What is the best factory hunting knife?

The South Fork is a bargain at the street price.

Heck the street price is cheaper than most of the knives I see people just gotta have around here. ;)
 
I always thought the Cold Steel Master Hunter was a no-nonsense hunting knife.

Bob Dozier makes a lot of good hunting knives, but maybe those aren't considered factory knives.
 
shunsui said:
The South Fork is a bargain at the street price.

Heck the street price is cheaper than most of the knives I see people just gotta have around here. ;)
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For what one gets they are almost giving it away at those prices.
 
Queen has fixed blades for around $50. Great d2 steel and choice of handles but you will have to reprofile them.
 
Spyderco Bill Moran Drop Point gets wicked sharp and has given great results in processing game. Its a bargain at current price.
 
The Southfork would be my first choice as well. Knowing that's out I'd look next down in price to some of the bark river knives. They are convex ground, and come in A2, and 3V, amongst other steels. If you find one you like that you can afford in 3V that would be next choice.

Going down the money scale but sticking to excellent quality I would look to Blind Horse Knives in D2 or O-1. I personally love their 4 inch model in O-1
"57-59 ROCKWELL, CRYOGENIC TRIPLE TEMPERED "
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. This is back to being V grind, and you can chose scandi or regular. They make other sizes and make some in D2 in a different model but still great value and excellent performance.

The D2 hunter type models from Queen are about as low as I would go. I have some folders in D2 from Queen and while they certainly not Dozier D2, it is still competent. The hunters grips look kind of look small for my hands but others like them. Heck, hunters that I know use folders for deer every year.

It's up to you. For cutting flesh and tendons and gristle though nothing outperforms good, sharp, savagely biting carbides, The reason Dozier does D2 so good, and also the reason I would put my Phil Wilson above all the others. Excellent performance in cutting, wear resistance like you can't believe, and grips that fit my XXXL hands.

Good luck, have fun picking one out, and please let us know what you finally get.

Joe
 
I vote for the Fallkniven S1 Forest knife, 5" blade, great all-around fixed blade knife.
 
Flatlander1963 said:
S30V AG Vanguard. Made for Cabela's by Buck Inc. Priced just over $100
A lot of knife for the money and Buck's Bos HT on S30V is as good as it gets in the Knife World.
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I have had good luck with Buck in years past. I had a knife while jumping out of perfectly good airplanes that never let me down, though some of the other guys had knives that did not do so well. My old original, no-model-number Buck 110 in 440c still keeps rocking along. Thanks for the idea.
 
bdmicarta said:
I always thought the Cold Steel Master Hunter was a no-nonsense hunting knife.

Bob Dozier makes a lot of good hunting knives, but maybe those aren't considered factory knives.
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I have a Cold Steel Master Hunter in Carbon V that is my absolute favorite...but it is in storage a long way from here. Easier to just order a new knife.
 
The Mastiff said:
The Southfork would be my first choice as well. Knowing that's out I'd look next down in price to some of the bark river knives. They are convex ground, and come in A2, and 3V, amongst other steels. If you find one you like that you can afford in 3V that would be next choice.

Going down the money scale but sticking to excellent quality I would look to Blind Horse Knives in D2 or O-1. I personally love their 4 inch model in O-1. This is back to being V grind, and you can chose scandi or regular. They make other sizes and make some in D2 in a different model but still great value and excellent performance.

The D2 hunter type models from Queen are about as low as I would go. I have some folders in D2 from Queen and while they certainly not Dozier D2, it is still competent. The hunters grips look kind of look small for my hands but others like them. Heck, hunters that I know use folders for deer every year.

It's up to you. For cutting flesh and tendons and gristle though nothing outperforms good, sharp, savagely biting carbides, The reason Dozier does D2 so good, and also the reason I would put my Phil Wilson above all the others. Excellent performance in cutting, wear resistance like you can't believe, and grips that fit my XXXL hands.

Good luck, have fun picking one out, and please let us know what you finally get.

Joe
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What's the difference in performance between Queen's D2 and Dozier's? I haven't seen any testing showing one is superior.
 
maverick3981 said:
Spyderco Bill Moran Drop Point gets wicked sharp and has given great results in processing game. Its a bargain at current price.
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Yep....................what he said.

They were once offered in both black and orange handled versions, now only black. I've got 2 in orange. Lost enough gear in the last 40 years to outfit a large camp, these orange Morans stand out exceptionally well on the ground.

A great knife with a VG10 blade which I have found perfect for deer and elk. Nice Kydex sheath, as well. Under $100. The orange handled Morans can be found now and then if Googled.
 
BePrepared said:
i used the heck out of mine. It stayed shaving sharp through 3 deer... not sure what more you could ask for in a skinner
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you must be skinning very very small deer, INFI's edge holding ability isn't anywhere near field dressing and a complete skinning of one adult mule deer, let alone three, please, who are you trying to kid?
to stay in family kin terms, the scrap muk in 154 whips INFI's ass hand over fist in edge holding.
 
Personally, i think people sweat too much over steel types. Yes, there are distinct advantages of some over others but are they REALLY worth all that extra money ? I think not. I have skinned & cut up deer with an $8.00 Old Hickory knife. It was as sharp as i could get it when i started. Every so often i washed it off & gave it one swipe on each side on a butchers steel. It worked excellent throughout. The best knife is the one YOU like, that YOU can keep sharp. If you can not sharpen the "super steel" that the knife is made from, then IMHO, it ain't worth a lick.

A few years back, a buddy shot 2 deer, he had a BUCK skinner. He went to use it, i asked to see it first. It was not that sharp. He said it has never been sharpened & was 30 yrs old. I gave him my $12 Wal-Mart Remington folder. It has 3 blades: gut hook/saw/knife blade. He used it on both deer. He said it was the sharpest blade he ever used. I told him to use the blade to cut through the middle of the rib cage. He didn't want to, so i did it. He thought it was some super knife. Nope, just a cheap-ass W-mart blade made in China from 440 ss. I believe having a sharp knife & being able to keep it sharp, is more important than what steel it is made from. 440, 420HC, 1095, 1085, 1075 is all considered low-end steel. It has worked for me for 49 years. YMMV. :D
 
What's the difference in performance between Queen's D2 and Dozier's? I haven't seen any testing showing one is superior.
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Have you ever had a dozier? D2 is D2, but with a dozier you get a very consistent heat treat that is typically at RC 60.5. He has the heat treat he likes, along with the thin edges and geometry you get with his stuff. When put together they are a really good package that a lot of people seem to really like for hunting, skinning, etc. It's not something you would want for cutting wood, but it sure cuts meat, tendons, through dirty hair, etc.

I've heard Queen runs theirs between rc 57 and 59. I like them and have probably 8 or so Queen folders. Once you get them sharp they are very nice, but out of the box if you held, and used the two companies blades you would notice a difference. Use it for processing game and the beauty of the whole Dozier product becomes apparent. They can be pretty hard to find and sell them about as fast as they make them and have for a number of years. Dozier has become an icon of sorts with his knives and his D2 is what most normally think of when they think of a Bob Dozier semi custom, or custom.

Joe
 
I just aquired a Kershaw 1082- Great knive--leather sheath..about $30!! You will not win any style awards from knife snobs, but you will have a decent knife to get dirty.

•Blade length: 3.75 inches
•Overall length: 7.25 inches
•Blade material: Sandvik 14C28N stainless steel
•Handle material: Black G10 overlays
•Weight: 2.6 oz
 
For me, picking a knife that I'm actually going to use has to go through these criteria:

Ergonomics - does it fit my hand and have good grip retention when slick with blood and fat? This is critical. The best steel and coolest looking knife is worthless to me if it slips and slides and makes my hand tired while working through a nice SC Whitetail.

Blade design - I GREATLY prefer convex grinds and full convex bevels to any other design. They just seem to lazerbeam through skin, hide, tendons, fat and other tissues. Sure, a sharp knife of just about any design will do okay, but for some reason a full convex with no secondary bevel works wonders for me.

Blade steel - I like all of the new super steels and own a fair number of knives with them, but if I can't get a knife shaving sharp again in the field after a few minutes stropping, it's going to be hard for me to use.

For my own personal use, I find the Bark River Gunny in A2 is just about perfect for SC Whitetail. Sometimes I wish the blade were a tad longer but not too often.

If I needed something to clean larger game like say, black bear and maybe some larger deer or whatever, I'd probably look at the Bark River Gameskeeper.

A lot of people like the Fox River but the handle ergonomics are not good for me.

Fallkniven makes the H1 which a lot of people also seem to like. I wish I could afford their TK2!
 
Outdoor Edge makes some fantastic users, made specifically for hunters. They have some of the best kits on the market and they really work and hold an edge. I have had a Kodi Skinner in my hunting vest for about 8 years and it has never failed me on small game like rabbits and squirrel or big game Whitetails. It is always razor sharp and the gut hook goes on and on and on.

Don't overlook some of the good old companies like Buck either, they lack the snob appeal of some of the names you will hear on the forums but they make great users that have been tested by time.

The Cold Steel Master Hunter and the MH Plus are also very good knives. All the ones mentioned are not only good users, they are very affordable.
 
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