What are you using to bone out elk?
This is what I have used for the last 3 elk. I have touched it up with a steel in the field. Now it is time to sharpen, but I might buy a new one.

That's one of my favorites for bears. Just don't try to hack through bone with it. (grin)

The little vicky still rules for backpack hunting though.

Actually, that's a skinning knife. A true boning knife looks like this:


About any knife can be used for anything but some designs do the job a lot better and faster. The skinner has that deep curve to allow it to be slid along the hide to cut the silverskin and to get more meat off the skin. The boner has the long narrow blade to get in around the bones and joints easily. Most hunting knives are a compromise between them.

This guy'll sharpen her up better than new for three bucks plus shipping.
Two or three in a flat rate box makes for a pretty good deal for those that can't or simply don't want to sharpen their own IMO.

http://www.popposrazorsedge.com/Pages/default.aspx

For a start that is not a boning knife, it is a side knife for beef.

Boning knives are awesome and light in weight. Mine isn't an Vic brand, rather an Dexter of high carbon steel that's easy to sharpen and it's pretty cheap to buy.

Had to take apart several moose and elk my family tagged out on and the boning knife and my Finnish Leuku make short work of them with an quickness.

Dexter Russell..."6 inch flex boner"
^^^insert joke here^^

Try the goods from Eicker Messer;

Here

I used their manager knives for years whilst roo shooting, the blue manager are slightly softer than F Dick and slightly harder than Vitorinox.

They are good people to deal with.

I have a tripe knife by them; its a handy knife when opening guts..

Yep a skinner is all I need to take them a part in the field. I don't gut them. Start from the back skinning and boning.

This is pretty much what I use for boning animals:



The knife on the bottom does 90% of the work. I call it a semi-ulu knife.
I designed it as a skinner but quickly found out how well it works for boning. By using a kind of scraping wrist action, I leave nothing but snow white bones. I have boned at least a couple dozen animals with this knife.

Here is another with a G1 handle along with a Leulu style knife:



And another I made for Big W



And one with a gut hook:

Do you still make those knives?

Ed,

Sure do. I have one with a gut hook made from ATS 34 stainless that just needs heat treating and a handle and I have a couple L6 carbon steel ready for finishing.

I use a filet knife a lot. Am I missing something?

Nope.

Not Elk, but two whitetails. Not just boned, all the way from the field to the freezer.

I have several perfectly useable, functional, good knives that I like a lot, two in particular.



Yet you insist on posting pictures of this knife! Why is it this makes me start thinking I need one?

You do this on purpose don't you?

I've been using one of these for over 30 years. I've long since lost track of how many deer and elk I've dressed with it. I have an identical one that I inherited from Dad. That one has had little use. I also have a Buck 110 that I inherited from my brother. It's a very good knife but no better than this Old Timer. It's also heavier to carry.
The Old Timer's a pretty good all purpose knife.



We raise meat goats so I butcher several of those every year. These are my skinning, boning, and butcher knives for home use. My old skinner is pushing 50 years old now. It'll get a little rust just sitting in a kitchen drawer but I just steel wool it a little as I need it and it cleans right up.

+1 on the Mora. Takes and holds an edge like crazy. Best all around processing knife I've used. I have a dexter boner which works well, especially if you want a little flex. And one of those Buck small game knives pictured above. Like both of them, but dang that Mora is bargain. I have one of the outdated plastic handle style carbon blades. Think it cost me 11 bucks.

Ella

I've never yet had need to bone one out in the field. I've used a fillet knife quite a bit for actual butchering once home. I recently bought a true "boning" knife that looks like the center one in Rock Chuck's picture above. Looks pretty much like a fillet knife but has a stiffer blade.

I think I used that knife in the picture BTW!

I have the same knife that I inherited from my Dad and it has dressed numerous deer, antelope, and elk.

I also have the Mora "light my fire" knife but its still a virgin.

Forschner 407-5.....mine are all about 30 years old now with wood handles.

Just my opinion, but there is something about a handmade knife that can't be duplicated by mass production techniques. Nice work Ed�heirloom quality for sure.

Ed-
what do you use for the side-handle ulu?

ironbender,

I use mostly L6 carbon steel, but have done a few out of ATS34.

As far as handles, I have used G10, Micarta, Mountain Mahogany and my personal knife is some walnut I had left from a stock project.

This is the second best boner a fella could have.

For the price, they simply can't be out done for boning and processing animals.

Good buddy is a butcher and has had one in his mitts everyday for the past umpteen years. Can't beat a man at his own trade.

Second dirty trick is thin merino glove liners under nitrile when working up meat.

Thank me later.....