What is your preferred blade length for a deer hunting knife and why?

3" Just short enough for me to get my index fingertip over the tip of the blade so when I "zip" the gut cavity open I do not puncture intestines,without cutting myself. 3" is not ideal to me to cut in around the anus to free that up ,too,but it's close enough to do the job. To me all other cuts besides these are short,trimming cuts.

2 3/4" to 3 1/4" with a slim profile. I like a small blade.

That'll work,lol

never more than 4 inches, with something around 3 1/2 being best suited for me.

I can get it done with 2 to 3 inches...give or take a little on either end. I've even used those Micro Canadians from Bark River and did just fine. I've found over the years that I can get done what I need doin' with less than what I once thought necessary. Our ancestors did it with chipped prices of obsidian and chert. It ain't rocket science. Now, regarding doing it with a fine handmade custom fixed, drop point blade...that's an enjoyable experience altogether different...like drinkin' a real good bourbon

About 3.25" with a fairly slim profile...

3.25 give or take. I have done em with more but it sure is not needed

3" is about right for me. I can handle a 5", but that is just about tops on length. The knife needs to allow a lot of dexterity and control. For me, over 5" gets kind of clumsy. But if I were heading to the woods and staying there a long time, I would go with the longer blade and struggle through any dexterity issues I might have.

Yup

3.5" - 5".

A 5" blade doesn't bother me a bit, as long as it isn't too wide....

or thick.....

Holy Smokes.
I am just learning to get close enough for an archery shot....
I haven't started deer wrasslin' an stabbin' yet.

You do the wrassling and stabbing with hogs, not deer.

Lately I've started carrying two. A Wyoming knife for gutting and a Schrade old timer in a sheath for anus work. No weight and they quickly get the job done. Use to carry a Buck 110 but this combo works better for me.

Me, I like a slender blade profile that's between 2 3/4's and 3 1/4 inches long. I never used to give much thought about blade grinding methods until I handled both (flat grinds vs hollow big wheel grinds) and now I've had a lot of both and prefer the hollow grinds like I've found on Menefee's and Dowell's. They seem to cut better and are easier to sharpen as well.

Dowell examples...






Some Menefee examples...



[img]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r74/RDFinn/P10000761024x7671024x767_zps1b73d9e0.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r74/RDFinn/Menefee_zpsd452c62f.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r74/RDFinn/P10001501024x746.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r74/RDFinn/MenefeeAmboyna1024x683.jpg[/img]

Few others....

Wayne Hendrix...





Charlie May...




[img]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r74/RDFinn/P1000660-1.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r74/RDFinn/P1000693.jpg[/img]

....and Mike Miller...

[img]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r74/RDFinn/P10006311280x975.jpg[/img]
[img]http://i141.photobucket.com/albums/r74/RDFinn/P10006311280x975.jpg[/img]

I can get anything I need done with these.

Nice Phil Wilson's. I have been after one of his for a while.

Phil's well worth the wait. Stay after it.

Montana what is that bottom one on the first set of pics, maybe brown micarta, looks like a sweet little knife thanks.

That is a Big Chris.

Thank you, looks like a very ergo friendly hunter.

I've used skinning knives with blades from 3" to 5", from old Western's to modern Randall's - I like 3-1/2" to 4" the best and prefer a Buck 118 over all others.

Good call. ^^^^

I got by with this old Estwing and a little Buck 102 for over forty years before someone told me I needed a custom knife. (Estwing on the outside, Buck on the inside.)




But I also did one a couple of weeks ago with an old carbon steel B&T knife so what do I know?

When hunting I always carry a belt knife.
For antelope to elk, I prefer a 3 7/8" to 4 1/8" semi drop point blade, bevel ground, .125" thick and slightly less than 1" width.
With this I can zip, open up, split, core bung hole, gut, skin, quarter, bone out and reduce cuts as the situation requires.

I carry a smaller fixed blade (3" or so) for back up in my back pack
.
I don't put any part of my hands/fingers as far up as the cutting edge when working on game. I usually have a knife with some restriction in design such as a applied or integral guard or at least a finger notch----but not always.

But I still have a pile of knives to field test, so I could move off of center as time passes.

There are more "small" things you can do well with a bigger knife than there are "big" things you can do well with a smaller knife. Not considering the extremes here.
Just my current opinions.
Tim

I like a small knife, max maybe 4 inch blade. Why? Because you only use the tip 90% of the time and a big knife is awkward cutting inside the chest cavity, cutting the diaphragm...etc. Don't need a thick heavy blade either....a pocket knife or a small fixed blade sold as a "bird and trout" knife or for "small game" is about right.

I've historically carried a 3 - 3 1/4" drop point of some design or other. I've used a bunch and the only trouble I've ever encountered was hand fatigue when boning out an elk single handily with too small of a handle. Seems of late one of Tim's B&Ts is most often found in my pack.

I most commonly carry a folder, 3 5/8 overall, and a fixed blade in my pack. For deer and antelope I grab one and do the entire job. Elk get to see all my knives - one cuts hide and the other meat.

Just about perfect I would say.

I find a blade from 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 inches ideal. My personal favourite for the last few years is Charlie May's Slitter. It has a 3 1/4 in blade, mine is Scandi ground. Makes darn quick work of deer. Haven't had the opportunity to try it out on an elk but I suspect it will be up to the task.

I like a thin 3 1/2" blade.

Like a Spyderco Moran drop point.