Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Ask The Gunwriters What tools do I NEED to butcher my own deer?

Bluedoe,

I must admit it isn't my idea. Got it from an old book, if I recall correctly. But it made sense!

Well I have never owned a Swiss Army knife but I have gutted and boned out a lot of deer with of 3 or 4 inch pocket knives including splitting the pelvis and rib cage..My hunting knife is usually a Case Trapper or a 4" Puma Game Warden..Works as well on elk but you can't split the pelvis, and the rib cage must be cut to the side of the brest bone. On elk I usually have a hatchet tied on my horse or we can go get a small chain saw or axe in camp if were close enough. When helping a friend I just stick a axe in my saddle scabbard with the edge covered or in a case. We bone out everything, remove all fat an sinue to pure meat on all wild game.

Bob, GREAT pictorial. I just book marked that. Thinking of printing it out sheet by sheet and laminating it for step by step pictures to be used while working.

I just got an e-mail from Northern tool and those grinders are now on sale for $99. Mine works great. miles

Here's my favorite website for sausage making recipies, thechniques, and supplies. Check out the summer sausage recipies and venison recipies. Great site to search around.

Sausage making recipies and supplies

I would mix it with about 25-50% pork butts rather than just fat. Just my 2 cents.

Matt,
it was the first time I had seen the hind quarter roasts cut up and labeled in pictures.
Plus it has a nice down home story line with the younger hunter.

Not much left after the trimming on those bones.

Glad you liked the link.

Like the man said -- a good knife, a cutting board and some freezer paper. Maybe a fine steel to touch up the edge. That's it! I don't freeze bones, so I don't need a saw, and a moose gets done the same way, just bigger.

I agree. No bones in my freezer as well, but a saw does come in very handy for a few small cuts to break it down into small, easier to handle pcs, esp large moose.

On another note, venison does taste much better when cut with a knife as opposed to a band saw as it prevents bone dust from smearing over the muscle. This bone dust adds a lot of the wild taste that people dislike. The local butcher who uses a band saw to cut portions is more interested in production and getting it done ASAP than the quality of the end product. I've seen were they didn't even scrape the bone dust off the bottom side of the steaks, just the top side that you see on the tray.


.

A neighbor brought home a moose from Canada last year and took it to the local deer processor. Those are some BIG hind quarters! I don't think I could roll it over on the table to do the other side. I hope it's good meat because that guy surely has a TON of it. I used to think I would like to kill one but I have no clue how I would get it out of the woods.

A clean work surface. I have used cheap blue tarps even.
A pair of knives, one large butchers, one with a rounded point.
A bone saw is nice, buy a larger one, not hacksaw sized.
A grinder, hand cranked is ok.
A slicer is nice, best to buy a good one.
Pretty much in that order of importance.
Hair gets into everything.
Cut across the grain.
Deboned is better.
Peel off as much membrane as you can.
The hamburger needs beef fat, or a venison / ground beef mix.