Is the SOG field pup a good hunting knife?

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oldschooljeep48

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Aug 13, 2009
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Hey All,
I have read that the SOG field pup is a good general use knife, but i was wondering if anyone used it primarily as a hunting/skinner knife?

i need a knife primarily for hunting. i say primarily because i want it to fit the bill for a "survival" knife as well, just in case my trip goes bad for any reason. so to have a full tang, strong blade, be able to take some abuse of camp work (shelter building or fire wood), is a must. If i were planning on being in the woods for an extended time, this would be part of my "nessmuk" setup as well. However, most likely this will only be used as a huting knife so i want it to be the primary focus so i get the most use out of it.

thanks in advance for reading and for you input!
 
Allow me to ask a question.
What is it that you like about the field pup?
ergonomics?
Styling?
Blade shape?
Steel?
Handle Material?
Sheath?

I would make a list of qualifications and then take a look at other knives that are similar in the aspects that you like about the field pup.
I say this because, where I've never owned/handled the field pup, I don't care for SOG as a company. But others will disagree.
Also, I think that you can do better for the money.
 
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if you want it to be a hunting/survival knife seal pup is not the way to go, i would suggest a bigger knife that you can do more heavy use to. like a scrap yard dogfather, anything made by busse, or a puma white hunter
 
I have had several, they work well eough for hunting.I like a drop point myself but it will sure work. You don't need a big knife for survival as thousands of people have survived with no knife at all and would have been happy with even a tiny slip joint. Better to learn how to do everything with nothing, then whatever you do have when a situation comes up will be a luxury.
 
The Pup is a fairly good skinner, but there are better choices considering the price/quality ratio of the Pup. Especially if you would like it to serve double duty as a survival-type knife.

The Pup fits well in my hand, and I do like the blade shape. It will take a nice edge, but retention of that edge is short-lived. For use as you described, overall I would choose the RC-3 or 4 over the Pup.

Full disclosure: I own 2 Pups and both RC's mentioned, and have skinned deer with both the Pup and RC-4.
 
I saw a friend of mine skin a black bear once with a cheap old Boy Scout knife. A seal pup is designed more as a tactical knife than a hunting knife, IMHO. A good drop point, flat grind, 3 or 4 inch blade is a great sized knife for hunting. Here's what I use. It's a custom knife that I paid $75 for. The blade is 4" D2 tool steel.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=563532
 

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ac1d0v3r1d3 said:
Allow me to ask a question.
What is it that you like about the field pup?
ergonomics?
Styling?
Blade shape?
Steel?
Handle Material?
Sheath?

I would make a list of qualifications and then take a look at other knives that are similar in the aspects that you like about the field pup.
I say this because, where I've never owned/handled the field pup, I don't care for SOG as a company. But others will disagree.
Also, I think that you can do better for the money.
Click to expand...

Well to answer your questions, which are good ones...
~ i like the field pup because of the quality that seems to come with it over something like a gerber.
~as far as ergonomics, i prefer something a bit heavier, but i like the overall fit.
~styling, blade shape, steel, handle: the pup is OK, i would like more of a mini bowie style, think ka-bar 7" becker but smaller with a 4"ish blade or the gerber big rock. more of a full tang of steel that stickes out in back in case i need to batton it, and has two slabs for a handle of rubber or "hi-tech" plastic. i would like a thick hunter drop point blade and i dont really care about the steel, as long as its not cheap i can sharpen it when neded.
~sheath, i would like something on the "tactical" side maybe the kydex stuff or something i can tie to my thigh if i felt the need.

i just want a quality hunter that isnt big but has the qualities of a bigger "survival" or "tactical" knife. hope that paints a better picture.

thanks for all the input!
 
for the price you can get the Field Pup for (and i got mine for $27), it is a good performer. i like it a lot; it is my camp utility knife, especially in the field kitchen. feels good in the hand, and AUS 8 steel is easy to sharpen. the Field Pup doesn't have the bling of a Rat or other more popular fixed blades, but it does the job and quite frankly no one in my crew really cares about a brand, only that a tool does a job it's tasked to...

also the Field Pup cuts tomato's better than the zt100...
 
I really don't think the ZT0100 was designed for slicing tomatoes. :confused::eek::D

Really, if all you want to do is skin deer, slice tomatoes and general campsite work, get a Buck 119.
 
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My Seal Pup did get used to clean several deer and other chores around camp and it did just fine. Not greatly suited for those uses but it got the job done.
 
pilote said:
for the price you can get the Field Pup for (and i got mine for $27), it is a good performer. i like it a lot; it is my camp utility knife, especially in the field kitchen. feels good in the hand, and AUS 8 steel is easy to sharpen. the Field Pup doesn't have the bling of a Rat or other more popular fixed blades, but it does the job and quite frankly no one in my crew really cares about a brand, only that a tool does a job it's tasked to...

also the Field Pup cuts tomato's better than the zt100...
Click to expand...
RATs have bling? :eek:
 
IF you can find one (they're moving fast) there are still a few remaining Blackjack Smalls in AUS-10 out there, and some still listing in the $50 range. Will hold and edge longer than the SOG, has notably superior cutting geometry, is about as perfect a general utility shape as you can get, and if you don't like it you can sell it to me and easily pick up the SOG afterwards. :D I don't know for a fact that the new Blackjack Smalls are really inferior knives, it's just that I wonder when the price goes from $50 to $20. Also, I have extremely limited experience with the Chinese steels.
 
riffraff said:
RATs have bling? :eek:
Click to expand...

oh please; most here love to showboat their purchases and "Rats" are right up there, you know it i know it the american people know it...nobody talks up a china made Field Pup...

i'm just keeping it real...
 
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