"). He is a quite big guy, so a large handle fits ok in his hands.

Which fixed blade knife do you think best? It will not have to withstand to impact etc, he already has an axe to break bones etc,, it just has to cut and stay sharp, the boar skin is insanely tough.

I saw in some discussion Benchmade 15002 Saddle Mountain Skinner is considered a very good choice, great CPM steel, but as far as I understand, my friend thinks:
- a "recurved" blade is best for his needs;
- no wood handle, to avoid soaking in fluids;
- a big knife is better than a small one;
- CPM steels even 90 or 110: it has not to chop or pry, just cut and slice.

Thank you for you help.
Falcenberg
 
Falcenberg said:
Hello friends,

a very dear friend of mine, a skilled hunter, asked me for an advice about the best heavy duty skinner. It will be used to gut and skin wild boars of up to 90 kg, and medium size game.

More or less 30 years ago he asked for a heavy duty hunting and trekking knife, I told him to buy a Busse Battle Mistress and he was/is very happy with it (just to give a suggestion about his "tastes"). He is a quite big guy, so a large handle fits ok in his hands.

Which fixed blade knife do you think best? It will not have to withstand to impact etc, he already has an axe to break bones etc,, it just has to cut and stay sharp, the boar skin is insanely tough.

I saw in some discussion Benchmade 15002 Saddle Mountain Skinner is considered a very good choice, great CPM steel, but as far as I understand, my friend thinks:
- a "recurved" blade is best for his needs;
- no wood handle, to avoid soaking in fluids;
- a big knife is better than a small one;
- CPM steels even 90 or 110: it has not to chop or pry, just cut and slice.

Thank you for you help.
Falcenberg
Click to expand...

What blade size are you looking for, and heavy duty as in just really good edge retention or in it's ability to chop bone or something while skinning pigs?

I have a biased opinion, but I'm pretty fond of my bush brute for such things. I aimed the design towards bush camp, so fire making and food prep, and it took a large influence from the Marbles woodcraft blade but with changes that I prefer in a camp knife (a lot more straight blade than the marbles and basic handle shape). I use high hardness AEB-L for these but have done a few in magnacut steel too, which I think would be a good choice. It's going to cosr more than the benchmade though.

20211125_221421.jpg

My Michigan Utility Knife is a shorter knife with a longer handle. I consider the MUK one of the better hunting knives for most game up to really big game. In Michigan, whitetail deer is the biggest game most people hunt.

1663927177967.png
20220913_060606.jpg

I like big handles and feel it adds to usefulness in most situations so I think my knives accomodate big hands pretty well, but I can send one for him to handle 1st if you want.

Now, for the ultimate in edge retention and at a high budget, Big Chris's S125v or S90v hunter or long hunter knives would be a good choice. I feel the guy knows his heat trear and geometries and frequently works with these hard to machine steels. His S90v will far outperform benchmades heat treat, IMO.

There are some other knife makers working with high edge retention steels as well, I just happen to have a Big Chris long hunter in S125v so I'm familiar eith the knife, grind, and handle design.
 
Falcenberg said:
Hello friends,

a very dear friend of mine, a skilled hunter, asked me for an advice about the best heavy duty skinner. It will be used to gut and skin wild boars of up to 90 kg, and medium size game.

More or less 30 years ago he asked for a heavy duty hunting and trekking knife, I told him to buy a Busse Battle Mistress and he was/is very happy with it (just to give a suggestion about his "tastes"). He is a quite big guy, so a large handle fits ok in his hands.

Which fixed blade knife do you think best? It will not have to withstand to impact etc, he already has an axe to break bones etc,, it just has to cut and stay sharp, the boar skin is insanely tough.

I saw in some discussion Benchmade 15002 Saddle Mountain Skinner is considered a very good choice, great CPM steel, but as far as I understand, my friend thinks:
- a "recurved" blade is best for his needs;
- no wood handle, to avoid soaking in fluids;
- a big knife is better than a small one;
- CPM steels even 90 or 110: it has not to chop or pry, just cut and slice.

Thank you for you help.
Falcenberg
Click to expand...
maserin-bacchilega-hunting-black-canvas-micarta-m986mc-knife.jpg

Maserin Bacchilega Hunting

N690Co Blade
Blade length: 9.5cm / 4mm thick
Made in Italy

Not a big knife but good for skinning
 
Good stuff . . .good advice.

I am always a bit amused by threads on any forum that want a recommendation for a "best" of anything. It could be motot oil or photographic gear, or whatever. The "best" of anything is always a subjective and complex discussion.

The "best" skinners I have ever owned are two identicle blades hand-crafted from spring steel salvaged from a oil field centralizer bow. If you don't know what that is , PM me. Snort with plenty of "belly" and slightly drop-pointed. One with antler scales, the other with Walnut scales. Neither has any brass. Neither one is a blade to be worn aqs camp jewelry. Neither one has a sheath. They live wrapped in an lightly oiled piece of flannel. Both are now with our son and grandson.

Sorry, no ix.
 
Yes, VorpelSword, the "best" depends on person, uses, places...

I tried to give some requirements, to identify what "best" means for this friend of mine:
- Buck 103 has a great steel, but blade is a little small. A good size is 13-15 cm /5-6 inches;
- "heavy duty" means "really good edge retention" and be able to withstand hard cutting (tough boar skin and pelt, muscles, tendons...) NO BONE CHOPPING or other tasks while skinning.

Because I and this friend of mine live in Italy, I think the Maserin could be a good choiche: it can be bought in some good knife shops. I met Maserin CEO at EXA 2001, in Brescia, Italy. One of my first knives is a Maserin & De Nardo Hunting multi-tool, I bought it 52 Years ago... so long ago...

I'll forward this thread to that friend of mine, to let him take his choice.

Thank you all very much.

Falcenberg
 
Another option, in addition to the other options above: Hit up Kyle, of Deep Cuts Cutlery. Instagram is a good place to view his work. He makes fixed blades with an emphasis on quality heat treat and performance and he uses some high-end steels.
 
I would disagree that a bigger knife is better for skinning. You need leverage sometimes, and you don't get that with a long blade - it is far easier to exert force with a smaller blade, as a larger one tends to "teeter-totter". You also need delicate control sometimes as well, and that disqualifies a large blade as well IMO.

I have also used dozens of different types of steels (including the "super" ones) and I still find that nothing works better than good ol' 1095. It has the right amount of toughness to not get upset if you accidently push it into a bone too hard, or do some light prying with some cartilage. Becker does 1095 very well. I can do two medium sized whitetails without resharpening. And if you do need to touch it up, a couple strokes and you're back in business.

My choice is not a skinner in the sense of the traditional profile, but the Becker BK 18 works remarkably well for those duties. I've used it several times, and each time I am more and more impressed.

I think it is because the edge profile is all "belly". There is no flat edge on this knife, just a graceful, sweeping, meat-cutting curve:


2PYJKNm.jpg
 
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I don’t mess with hogs but these knives have processed all kinds of game including deer, turkey, ducks, upland gamebirds, rabbits, hare, and squirrels. Many would describe these knives as plain-Jane or common but these knives have seen the rise and fall of scores of designer knife companies and super steels and they still keep on going.

Old Hickory belt knife, Outdoor Edge, Grohmann #1 & #3, Cold Steel Canadian Belt knife, Buck 105, Puma Hunters Pal, Buck 119, Puma Original Bowie, the most common of them all; the Buck 110. The 110 has probably processed more game in north America than all others combined. I don’t have personal experience with Grohmann #4 (not pictured) but is a larger brother to the #1 and has a very good reputation.

22D2AE84-5909-4C18-AA63-F8E4B7FFAE6E.jpeg
 
I'll enter the chat to support the idea of using a high hardness "supersteel" with crazy edge retention. Hogs are nasty: their hair is thick and rough, usually saturated with mud/sand, and have thick, tough skin. Making a few initial cuts through that abrasive stuff can kill an edge before you even start skinning. Of course simpler carbon steels will do the job, but if the man wants a large skinner in a supersteel then I think he should go for it.

As for recommendations, I can't recall many production knives other than TRC Knives, from Lithuania, who uses ELMAX, Vanadis, M390, etc. Dawson Knives from Arizona uses 3V and Magnacut.

If you want to go the custom route then I know Big Chris uses 10V, S90V, and the like. David Mary is starting to use Magnacut. Malanika makes hunting Knives with Magnacut, M4, 4V and the like.

I'm certain there are more options, but those were at the top of my head.
 
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SCTorrero said:
Another option, in addition to the other options above: Hit up Kyle, of Deep Cuts Cutlery. Instagram is a good place to view his work. He makes fixed blades with an emphasis on quality heat treat and performance and he uses some high-end steels.
Click to expand...


I LOVE Kyle's work. And with that, in my humble opinion, his stuff is almost unobtainium, the likes of Carothers or Gossman. In other words, they drop and (*quite literally) sale-out in seconds. Hell, I've been playing the game for a couple of years and only own two of 'em.

Does he even make knives to order?


shane45-1911 said:
I would disagree that a bigger knife is better for skinning. You need leverage sometimes, and you don't get that with a long blade - it is far easier to exert force with a smaller blade, as a larger one tends to "teeter-totter". You also need delicate control sometimes as well, and that disqualifies a large blade as well IMO.

I have also used dozens of different types of steels (including the "super" ones) and I still find that nothing works better than good ol' 1095. It has the right amount of toughness to not get upset if you accidently push it into a bone too hard, or do some light prying with some cartilage. Becker does 1095 very well. I can do two medium sized whitetails without resharpening. And if you do need to touch it up, a couple strokes and you're back in business.

My choice is not a skinner in the sense of the traditional profile, but the Becker BK 18 works remarkably well for those duties. I've used it several times, and each time I am more and more impressed.

I think it is because the edge profile is all "belly". There is no flat edge on this knife, just a graceful, sweeping, meat-cutting curve:


2PYJKNm.jpg
Click to expand...


It's funny you posted this. I'm not, by any stretch of the imagination, a "Hunter". However, I have been around life-long hunters most of my life, and the first blade that came to mind was a BK-16.

4 3/8ths inches of blade, 4 3/4rd inches of "handle", and PLENTY of "belly"...not to mention the performance and toughness of 1095 Cro-Van. What's not to like? 🤷‍♂️
 
I wonder if a spyderco zoomer would be a good choice for your application, given the desire for good edge retention.
 
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