Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Elk Hunting Hey what is a good knife?

Buck knives and Gerbers have always worked for me. I also have a Bear&Son Knife as a backup. Good to have some steel in your pack for just in case sharpening.

I handled one of these yesterday. $20 at BiMart, black handle though. I wanted to get a feel for whether it felt sturdy enough to take apart an elk hip; it did. I'm gonna buy one and try it out. Thanks for the heads-up!

Bought it.

Made in USA, $19.99 at BiMart, very light and seems tough.

Can't go wrong with a Gerber, Buck, or Schrade in no particular order, there's a lot of other good brands, these are just the ones I'm familiar with.

Of the suggestions I've read over the last 7 pages I like Buck 110, Fallkniven F1, Cold Steel Pendleton and Knives of Alaska the best. Personally, the fixed blade I carry for elk skinning duty is my Puma White Hunter. It's just PERFECT for the job. I also usually have a Buck 110 and my Cold Steel Ultimate Hunter (pendleton blade, folder) around too.

from reviews - may not hold a sharp edge for long - better get a good sharpener

Mine too. I love my folding Gator, but finally someone is making a findable knife! (I painted my Gator handles safety orange last year) Actually, I think a nice neon-canary yellow would be better. My Gator hid in the blood a couple times, and with red frost-kissed blueberry leaves all around, it didn't work out as well as I'd hoped. Maybe a neon-purple would stand out even better. Anything other than "natural" colors. Pepto pink? White would work well in no-snow conditions.

Ditto for binoculars, (I glued neon pink reflector strip tabs on mine so they catch the eye), and a few other items the manufacturers insist on making only in black or camo. This is probably a capitalist plot - the more camo and black stuff the ds would-be hunters buy (it sells!) - and lose- the more they can sell....

There is NO reason to have your binocs, spotting scopes, knife handles, canteens, etc. in a black, much less camo pattern.

That Puma White Hunter is the worst knife I have ever owned. A big price tag doesn't necessarily make for a practical hunting knife. I know what they are worth - or rather being charged for - but when someone offered me $15 bucks for it, I took it! I absolutely hated that POS. And yes - I tried it as a moose and caribou skinner. Ill- balanced, and way too heavy unless you carry it around on a mule or ATV. IMHO. I'd rather carry that 2 lb. , 14 inch blade "Bowie" down at the local AC store - at least it would chop small trees....

My WH came "free" with a remote-cabin purchase, so I figure I made $15, rather than "lost" the much bigger bucks. And it's gone, gone, GONE! I actually threw it away once - but then figured - Naw , I can get some sucker to buy this if I mark it down enough.

Milage may vary.....

Well, we all know what opinions are like.

To me the White Hunter is a beautiful knife, expertly made, tough and takes a great edge. I skinned a big cow elk with it and it gave me yeoman's duty. I would probably opt to use my Buck 110 more often these days, but the OP asked about a fixed blade and that's the only one I've used to skin an elk with.

I like those orange handled Bucks for skinning duty too. At least half the time you'll probably be doing it in the dark so it's nice to have those hi-viz handles. I also like how bright things stand out when you're giving a camp site that last once-over to be sure you got everything before moving on. You'll never miss anything blaze orange!

BBJ, if you've had other knives break I'm not so sure that a Dozier or Dozier copy is going to be your best option. I have several Doziers and while they certainly are superb cutters they have pretty thin blade sections and are more likely to break under other than pure cutting than some other tougher knives.

I would strongly recommend a Fallkniven F-1 or any one of several Bark River Knives for your purposes. Both are renowned for their toughness and cutting performance. You might read up about them over at Knifeforums or the like. There are quite a few reveiws of them on you-tube as well. They are a little more than $100, usually under $120 which I think in the end is better money spent. A $115 that lasts for the rest of your life is cheaper than a $55 knife that breaks...........................DJ

Interesting. Didn't get to skin an elk with it. I'll try it on deer, perhaps.

I use a Lansky sharpener. Very easy.

For my needs, a fixed-blade, drop point with a lightweight synthetic handle would be ideal. Doesn't need to be pretty, but it shouldn't freeze may hands when handling it bare-handed in the cold. Also shouldn't be slippery when wet and needs to hold an edge.

I have several knives I take hunting, none of which completely fit that description. Last knife I bought was a drop point at the tourist trap stores in YellowStone National Park several years ago. Cheap and from China but it works well, just which the handle material was different.

I like this one. I made it myself. Just had to show it off!