RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DEER KNIFE

Looking for a good deer skinning knife . My father asked what I would like for Christmas. What better than a nice knife that could be handed down from father to son for decades to come. the price range would be $50-$100 could be slightly higher.

I bought my favorite one at Bed Bath & Beyond.

ESEE

If you want a knife that can be handed down for generations I would have one of the custom makers that post in this secion make one for you.

They can make you a very good knife for 125-150.

I have to agree with Pitchfork Predator. Great knives made here. If you want to spend a little more, go with something from Lucas Forge. The Packer, Elk River Hunter, or Woodsman Nessmuk all come to mind.

Both Obi Wan & Pitchfork - I agree with these guys, and would simply add that you need to make sure and get the knife you need not necessarily the one you want.

What I'm trying to say is that after gutting, skinning and butchering everything from Texas whitetail to Canadian Moose; the biggest mistake that I see people make is they get a knife that is BIG and looks good - or the wrong style of knife and either the excess size or design make doing the work a lot harder than it needs to be.

My personal opinion is that for 99% of the "deer skinning" sized jobs and general hunting knife needs, is that a 4" drop point with a good comfortable non-slip handle is all the knife you really ever need; and I would be willing to bet that some of the knife makers on this forum could make you one great hunting knife out of W2 steel(my personal favorite) and stay close to your price range.

Things to consider.....

1. The first "good" knife I ever bought had a gut hook on it and after a while I realized that if you know how to handle a knife they really just get in the way and for a knife I'm handing down I would avoid a gut hook...... my personal opinion and I'm sure there will be people who burn me at the stake for saying that.

2. Built for the task- No sense in making a bloody job more difficult than it has to be, so I really don't care for clip point knives as they make it easier to bust the gut open when cutting up the abdomen and likewise consider your handle material, after all when your hands are cold and bloody you don't want them slipping around on a mirror polished handle.

Heres an example of a popular hunting knife that I cant stand, yet they pop up in just about every hunting camp I've ever been .... https://www.amazon.com/Buck-Knives-0120B...306KVTENDDZDW23

Big blade, clip point and slippery when wet handle- Once again I'm sure I'll get burned by somebody for this.

3. The steel its made of will determine edge holding ability vs. ease of sharpening; if your just doing a deer or two every year its not that big of a deal. However one evening of population control on my buddies place left us with 3 bucks and 11 doe to clean..... Then you can appreciate a good well made knife and sharpener.

I keep a 5" jewel diamondstik in my hunting pack and another 12" in my kitchen and they are the best sharpening implement for me until its time to break out the wet stone.

Moore Maker 3101 udp

I like my USMC KaBar.

I agree with deewayne2003, I like large knives for some occasions, but for things like skinning or cutting up an animal, a blade around 4 to 4.5" seems to be adequate for most of what I do. I don't cut up elk as much as I might like, but deer and hogs generally get butchered with a smaller bladed knife. For a bush knife, maybe something bigger, but it gets to be a jack of all trades but master of none in my opinion.

MikeC on here made my skinner and EDC knives. Both very well made blades.

The skinner has about a 4 inch drop point blade. Damascus steel cause I like it. I’ve cut up hogs and deer with it. It’s also pulled ‘work’ duty for me a time or two when I used it to do necropsies on cows and horses.

I’ve also got a Buck 110 that I’ve used on multiple deer. It’s clip point but I’ve never busted the guts with it.

Deewayne, my Grandaddy would burn you at the stake for speaking ill of those buck knives. He loves that model and has it in several sizes. It’s not really his skinning knife though.

Check out the Spyderco Moran, Knives of Alaska Elk Hunter, or Buck Alaskan Guide Vanguard at Cabelas. All are in your budget and will last a lifetime

It's a good one. Wouldn't trade mine.

The orange and black is still for sale and will last a lifetime. I own many of his knives, they are awesome.

I've acquired several knives over the years, but my "go to" favorite is the Buck Model 0103 Skinner. Mine is at least 20 years old, still takes and holds an edge very well, and you can buy two of them for under your stated budget!

My favorite, and the one I've used to skin the most deer with is this Hen and Rooster skinner:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MS53H14/

on the cheaper side of things...we clean our deer with Kershaw Leek. Zero issues popping leg joints or popping neck joints. You can find them routinely on sale at Amazon for $30-35.

Check out Benchmade - their line of hunting knives is great, and around $100. They hold an edge forever