Choosing the right hunting knife

Before settling on that new hunting knife, there are some things you should consider. What animals will you hunt? How will you dress and kill the animal? Do you plan to have a saddle made? How do you want to carry the knife and size or weight is a factor? All these things may not seem important at first glance, but they go into the elk forest with a knife that is not suitable for skinning, covering or boning, and suddenly they become evident. 

Small game and highland birds are often easily handled with the average pocket knife. There are, however, knives designed specifically for small games. Great games like deer, moose, bears, moose and caribou are just that ... GREAT game. As the size and weight of the animal increases, the resistance of the skin increases. The size and weight of the body are definitely a problem if you need to separate or debone the animal to take it home or to a meat processor. That pocket knife you use on rabbits or quails can do work on a bear, but it will not be easy or pleasant. Neither is a cotton garment with a large fixed blade knife. 

 Let's take a look at the basic tasks that we ask our knives to do 

We will stay with the great game. After the killing, your first consideration will probably be field preparation or evisceration. Any experienced hunter knows this, right? But is there a particular type of knife that is better disembowelled than another? Can not you gut a deer or an elk with the same knife you will use to skin it? Of course you can, but ... 

 Consider that a dedicated casing hook, or a knife with a built-in casing hook, will make a field dressing job cleaner and tidier than a skinning knife, just as a skinning knife will be skinned more easily and efficiently that a boneless knife could never And speaking of boning ... try it with a dedicated gut hook at some point. And what happens if that moose you just shot is your "Trophy of your life"? You want a saddle, do not you? At least a full head or a mounting shoulder, huh? That means that someone will have to cover that elk properly so that their taxidermist has something to work with, plus an irregular skin full of nicks and holes. A cover knife is in order. 

The point here is that there are different types of blades for different tasks. The right tool for the job, as the saying goes. 

 Now let's compare the types mentioned so far .
verity of knives are available at https://www.damascus1.com

 Dedicated gut hooks 

This knife (for our purposes we will call it a knife) really has only one purpose: to cut the belly or the belly, without cutting the entrails and making a big mess, smelly and polluting. The blunt tip does not cut the stomach because inverted "U" shaped zips open the slippery belly like a whistle. Something like one of those elegant card openers. It's not very good for anything else, although I suppose it could happen like a pencil sharpener in a hurry. 

Knives with built-in gut hooks 

This is a normal knife, almost any style sheet, but with the built-in gut hook. Double function, two in one, if desired. (We'll talk about the different leaf styles below on the page). 

 Flaking knives 

The skinning knives usually have a rounded blade and are not as pointed at the tip. The rounded cutting edge facilitates the cutting of the membrane that holds the skin to the animal. You use it in an order or movement of "sliding" or "rolling", instead of "slicing". The most forceful tip helps you avoid punctures in the skin and flesh as you go. As with any knife, there are variations and adaptations, but a skinner almost always looks rounded and blunt-tipped. 

Boning knives 

Often thought of as a "butcher knife" or simply a "boning knife". This type of knife is ideal for cutting bone meat. The relatively narrow blade facilitates close and clean cuts so you do not waste meat. At the risk of offending, or annoying the purists, that is, in all honesty, the one that can probably do without. There are plenty of general and versatile hunting knives that can properly debone a large animal. On the other hand, a boning knife could serve as a good general hunting knife. 

The coverage implies a fine and detailed work on the antlers, eyes, ears, nose and mouth of your trophy. In general, a good protection blade has a thin, thin blade ... but not too flexible ... and a rather small handle, somewhat ergonomic. Control and delicacy are paramount with a cover knife. Some finishing knives have sharp blades, some rounded. Some have the end rounded to the end. This is more a matter of preference than anything else. While the rounded versions help ensure that you do not accidentally make a hole where you do not want one, the sharp versions can reach more closed places to make more delicate cuts. Just remember ... control and delicacy. Your taxidermist will patch any unwanted holes (probably at an additional cost to you) and any "missing" hiding places will not be replaced easily or economically.

It is possible to get a good trophy with that general and versatile hunting knife, but keep in mind the old saying about the right tool for the job. You do not want to use a hammer to nail finishing nails.

Styles of blades

When it comes to hunting knives, there are three basic blade styles: drop point, cut point and peel.

The drop point is an excellent blade design for the big game. The blade is generally heavier and thicker, which makes it a solid and resistant knife capable of splitting the sternum and even the ribs of all, except the largest and most resistant game animal. The gradual curve from handle to point allows the full use of the entire length, instead of only the first approximately inch of the point. The point of fall is an excellent option for hunting.

The blades of the clip points are somewhat thinner than the points of fall and the point is accentuated. It is also a little flatter from the edge back and makes an excellent knife for all use, hunting to the side. Most hunters would agree that, if you have only one hunting knife, the trimming point is not as good as the point of fall. It will work, but not as efficiently in a variety of situations.

Many skinning knives are very similar in design to the point of fall. However, "typical", "modern" skinners do not have the gradual curve associated with the drop point. The skinner curve is usually more drastic, it starts more in the middle than in the handle, and the curve tends to have a radius greater than that of the point of fall. A good skinner also makes a good camping knife. It slices better than the other two types. Some very old skinner designs, which do not produce much like hunting knives today, have an almost increasing shape and, often, much longer leaves. They still see use in commercial operations, but they are not very "useful" to surround the camp or hunting forests.

Fixed or foldable?

Fixed blade knives generally have no moving parts. That said, there are some with interchangeable blades, and even some that have two blades, one that projects from each end of the handle ... one blade at a time, "sliding" the lever back and forth. For our purposes, these are still fixed blade knives.

The fixed blades require a cover to protect the edge and the hunter. Obviously they are longer than a folder of the same sheet size, so they are not so compact for storage or transport. All, except the smallest / shortest, will necessarily be carried on the belt or in a package. The fixed blades are very resistant, easier to keep clean and tend to last a long time.

Damascus Foldingknives  do what the name says. The blades fold into the handle when they are not in use, but not by themselves. Safety first, friends. The folders are more compact. All but the largest ones will fit in your pocket, but most hunting folders come with a belt cover. Any folding knife used for the large game must have a mechanism that locks the blade to open it. The folders are not as strong or durable as the fixed sheets. The pivots eventually wear out and, occasionally, a locking mechanism fails. They are also a little harder to keep clean. The debris, the blood, the sand, the dirt, the hair of the animals, whatever, always find their way into the storage slots of the blades, the pivots and even under the locking bar. It's not a big problem and it's not that hard to clean, just something to consider.