Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Backpack Hunting Havalon Piranta

I got the Piranta Bolt because it could accept 3 size blades. I got the 60A blades because they're 20% thicker than the standard.

Similar and usually readily available is an X-acto knife. They accept different blade types. They're especially handy turning lips, ears, and eyes.

xacto blades IIRC were more expensive than the Havalon.

If I was ONLY working on the lips and eyes/ears and such, I"d have a fat scalpel handle with a few #21 blades handy.

I do carry one if I'm considering mounting what I shoot, they too are light, small and blades easy to swap and weigh nothing.

I love the friggin thing. The new 20A blades are nice too. Picked up a "Torch" last year and am diggin it as well. I use it for everything up to the point when it's time to make meat, then switch to Vic boning knives.

I have a Havalon Baracuda and it is scary sharp but it doesn't seem like the edge stays very long. Yes it's easy to change blades and the blade are cheap enough but I now only use it for delicate areas and use my Randall for all the grunt and skinning work.

From antelope to elk to moose and a few bison as well. It's all I use to skin, quarter and de-bone.

I've used a Piranta for the last few years. I've processed probably a dozen animals with it. If you use it as a knife and not a pry bar, it works great. I use two blades for an Elk and one for deer, pronghorns, etc. I carry a back-up knife as a precaution (I'd carry two knives anyway) but haven't used the extra knife.

As a guide who likes sharp knives and hates sharpening knives I love them. I still carry a cutco as well.

I usually use my cutco on the knee joints and getting the skull off the neck. And sometimes for making the caping cut up the back of the neck on bull elk.

I like the orange color too. I usually use 2-3 blades on a bull. They are cheap and I like sharp.

I think I did 4 elk (3 bulls, 1 cow), 1 antelope, and 3 mule deer last year with my Havalons. And they were all caped out too, except for the cow.

I've used a Piranta the last 2 years and wouldn't go hunting without it. You can figure on breaking 2-3 blades on an elk if you skin and cape. You will still need another sturdy knife or two for deboning but the Havalon will get the hide off like nothing else. You can cut and debone with the Havalon but it is tricky to do without snapping blades. You kind of get a feel as to how much you can twist the blade before it snaps.

I have not used the new version with thicker blades but assuming they are as sharp as the Piranta, I would go that route.

Just an update. Very pleased with the Havalon knife. We skinned/quartered Dad's Bull with 2 blades (broke one), only put on the 3rd new blade at the end when caping around the neck just to save time. Very impressed with this little knife.

Dad was too, after the first sharpening on his knife (before the first quarter was detached) he put his knife away.

The Piranta is probably the best hunting gear investment I've ever made...

They are making some beefier blades these days. I went through 3 blades doing an elk a few weeks back and it saved me lots of time.

I used the Bolt with the 60A blades. Broke one blade, but that was a bone-head move on my part, cutting through the leg joint. I like 'em.

Give me a couple of weeks and I hope to break a couple blades on one:) Actually will try one for caping antelope soon. Thinking you will be too. Glad it worked well on your bull.

They really shine in skinning/caping, as others have said. You'd be hard-pressed to get a hunting knife that sharp.

I'm still not crazy about the Havalon knife. I've never used it, but I have used scalpels before on skinning duties. I really don't think that steel holds an edge well. They're spooky sharp to start with, but they're not designed for the use a hunter gives them. I get it... It appeals to the microwave mentality of most Americans, and I've met tons of guys that can't sharpen a knife to save their ass. Especially on many of the "Super Steels" that high end stuff is made of now (like D2 and S30V.) The average guy will learn to hate those.

I'll keep my trusty Fireknife in my pack, with a gray Lansky Dogbone. It's just north of 4 ounces. I'll also continue my practice of touching up my knife through the process of turning a dead animal into meat. Last fall, I used my Fireknife to completely process a whitetail start to finish. I touched it up 4 times, it was still sharp when I finished...



Now if somebody just made a Kydex sheath for it, with the dogbone Chicago Screwed along the spine of the blade, with somekind of striker in the sheath....

Thanks for your opinion.

I've been using one for about 5 seasons. During that time it has more than a dozen brown bears, passel of moose and maybe 4 caribou to its repertoire not counting a small horde of fur bearers. I like it for skinning, especially intricate cuts such as splitting lips and eyelids and turning the ears. It's great for skinning the toes out on bears, especially on beaches with fine gravel where dulling a knife is inevitable. I normally carry 10-20 extra blades, #60 and #22 and they've done all I need. It's certainly not my only knife, nor is it my primary knife, but for the few ounces it weighs I'll not be without one on purpose again.

You must have the "microwave mentality" of most Americans, and not be able to sharpen a knife......

I could remove your Dos Equis beard with a Gerber sharpened my ME.

Gimme a Havalon and a pocket full of Vic's and get outta the [bleep] way......