Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Ultimate BG hunting knife?

Reminds me of the Schrade PH2 model. Nice knife!

Sherwood

So the general consensus is that a fixed blade is the way to go?

Yes.

Doesn't take more then a good pocket knife to just open an animal up. If you are doing more like quarter game then a fixed blade for sure is the way to go.

I would say so..Lots of folks use folders, but I dislike cleaning them afterwards and there is always a chance a bit of "gunk" could get in the lock and prevent the blade locking properly.

Personally, I would go for a fixed blade, with a blade between 3.5" and 4.5" long, although a bit shorter or longer will also work..

I switched to a fixed blade after we had 3 cows down on a wind blown rock scab a sunset. I cleaned 2 with my Kershaw black horse and my dad used it to clean the 3rd. He then skinned out 3 while my uncle and I held the legs, pulled, etc.(He's super fast and good at it so we just step back) The internals and the every nook and cranny was packed with elk gunk. I attempted to clean it 3 times back at camp. Finally put it away and did a big soak n' scrub when I got home. Hydrogen peroxide was necessary to get the tiny bits that worked their way in. Fixed blade reduces the nook and cranny factor.

IMHO a pocket or folding knife is for utility use and should be capable of dressing an animal IF the need arrises but when it is likely that a dressing job might eventuate then a fixed blade is the way to go.

Von Gruff.

I always have a folder with me but a fixed is preferred for dressing, skinning and butchering. Like others have mentioned, gutting doesn't take much of a blade. This Chris Reeve has done the deed many times for me and is a daily carry knife.

I've been using an Old Timer folder for something like 30 years. When my Dad died in '06, I got his identical one so I have a matched pair, although mine saw a lot more use. It's been excellent except that I have big hands and the grip is too narrow for comfort. It just doesn't quite fit my hand.
Then 2 years ago my brother died and I got his plain Jane Buck 110. It's heavier but it fits my hand nicely. I've only used it on 1 deer and a couple goats that I've butchered, but it's my go to knife now.



Every hunting knife is a compromise. A real skinner has a radical curve to the blade. If you've ever used one, you'll know the advantage. They'll take off a hide in nothing flat. Nobody wants to haul around a bunch of knives in the field, but if you haul your game back to camp to skin it, try one of these sometime. You'll like it. 10,000 commercial butchers can't all be wrong.
I bought a Case skinner while taking a meats class in college 40 years ago. It was a cheapy but it's still the best knife I've ever owned for skinning.

Yes the Vic works well and is cheap. But sometimes I like class with form and function so I go with this.

Mojo, that is a hella good photo.

It isn't the Vic that makes the difference. It's the shape of the blade. I just grabbed that photo off the web as an example of what a skinner looks like. However, it's pretty worthless for field dressing other than the skinning so about no one carries one in the field.

Lite-Hunter Dropped combo in S30V:

I carry a moore maker large trapper. It's got a liner lock main blade that won't fold up from gunk and a spey blade that's great for skinning. All in carbon steel. 1095 is what they are using now. I once read about a knife test that Phil Shoemaker designed to test utility of a hunting knife and it passed the various criteria.

Fred

Hello Chris:

This knife was made by Francisco Pachi & his wife. It's been quite some time since I purchased it, so I don't remember all the details, but can tell you some things I remember.

(1) The blade was done before all the new powdered metals came out, and this one is made of ATS34. I don't remember if Francisco did the heat treating himself, or sent it out to be done, but whoever did it, did it right. The blade has stayed sharp enough to process two Buffalo (completely) with just using Spyderco crock stones for touch up's. That being said, I have sharpened it numerous times over the years using the EdgePro kit. A little painters tape on the blade before sharpening keeps this one looking new, even after 25+ years of hard use.

(2) The blade finish is brushed stainless, and it too has been maintained with 600 grit. Over the years it has acquired numerous scratches, but the 600 grit emery paper rubs them right out.

(3) The scales on this knife are made of Desert Ironwood

(3) The pins & bolster were engraved & etched with gold by Francisco�s wife, (for the life of me, I can�t remember her name), she absolutely does the best work I�ve ever seen.

(5) The fancy file work was done by Francisco.

(6) The blade tip is what I call a Semi-Drop point, though I've forgotten what he called it.

I was going to order another knife by this couple, but found out they no longer make any fixed blades, or didn�t when I last contacted them. As far as I know, they are only doing folders these days.

Sorry for the delay in replying, as I didn�t even know you had questions on this one.

Respects,

Richard

I have 4 of the knives made by McCroskey Custom Knives
Dave McCroskey 5220 S. Willis
Stillwater, OK 74074
1-877-256-4837

mccroskeyknives.com

I skinned 6 deer with one small "trapper" knife and it would still shave you.

A trapper skinned 320 beaver before his knife got dull.

My brother skinned and boned out 4 bull elk and his knife was not dull.

there are knives, then there are knives........Price is right on these knives also.

Dave is a very special person to deal with...you will never forget him!

This is mine for the past 10 years....perfect pack knife



This is my skinner and I have two one is always sharp



Ultra light sharpener I found a couple years back that flat works for $5

I think everybody appreciates the looks and function of a fixed blade knife while doing the actual cutting. Thing is we carry our knives a lot more than we cut with them, and a folder just disappears in pocket or pack until needed. I have several folders I really like including SOG, Gerber, Case, Timberline, and others. They are all lightweight and all with locking blades. I just hate grabbing a non-locking folder with my precious fingers and shoving it inside an animal. It's just plain dangerous!

One little knife I really like is the Gerber LST. I think it weighs about an ounce, is absolutely undetectable in the pocket, and it stays sharp enough, long enough to field dress at least two deer, and I have done three. Simply a great little knife.

Another I like is a Timberline with the Neely lock, mostly because it is unusual. When the blade opens fully it snaps about a quarter-inch into a recess molded into the handle. To fold it you pull outward on the blade and fold it. It's quite unusual and works well when not gunked up. But the easy fix for that is to clean it with warm soapy water and a toothbrush when you take your deer home or back to camp. Ain't nothin' to it.

I have fixed blades I like too but I've rambled on enough for now.

That is THE combo to have in my eyes.

For a factory knife, I can really like the Gerber Freeman Hunter.

Ultimate big game hunting knife?

That is easy. A George Herron Number Two.

Steve