Knife Improvement - Looking for input

[300stw]

1. havalon with the thicker blades, always sharp, emergency room says too sharp, the tiniest mini leatherman I always carry to change blades and pick cactus thorns
2. fixed blade pendelton lite hunter, for elk joints doing gutless or removing heads from spine, I have bought many of this knife for gifts, sharpens easy to a razor with a little green diamond stone, caribou, moose, elk, bighorns, all gutless with these 2 knives
3. I like the rubber grip and orange handles on the outdoor edge replacement blade knife, it skins good, gets gunked up to replace blade, with that size handle might as well have fixed blade
4. I have numerous custom knives I have bought and used, Winston knives some of my favorite, but at 200-300 ea, when you loose one it hurts, and they don't perform any better than the pendelton as far as I can see
5. little deeper handle havalon with a little deeper and thicker blade bright orange with some rubber grip maybe , not as big as outdoor edge though

 

[Schaaf]

I use a custom Bob Dozier D2 drop point and either a Gerber Vital or Havalon. The Dozier went through a bull and several deer before hitting its wall. The thing is a lead weight but I am currently contemplating JLS and Ben Lamb’s advice of drilling a few holes in that Micarta handle to try and get it under 4 ounces.

 

[Rzrbck918]

1. I keep a Browning FDT in my pack. I like that it is foldable and has a gut hook that has stayed sharp for several seasons through two elk and probably 12 whitetail. I keep a Knives of Alaska set at camp/truck for final breaking down an animal.
2. High visability non slip handle and a forefinger groove or bolster to keep hand from slipping onto the blade.
3. Primarily whitetail.
4. Traditionally field dress everything.

 

[1_pointer]

#1. Havalon Piranta and Buck 110 (S30V)
#2. I prefer a knife blade with more belly than the piranta and less of a point than the 110. I drop point is as pointy as I like and I prefer a semi-skinner type profile. If the blade is not easily replacable and the replacement blades inexpensive, I like a blade to really hold an edge. I've found sintered steels like S30V to do this very, very well.
#3. Primarliy deer, but do hunt elk. For me, knife choice is not dependent on the species of game.
#4. Gutless on things that need packing and traditional on stuff easy to get to the truck, with a nod towards traditional as I get to do that more.

My suggestions would be for more blade options for the replaceable blade knives that have a touch longer cutting surface and less of a point. Something more akin to a skinner if possible. For the larger knives, I'm mostly interested in blade shape and steel.

 

[JTHOMP]

My go to everyday knife is a Buck Spitfire. I've bought it multiple times in the last 4 years because I'm careless and lose it. The slim design fits comfortably in a pocket, yet still holds good in hand. I will never carry a knife that doesn't have a clip, and the handle is solid orange. It has cleaned a few deer, a pig, traditional way and many small game. Con is over time mostly from cleaning animals (I think) is the blade will take more force it open.

For skinning I use Outdoor Edge Cutlery Wild-Pair Knives. Use them for deer and pigs gutless method and small game. I by no means swear by these knives, but they work for me and don't see a major need to make a switch yet. I've never used the gut hook, so it's just there. A common pro which I will say again is the solid orange handle. If you can add something reflective that doesn't affect the grip even better.

I've don't have a problem keeping knifes sharp which is the main reason I haven't swapped to replaceable blades. Those two knifes have cleaned multiple deer and pigs in between touch ups. I do like having the pair of knives to swap out or throw one to a buddy.

 

[belshawelk]

My buddy and I shot a couple cows this year. He brought one of the replaceable razor blade knifes. Since I am the gut/quarter master I wanted to try it out. I hated it. Couple days later I shot my cow and went back to my knife. In fairness I come from a farming family and know how to sharpen a knives compared to many. I went back to my knife. I use a Kershaw ( game trader?) It has a cutting blade, small saw and Skinner/gut hook blade. I have gutted, skinned probably a dozen elk, couple deer and bear. It makes it all the way through the animal processing before needing to be resharpened, It allows me to carry one knife( changeable) blades on the hunt. I have 2 of the exact knife sets.

Pros: non-slip, 3 different blades in on sheath, holds an edge, saw blade is decent, fits my hand really well, blades are stiff
Negatives: little heavy with all the blades, sometimes a little tricky to change blades if you don't clean it properly

 

[hank4elk]

I'm an old knife guy. Still have my 1st Swiss Army my dad gave me & my uncles Uncle Henry drop point folder I used to wear on my belt daily till & got a clip knife. Fillet'ed at a fish company at one time... So I have lots of knives & sharpening gear.
I have had the same Gerber folding clip knife on my pocket for 25 years & use it daily still.

Started using the Gerber Big Game Vital last year on Randy's advice. Love it.
2 elk so far & I just have to watch it as it is so light & sharp & I hunt alone.... a downside might be it goes right thru hide easy & I seem to nick the meat more due to surgical sharpness. It is a little bulky but that is also good since I have big hands. I think I just have to get used to it.
This years cow I did gutting on a ramp & it was done in no time. I used the Vital mostly, but also used a Shrade skinner gutter I have had forever for some of the skinning.
I used my Gerber clip knife for close work & inside as it fits right in my palm.
I had 3 sets of other knives on dash that day.Those 2 in one sets you get,caper/skinner,caper/general w/guthook.. One from RMEF I like,one from Shrade,one from Browning. All were razor sharp & I never needed one.

I will continue to use Gerber knives & think I will be sharpening knives less while hunting with the Big Game Vital. Maybe get the smaller Vital too & save my sharpening for the kitchen knives,knives in general & the clip.

My Gerber Big Game Vital came with lots of blades & a scabbard too.

Mostly elk,some deer.
Anywhere away from truck a couple hundred yards or it's warm, it's gutless. I like to hang whole if I can a couple days before butchering.

 

[Gut Shot]

I use a knife that I made. It is a clip point with a 4" blade. Made of ATS34 steel. No serrations, no gut hook, just a blade with brass trim and a laminated wood handle that is pinned on.

No upgrades, it does what a knife should, it cuts things.

I'm not, primarily, an elk hunter. I am way overdue for another elk hunt.

I use both gutless and traditional methods, depending on the situation.

 

[huntid73]

Havalon Barracuta for the gutting and skinning work, and an old fixed blade I inherited from my grandpa for breaking down quarters in the field (Breaking hams off of pelvis, splitting rib cage, etc...). I don't have many complaints other than cleaning replaceable blade knives...its amazing how much crap can pack into the tight interfaces. I hunt elk and mule deer mainly, and use both gutless and traditional methods depending on situation.

 

[rideold]

I have two fibrox/vitronox semi-stiff boning knives in my pack. The boning knives hold an edge well and are light.

 

[Backcountry Hunter 2]

I use two knifes in the field while dressing big game (elk, deer, and pronghorn). The first knife that I use 95% of the time is an Outdoor Edge Razor Lite Replaceable blade knife. Using it until the blade is dull has been fantastic over the past three years on close to 10 animals. It is very sharp and has been a game changer. Once it is dull, it is a pain in the ass to change blades. There is always gunk in all of the crevasses and is dangerous to replace the knife with the gunk sticking to the knife. Like others have stated you have to take out the leather-man in order to be safe. Once that is done, then it is back to work. The second is a Knifes of Alaska Cub Bear Caping Knife. This fixed blade knife is used for the knee joints. Very sharp and nice knife. It is small so weight isn't a concern. I am very interested in getting rid of the outdoor edge and getting a tyto. It weighs less and it appears easier to replace the blade. If gerber came out with a similar knife to the tyto at a close or cheaper price I might be tempted to try it.

 

[mtmiller]

I have two fibrox/vitronox semi-stiff boning knives in my pack. The boning knives hold an edge well and are light.

Same thing, but only one. No sheath, except for the cardboard I put together. It did ride up and I sliced my finger pretty good last weekend, so maybe I shouldn't bitch about the havalons. haaha

 

[rideold]

Same thing, but only one. No sheath, except for the cardboard I put together. It did ride up and I sliced my finger pretty good last weekend, so maybe I shouldn't bitch about the havalons. haaha

Yep, cardboard and packing tape sheath for me as well. Darn light "sheath".

 

[haiku_rodney]

I used to use a Silver Stag Schnoor Hunter until a friend built a knife for me. I have a preference for D2 steel. No elk where I hunt but had to de-bone (gutless method) a number of cows. The steel has a very durable edge. Generally the only touching up needed in the field is to use a strop. I use Herbs Yellowstone compound on my strop.

There are two problems with D2 steel. 1. It is a hard steel, so I have gone to diamond stones for shaping the edge. 2. It is a brittle steel. I have been warned that dropping the knife can shatter the blade.

 

[RobG]

I've been using a Havalon for convenience. My main issue with replaceable blade knives is safely changing the blade and storing used blades.

I had an Outdoor Edge knife that became impossible to change blades on if you let it cool after gutting a deer. The fat solidified and basically glued it in place. You had to heat the knife up to liquefy the fat - something not always practical in the field.

 

[kansasdad]

Havalon scalpel blades for me in the field, with a Benchmade folding knife if I need to extend a cut up the sternum (traditional gutting), but also carry my dad's old Case double bladed folder mostly as sentimental piece. I had intended to purchase a Gerber Gator pro like Fin has used, but never found it in a store, only seeing it online. I find that using the scalpel blade as it was intended (surgical slicing, not hard pressure cutting) means I don't break blades now (I don't feel the need to talk about the learning curve! )

I am used to putting scalpel blades on handles as a profession, but it isn't easy when hair/tissue is in the sliding slot. Invariably I end up using a push stick to keep fingers clear of danger when removing a spent blade.

I purchased the orange handled Havalon and Benchmade as well, because the joy of knowing right where you left you knife is worth it, especially in that time of extreme late afternoon/evening when I find myself needing to get to breaking down my deer.

As a side note: the bear guides in Alberta would set to skinning the bears, 5 guys all at once, all using havalons for almost all of the work needed. One of the guys would break out his sheath knife to skin out the belly area as it gave him more surface area to contact all at once. Three of the five guys would take a steel to the scalpel blade when it seemed to start to pull a bit rather than slice, and claimed that a steel would extend the life of a blade 3 or 4 fold. I watched them completely skin and cape 16 bears and one wolf in three days, and didn't see one hide cut through in all that time.

 

[morley.tyler]

1. What style of knife you currently use, and brand if you care to share?
**Benchmade 940- Folding, Axis Lock. S30V Steel

2. What you would like to see as upgrades to what you currently use?
**I've carried this knife, everyday for a decade. I've dressed 15-20 animals in that time w/it. I can gut and skin a deer w/ no breaks for sharpening and lite touch ups on bigger critters.
3. Are you primarily and elk hunter or other big game?
**primarily deer w/ the ocassional larger or smaller critter mixed in.
4. Do you mostly do the gutless method or do you do the traditional field dressing/gutting?
**Primarily traditional but have done gutless as well. Dependent on logistics.

I am also curious how much of a factor the following might be to other hunters, given how they use a knife - weight, blade durability versus sharpening ease, size, folding versus fixed blade, and replaceable blade versus resharpenable blade. And, any other ideas you are seeking when buying a knife.

**I'm intrigued by the idea of replaceable blades but changing knives has not been a priority for me as my current knife works so well.
**I don't mind a hard steel (Diamond sharpening steel/rod) but a steel that is mid-hardness (aprox 60 on the HRC) is a sweet spot for sharpening/holding edge.
**I prefer a folding knife for EDC and hunting but I've carried fixed blades and a hatchet in my pack at various points.
**I stand by my position that the Buck 103 is the best production skinning knife ever created.

 

[Irrelevant]

Havalon unless I'm hunting alone. they're too sharp to risk alone. Otherwise it's a buck fixed. I don't really care about shape but I want it sharp, sharp enough that I don't have to sharpen in the field and can get through an elk. I now go gutless 100% of the time on everything bigger than a rabbit.

 

[Melman]

After using my Gerber vital this season on two whitetails I was comparing it to my Dad's Havalon piranta. if I could combine those two knives I feel like I'd have the perfect back country knife. I love how much easier and safer it is to change blades on the Gerber vital, but I noticed because of the vital's design you can only use about half of the cutting edge of the blade. the vital and piranta have the same length blades but you can use 100% of the piranta's blade vs about 50% on the Gerber. I think Gerber should tweak the design a tad to fix this or make the blades a little longer for more cutting surface

 

[buckhunterhart]

1. What style of knife you currently use, and brand if you care to share?
Havalon Piranta

2. What you would like to see as upgrades to what you currently use?
Easier removal of used blades

3. Are you primarily and elk hunter or other big game?
Primarily deer, elk occasionally

4. Do you mostly do the gutless method or do you do the traditional field dressing/gutting?
It really depends how far away from the truck I am. Last fall/winter I used only a Havalon Piranta to butcher an entire cow elk that was traditionally field dressed. I think I went through 3 blades if you count the field dressing.