Well, my dad has done it all and never bought a kit. I think he basically uses: A good fixed blade 4" knife, a wyoming saw, and a Chef's Choice Steel. That said, he keeps about 3 4" blades handy so he isn't sharpening during the processing job. IMO, I like having a larger 4" fixed blade, a small fillet type blade for the butt hole area and a short Gerber saw for the pelvis or ribs when needed. On the 4" fixed blade, 4" is a bit long most of the time. It would be nice if it were shorter. I like a knife I can really get my fingers on the back of the blade, if that makes sense. Makes it more precise. For cutting the meat off the bone, I would get a good narrow blade butcher/fillet knife if I did that work.