Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Good Knife sharpner for putting an edge on Fillet knives?

I have some Rapala Fillet knives that I can't get a good razor edge on them. Thicker blades knives aren't much of a problem.

A good whetstone, and a good boning steel .

Work Sharp. Thirty seconds and you're done.

project farm just did a video on knife sharpeners on youtube. Very consistent and unbiased reviews.

I use a Radda.

I use a 1200 grit diamond plate, then a hard black Arkansas stone, then a strop. The secret is to not get it too dull.

Rada cost 9 bucks and when cleaning a lot of red snappers works great. clean two or three fish run the knife through the rada about five strokes and keep going. We'd clean thirty-forty fish at a time.

This is all I use, perfect every time

Might be the knives, not your skills or sharpening tools.

I've used the Rada for decades

A 10 dollar Acuusharp works better and quicker than my Lanskys and other ones that cost 10x more.Amazon

Around my part of the world, the charter guys and gals just use a big diamond stone for the angle and then a steel for tune ups. And in my opinion, the old Rapala's with the wooden handles were pretty decent steel. I don't have any of the new plastic black handle style so cannot comment. Years ago, I was taught by a slime line fore-woman that you can have a too sharp knife, when you are skinning smooth skinned fish like lingcod, halibut.

I agree. The birch handled Rapalas are still made in Finland as far as I know and are/should be good knives. Others are made in China and who knows?

I also think you can over polish a knife. Think of it this way.....a knife edge is like a microscopic saw blade with teeth. A properly honed 400-600 grit edge has larger teeth that can bite into meat, scales, hide, whatever. If you take that knife to much higher polish levels in the thousands of grit like people do straight razors almost all of the teeth are removed. That is great for shaving, maybe not so great for cutting meat. Going back to the saw analogy, it would be like using a hacksaw to cut a limb off a tree as opposed to a bow saw. You can certainly do it, but you are going to work harder.

Rada would be great for those, wouldn’t use it on my hunting knives

^^^^true this^^^ The girls on the slime line that just make the 2 cuts through the rib bones have a ragged saw edge on their knives. Another small point, the pros use straight knives without the wicked curve of the traditional filet knife...don't get me wrong, I love an old Rapala, but when it's speed, volume, safety, you will see Dexter Russell's on the line.

I use a similar one made by Smith. As was said before, the trick is to not let it get too dull. If you do, you'll have to go back to a heavy duty sharpener and waste a bunch of time. One of these will keep it touched up for a long time.

favorite is always cardboard wheels on a cheap grinder. Gotta be careful though. they are dangerous., rada we have on the filet table in AK. So far not all that impressed. Though I think it may be worn out. I try to filet only a few salmon, hit it again, and so on. But Its so wobbly I bet I should buy a new one.

FWIW Havalon makes a filet knife. Blades not that cheap but it sure isn't dull

I'm a believer.....I use it for every kind of knife I have.

If you fillet a lot of fish and haven't tried "Bubba" products, you are missing out.