Prefered Knife

[MemorEsto]

Looking for a new hunting knife. Probably a fixed blade with a gut hook. Any suggestions? I'm partial to Kershaw and Kabar <--- Cutco will sharpen for free for life.

[tjblair]

Cutco for sure. I have their fillet knife and it is top notch.

[PatF10]

get a knife with a nice narrow blade no reason for one with a big wide dundee blade, i think i makes it harder to gut a deer. Also for sharpening pick up a lansky sharpening kit. They are about the best.

[MemorEsto]

I have the bladematic sharpener. I agree, I don't need a dundee blade, but don't really want a filet knife if I have to get into some sternum.

I kind of like this one. Traditional, good sized handle to grip. I don't really like skinny handle knives for gutting, when your hands are covered in blood, I want a good grip.


Blade thickness is .113 ( Less than an 1/8th )

[HoodRN]

Check out the Benchmade Griptillian. Great knife, easy to hold onto when it's wet, holds a nice edge for a long time.

[ridgerunner97]

I use an old Case XX knife with a thin blade and stacked leather handle, along with a Gerber Razor blade type gut hook, and a larger heavy bladed gerber folder with rubber handle's to clean all my deer.

[abrzrkr]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abLB7...e_gdata_player

[jmd471]

Case M3 Finn. Classic small fixed blade. Made in Bradford, PA. Design is almost identical to the kabar small Finn knife (which is made in china now).

[JeepSteeler]

For gutting/field dressing deer I usually use my Kershaw Elk Skinner II: http://www.knifecenter.com/item/KS10...-with-Gut-Hook

It's not expensive, and the rubber handle is really grippy. Easy to sharpen. Cheap enough that if i lose it, well i'm not gonna cry about it.

I carry this one in case i need to saw limbs off in a pinch, or have to break some bone or just need another knife for skinning/deboning - Kershaw Alaskan Blade Trader. System works well, the blades are held in tightly and the sheath is well made: http://www.cabelas.com/field-care-ke...er=22549717391

Again not super expensive and easy to sharpen. The gut hook is way too big though, so i don't use that blade much for that, but for skinning the shape works good. A decent all-around camping knife too.

I carry this Gerber Profile II a lot - good multi-purpose shape and easy to keep in hand when you have blood on your hands or they are wet. The titanium coating is holding up pretty well. It takes a little longer to sharpen but holds an edge for a good long time. Nice knife when de-boning or butchering meat, nicely balanced for handling, again not very expensive: http://www.cabelas.com/fixed-blade-k...er=22549717391

All 3 of those knives together are less than $100. I have Buck Omni Hunter that i haven't used yet. It's really sharp out of the box - easily shaves hair, and the sheath is really nice. It's a bigger blade. Not sure if i like the grip just yet or not. Good caping knife by the looks of it - again not too expensive, $40 or so. http://www.knifecenter.com/item/BU39...-Black-Handles

[MemorEsto]

I ended up with a Buck 113, not really by choice. It was a birthday present. Made in USA, so I'm content with that. Out of the box it was razor sharp. Not exactly what I was looking for. But it was free.

http://www.buckmasters.com/buck-113-ranger-skinner.aspx

[Azzy]

Buddy of mine uses one of these, the saw blade works great on the pelvic bone: http://www.amazon.com/Victorinox-Swi...ss+army+hunter

I use a fixed blade winchester that was a gift. Its done well, got a 3" straight blade, needs sharpening here and there, as its not the best steel... but it was free and it has gutted at least one deer.