SP47 or SP46 for deer and light chopping.

cold one

cold one

Joined
Jul 23, 2009
Messages
859
Hi All,
Currently I use a Ontario Rat-1 and a Kabar D2 for use in field dressing a deer but I'm looking to replace the Kabar with a better chopping blade. I would use it for chopping through the pelvic bone, opening the sternum but also for chopping branches and saplings for making blinds, shooting lanes and such. When not hunting, I might use it for camping.

I am looking at the Ontario SP47 or SP46 to cover this area and was wondering which grind would be better suited for my needs:
SP47 with the saber grind
or
SP46 with the full flat grind.

Anyone have these knives or experience with these grinds?

Thanks.

ETA: or is the correct answer, just buy a BK2........:)
 
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Have you been able to chop through the pelvic bone with your Kabar without serious (or any) edge damage? On smaller deer I've been able to kind of muscle the blade through enough to split it the rest of the way, but on bigger bucks I've had to resort to batoning. I actually prefer batoning bc it's a lot easier (and safer) than the other way, but it leaves my edge looking like I dropped it into a wood chipper.

While butchering my deer last season I took a couple leg bones and ran a little experiment to see how a bunch of my favorite knives would do batoning through the bone, and not a single one made it through without some sort of edge damage, either chipping or rolling or both. I took some pics and will post them over in the testing forum when I get a chance.

I know a saw or hatchet is the better tool for getting through the pelvic bone, but I kind of like the idea of doing everything with just one blade.
 
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You really don't need to cut through the pelvic bone. I learned to field dress deer that way, but it is not necessary to cut or break the bone to remove the stuff there. I used to muscle through the bone as mentioned also or occasionally batonning through. I mostly used a slip joint back then for field dressing. Still plenty of knife as far as I'm concerned.

No experience with either Ontario knife you mentioned. I don't think you will be doing much chopping with a 6" blade.
 
That's a great point. In fact, I remember a couple times when a sharp edge from the severed bone would catch and tear open the bladder or intestines, so it would have been better to just lift the gut tract out and over.

I am curious though to find a knife/steel (other than beefy meat cleavers) that can be batonned through thick bone without suffering any edge damage.
 
The Kabar takes about 10 good whacks to get through the pelvic bone and is average at cutting tree branches. It's holds it edge good enough but it is a fighting knife not much for chopping.
I was just wondering about which grind would be better suited for getting through the bone. I like to carry a larger knife besides my skinner when hunting and figured since I was, might as well carry one more appropriate.
I believe I will get a SP47 (saber grind) and see if I like it, might even get a BK2 for comparison.
 
You should look into convex grind rather then hollow grind. I have found hollow ground knives have a thin edge and tend to chip and roll more then a convex ground blade. I convex my own blades, look into a condor Hudson Bay that could easily get through a pelvic bone with not much damage.

You don't need a belt grinder to convex either, just sand paper and an old mouse pad.
 
When you say "Kabar", do you mean the folding hunter model that runs about $20? I have one of those and it certainly is not a chopper. But it's a pretty good knife overall.

My "hunting knife" is a Spyderco Moran drop point. Consider the Kabar Becker BK-16 as an all around knife. It is a good knife and a good value.
 
Been using a Kabar D2 extreme with 7" fixed blade, I want a slightly smaller knife with a little more girth to the blade and made in the USA.
The SP46/47 seems about right but wanted to buy the best grind for the task.
 
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