Looking for a couple fillet knives... Help!

Fixall

Fixall

Brian
Joined
Mar 26, 2018
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This might be better off in the Hunting and Fishing subforum, but there doesn't seem to be much traffic there. :(

I am looking to purchase a couple of fillet knives as a gift for my little brother who is an avid fisher/hunter. They need to fit some very specific parameters and I can't seem to find anything on the market that fits the bill.

First I would like the knives to feature steel with a bit better edge retention than 420hc or 3/5/7/8/9cr which seems to be the most commonly found steel on a fillet knife. S30V, D2, or something like that would be great.

Second, I'm hoping not to spend more than $200 or so total for the two knives. They don't need to be anything special, they're going to be put to WORK. They just need good edge retention and durability.

The first knife needs to be between 5.5" - 7" and have a flexible blade. This knife will get the most use, so if only one knife can have premium steel because of pricing, this would be the one. I took a look at the 6" Buck Alaskan Guide Fillet Knife which features s30v steel, but it's a bit too stiff. Same thing with John Landi's fillet knife... Too stiff. I also took a look at the GEC 5.5" Fillet Knife, but I can't imagine GEC's 420HC is any better than Buck's and I'm not sure how flexible the blade is. The closest I've found is the the discontinued Buck Clearwater Fillet Knife which features 12c27mod (the new version has 420hc), but that seems like a sidegrade from 420hc. I looked at the White River too, but 54hrc seems crazy low for 440c.

The second knife needs to be between 9" - 11" and have a stiffer blade as this will mainly be used on sturgeon. The Buck Clearwater in 12c27 came up again, but it's to flexible, and again... Sidegrade. If Buck made a 10" version of the Alaskan Guide model, or if John made a larger version of his fillet knife, that would be PERFECT!

Any ideas?
 
I just bought a Cold Steel 8" commercial series fillet knife. Sharp as heck! Might not be the steel you want though.
I use it for rock cod here in the Pacific.
 
Check out the Helle Steinbit Knife. This is my all around fillet knife. Why? Because it just works! :D
 
Fixall said:
This might be better off in the Hunting and Fishing subforum, but there doesn't seem to be much traffic there. :(

I am looking to purchase a couple of fillet knives as a gift for my little brother who is an avid fisher/hunter. They need to fit some very specific parameters and I can't seem to find anything on the market that fits the bill.

First I would like the knives to feature steel with a bit better edge retention than 420hc or 3/5/7/8/9cr which seems to be the most commonly found steel on a fillet knife. S30V, D2, or something like that would be great.

Second, I'm hoping not to spend more than $200 or so total for the two knives. They don't need to be anything special, they're going to be put to WORK. They just need good edge retention and durability.

The first knife needs to be between 5.5" - 7" and have a flexible blade. This knife will get the most use, so if only one knife can have premium steel because of pricing, this would be the one. I took a look at the 6" Buck Alaskan Guide Fillet Knife which features s30v steel, but it's a bit too stiff. Same thing with John Landi's fillet knife... Too stiff. I also took a look at the GEC 5.5" Fillet Knife, but I can't imagine GEC's 420HC is any better than Buck's and I'm not sure how flexible the blade is. The closest I've found is the the discontinued Buck Clearwater Fillet Knife which features 12c27mod (the new version has 420hc), but that seems like a sidegrade from 420hc. I looked at the White River too, but 54hrc seems crazy low for 440c.

The second knife needs to be between 9" - 11" and have a stiffer blade as this will mainly be used on sturgeon. The Buck Clearwater in 12c27 came up again, but it's to flexible, and again... Sidegrade. If Buck made a 10" version of the Alaskan Guide model, or if John made a larger version of his fillet knife, that would be PERFECT!

Any ideas?
Click to expand...
Seems like
bladehq has some interesting offers under fishing knives. Look at the bubba blades line and calimus cuda line. Not great steels but alot of different offers.
 
Shun has one in AUS8A if u think that's any better and fallkniven makes an f4z 6" in vg10 on knifecenter. Happy hunting.
 
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I hesitate to even mention this one but I am very impressed with it for my use. The handle couldn't be better FOR ME if I had hired a team of experts to make it just the way I want it. Down side is the steel but seems to be seriously good for what it is; 440A (I know I know not what you asked for) I'm just putting it up here for anyone who might be interested. This is a good knife. Flexible blade. Came nicely sharp from the factory with NO PROBLEMS !

Outdoor Edge Fish Fillet & Game Boning Folding Knife with Non-Slip Rubberized TPR Handle, Nylon Sheath, Pocket Clip
 
The Buck filet knives can come in with S30V. Cabelas version. Factory sale in a week there might be one or two.
 
Been really impressed with the Buck Clearwater in Sandvik. The flow-through sheath works great also.
I'm not too picky with fillet knives , as long as their sharp. I'm usually not cleaning more than 2-3 a day when I'm out.
Even if it's a mid-grade steel, it only takes a minute or two to sharpen it up. Even the cheapie 420J2 folding one I have does the job.
 
SW-EDC said:
I just bought a Cold Steel 8" commercial series fillet knife. Sharp as heck! Might not be the steel you want though.
I use it for rock cod here in the Pacific.
Click to expand...

I was looking at the Cold Steel last night (they offer a 6" version), but I'm really looking for something with a bit more edge retention than 4116.


Sharp & Fiery said:
Check out the Helle Steinbit Knife. This is my all around fillet knife. Why? Because it just works! :D
Click to expand...

That's a pretty knife. I've been looking at a few knives that feature 12c27, but I'm still hoping for steel with a bit better edge retention than that. It might end up being the best option though... It should have a bit more edge retention than 12c27mod.


Brhowser87 said:
Seems like
bladehq has some interesting offers under fishing knives. Look at the bubba blades line and calimus cuda line. Not great steels but alot of different offers.
Click to expand...

It's shocking to me that there aren't really any fillet knives offered in more premium steel than 4116, 420j2, and if you're lucky 420hc. I was just as shocked to find that the majority of pocket knife collectors who are steel junkies don't also purchase kitchen knives with high end steel, lol.


Brhowser87 said:
Shun has one in AUS8A if u think that's any better and fallkniven makes an f4z 6" in vg10 on knifecenter. Happy hunting.
Click to expand...

I consider AUS8 a step up from 420hc personally, maybe others would disagree though. I don't think my brother would like the Shun unfortunately though.

That Fallkniven is one I missed, thanks! Looks like that guy is in the lead for the 6" fillet knife. :)


Makael said:
The Buck filet knives can come in with S30V. Cabelas version. Factory sale in a week there might be one or two.
Click to expand...

Yea... I checked out the Buck Alaskan Guide Fillet Knife in S30V and it was much too stiff. It seemed a bit more like a boning knife than a proper fillet knife in my opinion. I'm looking for a really flexible 6" and a stiffer 10" in "premium" steel. If the Buck Cabelas knife was 10" and the same stiffness it would be perfect as the larger knife.

hiwa said:
Been really impressed with the Buck Clearwater in Sandvik. The flow-through sheath works great also.
I'm not too picky with fillet knives , as long as their sharp. I'm usually not cleaning more than 2-3 a day when I'm out.
Even if it's a mid-grade steel, it only takes a minute or two to sharpen it up. Even the cheapie 420J2 folding one I have does the job.
Click to expand...

For the 6" it's between the Buck Clearwater in 12c27mod (because of that amazing BOS heat treat), a swedish knife in 12c27, or the Fallkniven in VG-10. For the 10" it's looking like the Clearwater in 12c27mod is the only option on the table so far. I worry that it will be a bit more flexible than he's looking for though. I'll have to find the new 420hc version of the Clearwater in a store to check.

Seems like there's a gap in the market to me... It'd be cool to see someone like Buck or Spyderco step up and produce a $40 - $100 series of fillet knives with steel that feature better edge retention than the current fillet knife offerings on the market.
 
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My expectation is that typical high end wear resistance steels like m390, or s35vn are just not going to work in this application otherwise we'd see them.
You want to have extreme flexibility, I don't think you'll get that with a 60+ hrc supersteel - the high carbide load will result in breakage & chipping.
I don't even know how m390 at 55 hrc would work out on the wear resistance end, probably similar to non-super steels at that range.

edit: the best super steel option might be 3v - it's tough enough & low on the carbide volume for flexibility and should result in great wear resistance
 
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Ryan Thompson said:
I would recommend checking out the North Arm Kermode fillet knife, available in 6in and 9in.
Click to expand...

Slightly over budget, but this is exactly what I'm looking for! Maybe I can swing it. :)

Thanks!

dirc said:
My expectation is that typical high end wear resistance steels like m390, or s35vn are just not going to work in this application otherwise we'd see them.
You want to have extreme flexibility, I don't think you'll get that with a 60+ hrc supersteel - the high carbide load will result in breakage & chipping.
I don't even know how m390 at 55 hrc would work out on the wear resistance end, probably similar to non-super steels at that range.

edit: the best super steel option might be 3v - it's tough enough & low on the carbide volume for flexibility and should result in great wear resistance
Click to expand...

I wondered that at first... But if you take a look at the custom market there are a LOT of fillet knives that feature s30v or s35vn steel. In fact, I believe our own @Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith uses s35vn almost exclusively for his fillet knives and finds it very suitable. Maybe it's harder to do the heat treat on such a thin blade on a larger, mass-produced scale??
 
yeah, I could see s35vn run at lower hardness, but I'm sure that turns into extra work on the heat treat - (I expect at least double tempering at 1000F and figuring out how to ensure aus temp doesn't go over 1900F)

I still expect 3v really is the better choice for this application
 
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I think Mora has a nice fillet knife in Sandvik 12C27 ... I think maybe it's a 6"? I love mine.

Not sure the length on Buck's S30V fillet ... Knives of Alaska used to have a set in S30V or D2 but I think there are 440C now.
 
JJ_Colt45 said:
I think Mora has a nice fillet knife in Sandvik 12C27 ... I think maybe it's a 6"? I love mine.

Not sure the length on Buck's S30V fillet ... Knives of Alaska used to have a set in S30V or D2 but I think there are 440C now.
Click to expand...

The Mora fillet knife is definitely in the running for the 6" knife. I'm just hoping to find something with just a bit better edge retention than that still.

The Knives of Alaska fillet knives are some I've been looking very closely at. They seem to run their 440c at a good hardness. I've read that the 6" isn't all that flexible and the larger version is only 8" long though. I wish they made a 10" version. Seems like it would be just what I'm looking for with their level of stiffness.
 
Fixall said:
consider AUS8 a step up from 420hc personally, maybe others would disagree though. I don't think my brother would like the Shun unfortunately though.

That Fallkniven is one I missed, thanks! Looks like that guy is in the lead for the 6" fillet knife. :)
Click to expand...

The fallkniven looked like a nice knife and I think knifecenter has the original buck Clearwater instock with the 12c27. I've also seen a few custom options pop up on our makers market.
 
SW-EDC said:
The 9" would be very nice :thumbsup:
Click to expand...

I've been doing some reading and it sounds like the Kermode has a nice amount of flex to it. I think I'm going to go with that for the 6" knife. Seems like it fits the bill perfectly and I can just spend a little less on the 10" fillet knife since it will only be used for sturgeon for the most part. I should probably start looking into a 10" boning knife for that purpose or something. I also found a Warther 6" fillet knife in S35VN, but some comments here on BladeForums lead me to believe it's more like a traditional boning knife without a lot of flex.

Right now I'm thinking of either the Bubba 9" Stiff Fillet which has 8Cr13Mov (Not great, but it could be worse I guess) or the Buck 10" Clearwater flexible fillet with 12c27Mod. I'll probably go with the Bubba if I can't find something better since I know my brother would prefer the longer fillet knife to be pretty stiff. I sent John @Landi an email and I'm really hoping that he gets back to me about the possibility of a 10" version of his stiff fillet knives. I'm also asking my brother if an 8" would do the job because that Knives of Alaska 8 incher looks perfect. The longer fillet knife doesn't need to have edge retention quite as good as the shorter knife since it won't be used as often. It should probably be a bit tougher too since I imagine it'll go through the odd bone/cartilage here and there.

Brhowser87 said:
The fallkniven looked like a nice knife and I think knifecenter has the original buck Clearwater instock with the 12c27. I've also seen a few custom options pop up on our makers market.
Click to expand...

I've read the Fallkniven is thicker than the Warther S35VN, which is thicker than the Kermode S35VN... So I think I'm going to go with the Kermode for the 6".

I'm keeping an eye on the Exchange too. :D
 
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