With summer right around the corner,.... yeah right, I need a good filet knife, i've owned several different brands but have yet to find one that I really like. I currently own several Rapala's, an Old Timer, and a Mustad which is terrible and won't hold an edge. I use to fish with a halibut charter out of Homer and he had a filet knife that I really liked but have not been able to find anywhere. The blade did not sit in the middle of the handle but closer to one side of it (handle)and it worked great. I have also contacted Gene Ingram about making one for me but he doesn't have the capabilities as of yet to make that happen. So what brands are the Alaska fisherman using these days?

Well a lot of em use Dexter filet knives, which are white-handled, but that is like your garden-variety brand; I have 3 of em and they work ok for me, although I don't think they hold an edge that long. Not sure if this is what you might have seen; I didn't look too cose at the blade placement.

I know a lot of folks don't think much of Buck knives but I have a higher-end one with a hard case and that sucker has held a great edge for me through a couple years; once I sharpen the heck out of it it stays that way through some abuse.

Have just a single gerber folding fillet knife from their "bolt-action" series out of a bunch of the same model I have had. I have been looking for another for years and have never found one. It is about perfect in my mind and hand. The cutco fillet knife is not bad, but pricey.

For salmon I use 10" meat slicing knife. It is fast and can cut through the vertibre tips but does leave a thin slice on the spine. Sitka is the most efficient filleter I've seen. Not much for the birds when he is finished.pak

Coming from you I take that as high praise! Thanks!

I use a victorinox meat slicing knife. With a traditional fillet knife it is more difficult to get a clean cut. Like pak said, the meat slicing knives cut right through the vertebrate. You can cut a fillet right off in one fluid motion, which makes for a quick, clean cut.

Pak,

+1

I have a pair of 10" Forschners that I wouldn't part with for anything! One is over twenty years old and the other 10 or so. They will allow a salmon to be filleted in scant moments. As a bonus, they do halibut fine. They are wickedly sharp and easy to keep that way.

Best,
bhtr

I'll second the dexter knives. They seem standard for most of the fishermen where I fish.

If I were in the market for the very best filet knife, I'd buy on of Phil Wilson's knives made from S30V steel. I doubt that there is one better.

Don

I'll third the Dexters. Years ago when I worked at a meat plant all the butchers there used Dexters, so i followed suit.

They have a decent blade are flexible and the price is right. Seems every so often I get a good nick from filleting rockfish so it doesn't hurt too bad if it can't be ground out.

When you wake up at 4am, fish for 12 hours, catch several hundred pounds of fish, and come back tired, fillet knives tend to be left on fish cleaning tables or are inadvertently knocked off the tables into the water when working tired. I'd be scared to use anything too pricey.

Joel, your point is or should be well taken!! Possibly the best tip I gained on this site is the victorinox paring knife. I've bought lots, lost and given away plenty. At about $3.00 a pop they are a value. To me a knife is a tool and is often used for things outside its design. Which is why a custom knife is not in mix for a hunting/fishing/survival equipment.pak

Don't they carry those paring knives at B&J on C street? I have a friend that raves about those knives for skinning and caping duties. Thanks for the tips guys, i'll look into those Cutco's, Forschners, and Dexter's and see which one best fits my needs.

I have used a Cutco filet knife for years now, it extends to 9 inches and has a lifetime warranty. You can even send it in for sharpening for free.

The cutco I was thinking of is fixed-blade and I would not have it any other way.

Yeah, i'm not to keen on an adjustable blade either.

I have several Victorinox/Forschner knives. I use a 6" knife for filleting halibut & salmon. I have a serrated slicer for cutting salmon steaks. I have a more rigid and curved variety for filleting rockfish. Like guns and fishing poles, I just can't seem to have too many knives.

See Spook at the Sports Show this week. She'll have plenty of Victorinox knives to look at, and she's no slouch at disassembling fish either.

Personally I do not care for the Cutco knives. I don't care for the handles and that I cannot sharpen them. I have a few of their knives. I also have a pair of scissors and they are the best I've used by far.pak

forschner and Dexter are what I use on fish. Like Joel said , I aint goin swimming for a knife. Look here.

www.Cadcutlery.com

anyone ever try the benchmade folder?

http://www.1sks.com/images/benchmade/2005/bm-10115.jpg

Can't like folders...i'm always worried they will close and cut off my fingers.

Check with Bob Ball , He makes a few from time to time. I have one and love it. Rarely needs sharpened and when it does Bob does it for free.

Mel

I like this one http://www.outdoorsuperstore.com/product.asp?prod=411623 and I have a buck folding lock blade filet,blue rubber handle, and both of these hold an edge well...

and here's a few to look at http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_pg_1/104-7005143-4743117?ie=UTF8&keywords=fillet%20knives&rh=n%3A3375301%2Ck%3Afillet%20knives&page=1

Here's Bob Ball's web sight for anyone interested in a quality knive, fillet or other wise.

Alaska Knifemaker Robert Ball (907) 337-1796. www.alaskaknifemaker.com email [email protected]

Mel

If limited to one knife, I'd take Forschner's #40711, shown .... HERE.

Walker,

Do you know what steel Forschner uses in the Filet knife?
TIA,

Don

another vote for the cutco fillet knife. alot of knife for the money with a lifetime guarantee. they can be user resharpened. it is the double d blade that must be sent back to the factory.

Sure don't, Don. They don't brag about it much. Probably much like our humble 440A or 440B, I would expect. Hardness is reported to be around 56 R"c".

It responds well to a honing steel, and you definitely want to keep one handy. A ceramic stone works very well, too, for quick touch-ups. I often carry a single ceramic "triangle hone" with me, from my Spyderco Sharpmaker, for that purpose.

I've lately been using a rapala folder and been very pleased. The other day I was poking around at www.ragweedforge.com and saw some scandinavian fillet knives with cork handles that float! I may try one.

Walker,

Thanks. There's something to say about steels that are easily sharpened in use, such as a filet knife.
Don't know if you remember Lowell Manely, a stockmaker from Michigan. He only used knives made from 0-1 for Elk hunting as 0-1 is very easy to sharpen at 10,000 ft elevation with snow and cold.

Don

How about one of these?

Seamount Knives

I clean lot of fish and have found the dexter/russell brand of professional kitchen knives to be the best. they run roughly $15 and can be found at professional kitchen stores or online. they have white handles. what makes them unique is they are high carbon, stain free (not stainless). the key here is that you can easily sharpen them. I use one to filet and another to skin. I sharpen them after each use. some knives work well when new but are impossible to sharpen, stainless for example.

I use the same concept for my skinning and butchering knives.

Pure sales pitch. No steel blade is actually "stain free". The steel used in Dexter-Russell knives is about as common as can be found in stamped kitchen cutlery. I'm not knocking these knives, btw, as I think they are perfectly good, useful knives. Quite similar to the Forschner knives, IME, and I like those, too.