knife recommendations
 

Am looking for a recomendation for a good Elk skinning and quarting knife. Last year I tried a Havalon on my Elk and i broke several blades. It works fine for Deer but not strong enough for Elk in my opinion. Are there any other modles with changable blades that are made for Elk or Moose? Thanks for any help.

Try Outdoor edge knives or have one built by a member on here named Spartan1. He make very good quality knives.

Generally, the requirements of a skinning knife and a knife to quarter a big game animal are different for each action. I am not a big believer in changeable blade knives. There are many knives out there on the market in both fixed blades and folding knives of good quality. You want to look at a blade that will hold an edge for both tasks which to me means carbon steel. It takes a fine edge and dresses up easily with a couple of strokes on the stone or steel. A finer blade for skinning and a heavier blade for taking the animal apart. Look at Gerber, and Case for good blades for the money. There are so many manufacturers out there the only way to find what you want is to handle some different brands. Or, you can go with custom knives where you tell the maker what you want. I have never found the need for that.

As OT pointed out, the 2 tasks require 2 different blade types generally. CAN you perform both tasks with a single blade type? Yes you most certainly can. But when it comes to larger game animals such as Elk and Moose, as you found out last season, you should have the proper tools for the task. A good curved edge "skinning" knife is required for Elk and larger game. This one from Gerber is highly recommended. http://www.gerbergear.com/Activity/H...nife_31-002743 It's form lends to making the skinning MUCH easier. For quartering I recommend a fixed strong back blade of 4 inches or more such as the Gerber Gator seen here http://www.gerbergear.com/Knives/Fix...de-Knife_46904

And before you ask, no I am not affiliated with Gerber in any way. They just make pretty dang good knives that tend to take and hold an edge (when sharpened properly) as well, if not better than, most knives on the market today. When I pack for an Elk or Moose hunt, I generally have 4 knives with me. I tend to bone out the meat at my camp site so I use a filet knife as well. Saves on weight and packing space. But for the job of skinning and quartering you can get away with 2.

If I had to pick a mass produced knife I'd go with a Kabar bk15 or bk16

Here is my BK15

Here is my bk16


I mostly use green river blades that I have customized to my liking.

An old 1095 schrade sharpfinger is also a good one


I have a pretty good collection Photobucket is broken right now. I'll post some more pictures when it starts working again.

Here are my green rivers that I use

RP maybe you know this but you can buy Green River finished knives or just blades here. www.crazycrow.com . They sell all kinds of knives and blades and components to build knives.

Yeah I have looked at those. I bought some from a guy on ebay and we got to talking and Ive been buying from him every since.

He lives close to the factory.

Helle Harding is my choice, a puma white hunter and hunters pal make a good combo set

I like outdoor edge myself.

If you are looking for a knife specially for skinning purpose, I would suggest you the Victorinox Lamb Skinning Knife. It features Fibrox Pro Handle which is amazing. Can give it a try.
Knives for Hunting & Skinning

I like knives of Alaska. Decent price. American made. I have trek model with orange handle.

Survive! Knives. Any one of the GSO series.

just tried my buddies Gerber folding knife this year to quarter my elk- thought it was way better than the havalon as I found it much easier to switch blades

Case Sharks tooth folder.

I've lost count of the deer and elk Ive processed decades ago, you need a decent knife ,
but theres no reason to spend hundreds of dollars on an edged tool,
that works perfectly well, you can get for under $30-$100,
It takes some practice and experience, too learn to quickly and cleanly dress game and keep the venison clean and free of dirt and contaminants,
if theres snow or a mountain steam handy place the sealed 2 gallon zip lock bags in the snow,
or water to cool, before you pack out the venison to reduce chance of it starting to spoil.
because this is a thread about equipment Id include a few related tips gained over the last 45 plus years of elk hunts.



this woodsman (above) and the sharp finger (below),are both a darn good value in a skinning and dressing game knife,
both work, you may prefer one vs the other,
but both get the job done and at the very low price,
you could buy both and give the one you don,t prefer to a son or friend
youll find either available under $29 if you shop carefully


https://www.midwayusa.com/product/83...nife-sharpener
youll need a handy blade sharpener no mater what blades you select.

if you dress out Elk youll occasionally find a heavy blade handy for some jobs
I,ve found this Kukri far more useful than a hatchet, for various reasons, and if you ever dress out out elk you know that there's times where that a heavy blade or a hatchet can be useful and can be used to make the job easier,but for some people the weight and length, of the kukri plus having it as a second blade tool, make it less than ideal,
if you do much long distance back packing you'll rather rapidly find you'll need TWO different edged tools, a small nimble slicer/Skinner, and a chopping tool that must be longer and heavier with more mass.
something like a 8"-10"
bowie can be used for both but its not close to ideal for either job.
but if you must have only one blade you can get by with a cold steel trail master
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/2....n-handle-black

keep in mind youll want a small portable game hoist , too get the deer/elk off the ground for skinning and processing, theres no way one person lifts an elk up on a near by tree without a decent hoist in his pack ,

and a few dozen 2 gallon zip-loc bags to place the boned out venison in to keep it clean, all the elk I've shot were too heavy for one person to drag very far in steep canyon country, so you'll find you'll be forced to bone out much of the meat and pack out the elk in sections , in a decent high quality back pack. for two guys this generally takes several return trips, hang the carcass high and leave a shirt with your odor close by, or coyotes and bears may steal it in your absence , and it makes sense to have a, lighter weight, handy, 2lb-3lb heavy caliber handgun, rather than a heavy 7lb-9lb rifle,thats not allowing you to keep both hands free, on return, packing out meat, trips as theres a small chance youll be disputing ownership of the venison ,
on a return trip with other predators.
once youve dropped an elk down in a canyon bottom several miles from any road access,
in a canyon like this (I hunt here frequently) youll see the advantage of a good back pack, good ankle support boots and a handgun with a shoulder holster.

I like Victorinox myself.
If you are looking for a knife especially for skinning purpose, then I can suggest you knives of Alaska or Victorinox.
It's a decent price. Made in American. You can try anyone.

I'm a life long fan of Case fixed blade skinners,,, try one of those,, also get a high end bone saw.. or even a pruning saw from "Silky Saws",, they are sold as pruning saw but are great for bone... Best small SS saws on the market