Looking for a fixed blade hunting and skinning knife...

Ok so after mulling it around a bit I have been intrigued by the Bark River Gunny Hunter and the Chris Reeve Nayala. The Benchmade is still in the running but there is something about the other two that draws me. One question I have is on the Nayala it appears the scales are narrower than the tang. It seems to me that this would be uncomfortable, but obviously some people don't think so. To those of you who have a Nayala, what do you think about the handle comfort and ergonomics?

PS. I'm sitting in the delivery room waiting on baby number two. Do you think they will let cut the cord with an Izula?
 
NEOkie said:
... I'm sitting in the delivery room waiting on baby number two. Do you think they will let cut the cord with an Izula? ...
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Congrats on the new arrival! My wife and I have our kids at home (#3 is now 6 months old) so no idea what "they" will or will not let you do in their institution, they might regard an Izula as a weapon of mass destruction and might arrest you for even having it ... Let us know!

As for a recommendation per your specs and price-range with a desire for heirloom quality, I recommend looking here for something you like: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php/754-For-Sale-Fixed-Blades
For example, this sold for $100; http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...Drop-Point-Hunter*ATS34-Big-Leaf-Maple-Burl**

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There are a lot of makers on there that could offer you exactly what you seek, just drop one a line and get a quote.

Again, congrats on the new baby :thumbup:
 
NEOkie said:
Ok so after mulling it around a bit I have been intrigued by the Bark River Gunny Hunter and the Chris Reeve Nayala. The Benchmade is still in the running but there is something about the other two that draws me. One question I have is on the Nayala it appears the scales are narrower than the tang. It seems to me that this would be uncomfortable, but obviously some people don't think so. To those of you who have a Nayala, what do you think about the handle comfort and ergonomics?

PS. I'm sitting in the delivery room waiting on baby number two. Do you think they will let cut the cord with an Izula?
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I find the handle on my Nyala very comfortable, but I dont use it for hours either, just long enough to clean a deer.
 
MatthewSB said:
Bark River, something like the Fox River or Gunny depending on your tastes. The Fox River is smallish, but big enough to do just about anything.

Even the synthetic material (G10, micarta) handled BRKT knives have character, and 100 years from now they should still be in great shape so long as they are properly cared for.
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2nd the bark river. I use one of the smaller models for skinning, and the larger ones for butchering and dividing up the meat. The mini-canadian, mini-skinner, and woodland special are my skinning ones, and the canadian special and bravo 1 the butchering ones.

The canadian special is the finest knife ever made IMO. :) I think the secret with bark river, and other knives, like swamp rat (my second suggestion) is the convex edge. Whatever you do, if you get one get a leather strop and some compound, don't ruin it with a stone.
 
NEOkie said:
while high carbon blades are great for survival and bushcraft they are less than ideal for blood and guts.
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pardon my ignorance, but why is this? My dad and granddad gutted many deer with knives that based on their patina, were carbon steel and not stainless.

that said, some of the Esee knives are available in stainless if you otherwise like those knives.
 
The only thing less than ideal for blood and guts is a folder. I don't know why people insist on skinning a deer with a folder. Especially when you are in camp and have access to things other than pocket knives.

But then I don't get the appeal of the buck 110. I know it was the quintessential folder of it's era, but it's thick, heavy, and cuts no better than modern day lighter folders.
 
It may be more the geometry of the typical hard use carbon blade that keeps it from cutting like my S30V bladed knive, but then again that knife is shaped for a hunting knife. But partially it's the edge holding ability that that sets the steel I'm looking for apart from high carbon. I tried skinning a huge beaver once with an ESEE and i became quite frustrated about half way through when I lost the edge. I've also been impressed by an S30V at the end of processing an entire deer. That being said the only high carbon I've used was 1095 so I'm comparing everything to that. But what I really want is a dedicated hunting only knife that will hold an edge and slice all day long. I think that means an S30-35-90V will out perform a carbon. Not that you can't do it with carbon, but Im looking for a top performer.
 
FYI, no go on the Izula. Doc laughed the first time I asked, then avoided answering when I said I was serious. I didn't push the issue.

And Charlotte is 8 lbs 9 oz, 19.5" and doing great.
 
NEOkie said:
One question I have is on the Nayala it appears the scales are narrower than the tang. It seems to me that this would be uncomfortable, but obviously some people don't think so. To those of you who have a Nayala, what do you think about the handle comfort and ergonomics?
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Ergos on the Nyala are superb. The contours are great, they keep the knife from slipping out of your hands.

And if you have a problem with the scales, you can get custom ones. I hear Cuscadi makes some pretty good ones.

Although I have absolutely no problem with the scales.
 
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Congrats on the new arrival!!

The Gunny Hunter fits with your requirements. It is a great knife. Certainly nothing wrong with the Nyala either. It's comfortable and has great geometry. They are two very different knives, both great in their own right. I'd grab a Gunny Hunter and slap a Mashed Cat sheath on it. I've done this with a couple barkies and it makes a very nice combination.
 
NEOkie said:
FYI, no go on the Izula. Doc laughed the first time I asked, then avoided answering when I said I was serious. I didn't push the issue.

And Charlotte is 8 lbs 9 oz, 19.5" and doing great.
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Congratulations! Many many congratulations. May she be healthy, happy, and one day share your love of knives :)
 
Make sure you handle the knives in the benchmade hunt line. I went to cabelas fully expecting to purchase the saddle mtn Skinner but the handle is so thin it's not comfortable at all in my hand.
 
Thanks everyone for the input so far. I have narrowed it down to one of the Bark River knives, either the Fox River in Elmax, the Gunny Hunter in Elmax or the Rising Wolf in Elmax. The Rising Wolf is the smallest and the Fox River the largest, but I don't really like the stainless bolster on the Rising Wolf. Should I go Gunny or Fox River? Also, several Bark River knives have both a lanyard hole and a wide flat slot on the handle which also seems to be for a lanyard. What do people use that slot for? I have never had a knife with a lanyard on it either. Is there any purpose other than so you don't drop it?

Also can you attach photos from Tapatalk? It is telling me my forum has disabled image sharing from this app.
 
I don't think you can go wrong with either of those. There is some size difference, so if you like a little larger, Fox River or smaller, Gunny. The gunny happens to fit my hand well and I have several, that new Fox River in Elmax though is sexy! :eek: :thumbup:

The extra lanyard slot is indeed just that, another spot for a lanyard. Some people will even grind it off or send it to Bark River to have it removed. I would say this, if you don't already use a lanyard then you will probably find that it is in your way on blades this size.

Lots of people are familiar with the size of the Buck 110, so here's a size comparison shot of it with a Gunny. Good luck!

Uusl1LPl.jpg
 
Something similar or made by a maker on here in the shape of a schrade sharpfinger would be nice, LT Wright has a great version (clipper). Old hickory, fdick, MAC and Fujiwara make great butchery knives that will be much more effiecient and cost effective than the thicker Bark river knives. While they look cool, they propagate waste. If it's important the tool be of dual use, i.e. the only knife you bring to hunt with and would then rely on it for survival, then the bark rivers might make more sense. I own and enjoy some of Bark Rivers smaller offerings, like the pro scalpel 2, great little caper. I then went with a maker on here, Dogwood Custom Knives for my primary field butchery/skinner. Curious what you're hunting skinning?

Dogwood Skinner
EBleEdUl.jpg


BRK Pro scalpel
CrwZDq4l.jpg
 
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B34NS said:
Something similar or made by a maker on here in the shape of a schrade sharpfinger would be nice, LT Wright has a great version (clipper). Old hickory, fdick, MAC and Fujiwara make great butchery knives that will be much more effiecient and cost effective than the thicker Bark river knives. While they look cool, they propagate waste. If it's important the tool be of dual use, i.e. the only knife you bring to hunt with and would then rely on it for survival, then the bark rivers might make more sense. I own and enjoy some of Bark Rivers smaller offerings, like the pro scalpel 2, great little caper. I then went with a maker on here, Dogwood Custom Knives for my primary field butchery/skinner. Curious what you're hunting skinning?

Dogwood Skinner
EBleEdUl.jpg


BRK Pro scalpel
CrwZDq4l.jpg
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I'm mostly skinning deer. Sometimes beaver when the get too close to home. On occasion an Elk. You bring a good point and one I have been thinking about: I don't like to abuse my knives, and definitely not my shinning knives, so I usually carry two when hunting. One of those is an ESEE 4, so carrying another knife of that size and weight doesn't make sense. I have eyed the featherweight hunter and the pro scalpel 2, both of which come in Elmax. They would save a lot of weight and I will have my ESEE if I need it.
 
NEOkie said:
FYI, no go on the Izula. Doc laughed the first time I asked, then avoided answering when I said I was serious. I didn't push the issue.

And Charlotte is 8 lbs 9 oz, 19.5" and doing great.
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I must say first off, congratulations! I have a 16 month daughter and I did press the issue with my Benchmade Rift my wife got me for Christmas 4 days before my daughter was born. I didn't get to make the initial cut, but she did cut the cord longer than usual and let me make a cut just above the cord clip once Adalee was away from my wife. I will never carry that knife and will pass it along to my daughter or grandchild years down the road. I'm sorry it didn't work out for you.


Ha back to the reason I was in this thread, +3 or whatever it's up to now on the saddle mountain skinner. I love mine.
 
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Beretta Loveless dropped point hunter.

You want stainless? Mine accidentally took a five year dirt nap and then danced with a tiller.Here's the aftermath:



As found:



After a little cleanup:



The reason it was in the garden was because the neighbor's dog had snatched it off the tailgate of my truck after I had skinned a deer with it and it was covered in blood and fat. See the teethmarks?

 
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