Knife Choices
Experience Makes for Good Picks
A selection of useful hunting knives, drop point blades from 3 1/2" to 4 1/2". From left: custom by Bob Dozier, Buck 192 Vanguard,
Mora Companion Sparky, Cold Steel Master Hunter, Cold Steel Pendleton Hunter, CRKT Kuskowin with gut hook, Spyderco Bill Moran, Browning hunter circa 1980.
“Always keep an edge on your knife, son, always keep an edge on your knife; ’Cause a good sharp edge is a man’s best hedge against the vague uncertainties of life.” — Corb Lund
“Remember, son, don’t get the Senior Member started. If you need advice on anything shooting-related, he’s always worth your time. It’s when he starts reminiscing he can drive you crazy.”
They found the Senior Member reading a book. “Greetings, Old One! I’m Roy, You gave me sound on offhand shooting. This is my son, Roy Jr. We were hoping you might help him choose a hunting knife. He’s been hunting since he was 10. He’s 16 now; it’s time he learned to dress and skin his own game.”
“I should think so.” The Senior Member could be crusty at times. “When I was 16 I had shot my man and begot my man.” (“He’s lying,” the father whispered to Roy Jr., “He read that in an old book .”) Junior wasn’t so sure. Maybe there was more to this old-timer than met the eye. He said, “Is it okay if I give a biscuit to your pup? Tell me about your first hunting knife. I’m sure it would be interesting.”
Roy Sr. groaned. “I told you not to get him started.”
“My first hunting knife was a German-made Stork I got for Christmas 1960, or was it ’61? The Pirates beat the Yankees, I remember. Bill Mazeroski hit a home run. He’s in the Hall of Fame; my dad and I toured there about 30 years ago …” Half an hour later, they had progressed through a G96 folder and a Russel to a fixed blade Browning.
“Here’s a funny story. I unloaded a buck from the pickup so I could go to the city. Well, I drove 40 miles and through the city to a car wash. And there on the rear bumper was the Browning knife! You’d think someone in city traffic would have noticed dried blood on a tailgate and a knife on the bumper.”
“Fascinating,” said Roy Sr. “That gets us to what, about 1975? With respect, could we skip ahead 50 years or so?”
Blade shape optimized for skinning. Left and middle were custom made by Ruana in the 1960s. Right is a Buck 103.
Some of Dave’s early hunting knives. From below left, Stork brand made in Solingen, Germany; G96 folder, Russell Belt knife; Browning 809.
“Let’s try another tack.” The Senior Member said, “You’ve just shot a nice buck mule deer. You walk up to it and make certain it is dead. What’s the next thing you do?”
“I get out my knife and start field dressing it,” replied Junior.
“Wrong. You get out your game tags and cancel them. You want to do a nice neat job and not get blood all over the tags. Your Swiss army knife should have a pair of scissors. Cancel the tags and then put the knife away nice and clean. What next?”
“Now I can get my hunting knife out and go to work?”
“Right. After trying most knife styles, I like a fixed drop-point blade, about 3-1/2″ to 4-1/2″ long. Fixed because it is easier to clean, drop point because it is less likely to unintentionally pierce intestines or hide, length because it is long enough without being too long to manipulate inside the body cavity. I like a handle shaped so I can tell where the knife edge is even when I can’t see it.”
Roy Junior thought this over. “What do you mean by long enough, Old One?”
“Without being too explicit, there are basically two approaches to field dressing of big game: corers and splitters. If you’re a corer, you want a knife long enough to cut around the anus so it can be tied off, withdrawn into the body cavity and removed with the rest of the intestines. I should have said there are three approaches; another is to get very busy picking hair off meat while a companion deals with this unpleasant but essential task. Don’t be that guy. Unless you’re an old timer like me, then it’s okay.”
This pair from Buck will take care of dressing and skinning game.
Left is 192 Vanguard made by Buck for Cabela’s. Right is Buck 103 skinner.
Custom knives make a pair for dressing and skinning. Left is a hunting knife by Bob Dozier, right a skinner by Rudy Ruana.
The Ruana knife was a gift from a good friend who told me it had skinned over 50 elk.
“Maybe I’ll be a splitter.”
“That can be tough on a knife, especially if you use a rock to pound the knife through the pelvic bone. Better to use a folding saw or a hatchet.”
“Actually, a good sharp hatchet, small axe, or saw is not a bad thing to have. Your hunting knife will do for skinning. A friend gave me a Ruana skinning knife, I’ve come to prefer the shape. If a Ruana is too expensive for you or hard to find, the Buck 103 is a good option.”
“You never mentioned a specific make or model of hunting knife.”
“That’s because we are blessed with so many fine choices. Benchmade, Böker, Buck, Cold Steel, CRKT, ESEE, Gerber, Grohmann, Kershaw, Mora, Spyderco, and there are others I’ve missed. Find one along the lines I suggested. Whatever you choose, you’ll get your money’s worth; it’s a competitive market.”
“What about knife steel, does it matter?”
“Of course it matters! If you are really interested, you absolutely must buy the book “The Story of Knife Steel” by Larrin Thomas, PhD from the website knifesteelnerds.com. Learn the importance of steel, heat treating, tempering, and edge geometry.”
“Buy some whetstones and learn to sharpen. Keynes said of economics, it’s an easy subject at which few excel. Knife sharpening is much the same. You can get pretty good in a few hours just from watching YouTube videos, but to get really good takes years of experience.”
“Are you really good, Old One?”
“No, I’m average at best. But I’m patient.”
