Hunting knives?

[TheGame]

They are personal preference. I have used a buck vanguard for every deer I have ever taken. That said, I used my Izula on probably 15 or 20 squirrels this year, and it is a great little knife for that job. I may just try it on a deer this year.

 

[Gossman Knives]

I carry two knives for hunting. Until recently my prefered blade design was my modified drop point that is on my full size Tusker or Mini Tusker. The wharncliffe design I'm making with the 1/8" up from the edge point has finished my quest for the perfect hunting blade design. I like 2 1/2" to 4" blade for the knife that does the gutting and skinning. The other knife I carry is a wider/thicker blade (3/16" by 1 3/4") for splitting the breastbone and pelvic bone. I've been using my scaled down WST with a 4 1/2" blade. Once the animal is hung, I use a saw to remove the head and legs.
Scott

 

[udtjim]

We have several tables set up at deer camp to process the meat.

 

[kalama]

awsome ,watch out hunting is very addictive,every hunter has his own way or belief on what hunting knife should be used,i like to use a mora clipper or my fancy canadian sportsman by bark river,i can clean,skin,debone,boar,deer,goat ,a cow with these blades ,no saw or hatchet needed,,,its not the blade but what you will learn to do with it in time,,on youtube there is a video called (roe deer butchering part 1,2,3) this is how i kinda do my butchering with just a knife,good info vid,,,aloha

 

[coote]

I prefer a relatively straight fixed blade maybe four inches long. It needs to be pointy enough in case something needs to be 'finished off' with a knife. I dont like big fixed guards, but a nicely shaped handle to ensure a safe grip is desirable. I prefer a simple pouch sheath that covers most of the knife rather than having to cope with straps and domes (a knife with big guards wont fit in to this type of sheath).

I don't think you need to spend much. I'd be quite happy to use a Mora Clipper if it had a better sheath to hang on my belt. I bought a Cold Steel Finn Bear and it has given me good service too. My favorite factory made hunting knife is currently a BRKT Gameskeeper.

Most modern knives are a wonderful improvement on the sharp rocks that our ancestors used.

To me a knife is a very important part of the hunter's kit. Generally I would prefer to always have two knives. The second one could just be a small slipjoint folder.

Happy hunting. Coote.

 

[CAS6591]

In my not so humble opinion, unless your prey is larger than Western Mule deer, anything over 4" X 1/8" blade is more of a hinderance than a help.

My EDC is 2 7/8" X 3/32". I just got back from Montana, and this little knife went through 3 deer and 3 domestic hogs. The only reason I ever reached for my 4" blade was to slice through the brisket on deer. The pelvis can be separated on these size critters without chopping.

99% of what you need a knife for can be handled by a fixed blade that is 2 1/2" to 4". Why pack a large blade that truly will only really be useful for the other 1%? They are heavier and more difficult on the belt.

 

[Shotgun]

So for deer sized game there's basically gutting, skinning, and then processing. So if I had a mora clipper that would take care of the first two and then get a boning or butcher knife to cut it into steaks? Or would I need a knife for the skinning part with a lot of belly.

 

[guns_and_labs]

So for deer sized game there's basically gutting, skinning, and then processing. So if I had a mora clipper that would take care of the first two and then get a boning or butcher knife to cut it into steaks? Or would I need a knife for the skinning part with a lot of belly.

A Mora Clipper looks like it would do fine for casual skinning, IMHO. Thin, light, sharp... all good things. But I think you have to work to get a Mora sharp, don't you?

If you're doing a lot of skinning, or you just want an excuse for another knife, then a dedicated skinning knife makes sense.

 

[mtwarden]

almost any sharp knife will do for skinning, a lot of "skinning" is in reality done w/ your hands (pulling hide down)

for butchering you definitely want a "butcher" knife (or fillet knife)- that's for bone out butchering which IMO is the only way to butcher big game

 

[evbouret]

What knives are you considering using? Maybe we can help you make an educated choice?

 

[hlee]

You don't need a saw or an ax to cut through the pelvis. You can cut around the anus and pull the rectum out from the gut cavity side. You don't need a heavy point to pop out joints. It takes only a few seconds to cut the ligaments to dissect the joints. A blade with a lot of belly is not needed for skinning. As stated above, most skinning is done by pulling the skin. Taxidermists do not use heavily swept blades to do detail skinning. Almost to a person, they use relatively small, pointy knives with little belly. I use a caping knife for all tasks up to and including quartering deer sized game.

This is the one I use Cub Bear

For de-boning and cutting steaks I prefer a larger knife, but for the majority of the processing (gutting, skinning, quartering) I find a large blade to be a hindrance and not a benefit.

And please don't get a knife with a "gut hook" on the back of the blade. It makes the knife less useful for all tasks except for opening the gut cavity- and that can be done in a few seconds with a bit of care. Ride your index finger on the back of the blade with the tip of your finger "indexed" on the tip of the blade. Insert your blade- edge up- into the cavity, just under the muscle that lines it. Your finger will push the gut out of the way as you make your cut.

 

[Shotgun]

What knives are you considering using? Maybe we can help you make an educated choice?

Actually I just wanted to talk generally about the tasks a knife is used for. My friend and I keep talking about this subject because he has very little experience hunting and he knows a I'm a knife nut so I just wanted to round out my knowledge base.

This is the one I use Cub Bear

That's cool. He mentioned that knife to me and although I knew knives of alaska were good I didn't have any first hand knowledge of that one. How is the edge holding on that? Can you do the whole job or do you need to touch it up often? He was worried about the D2 being too hard to sharpen. He's a sharpening newb too.

 

[ChapmanPreferred]

The Cub Bear is 44C not D2 per the specs in the link under the More info and knife specs sheet.

 

[CAS6591]

A Mora Clipper looks like it would do fine for casual skinning, IMHO. Thin, light, sharp... all good things. But I think you have to work to get a Mora sharp, don't you?

If you're doing a lot of skinning, or you just want an excuse for another knife, then a dedicated skinning knife makes sense.

It would be nice to carry a double set, or more than one knife, but the reality is that most of us don't want the added weight or bulk.

Here is a link to what I consider an ideal compromise knife style. Enough belly to skin, enough point to penetrate, yet utilitarian enough for general use. As you can tell, I prefer a single bevel (Scandi) blade.

http://www.getthepointknifeworks.com/images/albums/NewAlbum_cd7f1/Nordic_in_leather.jpg.JPG

 

[SouthernCross]

As has been pointed, there's no one answer that will suit all.

Personally I require my hunting knife to be able to to double as a bushcraft knife, and the Fallkniven H1 suits me :thumbup:

Kind regards
Mick

 

[Mannlicher]

I use a small 'hunting' knife to do the initial field dressing. Not much else is needed to dismember a deer or hog.
If you are in a hurry, a small ax or folding saw is helpful.
My old Randall #11 has handled many deer and hogs over the past 20+ years.

 

[dartanyon]

gidday mick :thumbup:
is there anything you would change to that knife to make it a better all rounder?

 

[August West]

I use a small 'hunting' knife to do the initial field dressing. Not much else is needed to dismember a deer or hog.
If you are in a hurry, a small ax or folding saw is helpful.
My old Randall #11 has handled many deer and hogs over the past 20+ years.

Liked this knife so much I looked up the price....WHOOOOEEEE....little out of my price range. Chris

 

[coote]

I have completely skinned and butchered whole deer and hogs using a Mora Clipper or a similar blade. I've virtually never used a proper boning knife, although in the hands of a good operator a purpose made boning knife may speed up the operation and make a slightly better job.

If I were to pick two knives for butchering I'd have something like a Mora, and something with a seven to nine inch blade for neatly slicing big cuts and the meat between individual chops.

If I don't hit too much bone, I believe I could do a whole deer with my Mora without having to sharpen it. However it is good to be able to give it a few occasional swipes down a decent sharpening steel to maintain the edge. I prefer a full-length steel, but I've recently started using a 600 grit, pocket-sized sharpener which is perfectly adequate. I keep a medium and a fine Arkansas-type whetstone in the kitchen at home .

 

[Shotgun]

The Cub Bear is 44C not D2 per the specs in the link under the More info and knife specs sheet.

Another search on the web turned up both D2 and AUS 8 so who knows maybe they use different steels.