Skinning and butchering knife

[somethingbenign]

Whitetail is not suitable without stabilization because it has a large pithy core.

The tines have enough density to handle small knives without stabilization.

The core on mine appears to be solid all the way through. The whole antler is basically just a tine as the buck was only 1.5 yr old. I'll still look into stabilizing if only for the next one.

 

[hso]

So this was a "spike"?

Let it cure for a couple of months so it won't crack when pinned due to curing on the tang.

 

[somethingbenign]

Yeah a spike. What I meant by nothing to brag about. Caught some flak for shooting such a young buck from the first few guys I told about my deer so been leaving out the word spike so I don't have to have acquaintances bringing me down. Guess it would have been important here.

 

[redneck]

Yeah a spike. What I meant by nothing to brag about. Caught some flak for shooting such a young buck from the first few guys I told about my deer so been leaving out the word spike so I don't have to have acquaintances bringing me down. Guess it would have been important here.

Don't let others decide what makes you happy when you're hunting. A deer in the freezer is better than a tag in your pocket at the end of the season, and for all the guys who told you it was too small to shoot, there are guys out there who would tell you it would never be big enough and you should shoot it now before it passes along its genetics.
The only thing consistent in deer hunting is that people will 2nd guess you. I have shot everything from a 6 point basket rack where the antlers almost touched in the middle, to a heavy racked 13pt that weighed over 250lbs. The year I shot the big one, I showed it to a local guy and his response was "that's not the big one, I've seen a better one walking around". Hunt what you want and don't worry about all the other guys.

 

[bearcreek]

I use this for gutting and skinning. https://www.topsknives.com/knives/edc/ute-02 You don't need a "skinning" knife. They just destroy the skin unnecessarily.

 

[FTG-05]

I just bought this knife, haven't had a chance to use it yet, but it's sharp and handy enough.

$20:

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/OH...-knife-1095-carbon-steel-blade-leather-sheath

 

[theotherwaldo]

Young ones taste better, especially early in the season.

For skinning I like to use knives like the Green River skinners with a deep belly ans a rounded point along with something like a basic Mora for cutting around the joints.

The Mora and a moderate butcher knife does for most of the rest of the job except quartering, which requires a hatchet or bolo.

For your spike, I'd give it six months in a moderately warm location, then split it and give the cut surfaces a coat of clear resin (I prefer the U.V. setting stuff - it works quick).

 

[Elkins45]

I just bought this knife, haven't had a chance to use it yet, but it's sharp and handy enough.

$20:

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/OH...-knife-1095-carbon-steel-blade-leather-sheath

That’s all the knife you would ever need as long as you keep the blade dry and wipe it with a little mineral oil ever so often.

If it were mine I would grind just a tiny bit of a choil into it to keep my hand off the back of the blade when the handle gets wet.

 

[lemaymiami]

Hard to beat an Old Hickory for pure simple cutting power... and it can be kept at a sharp state. Keep it away from saltwater,though. They rust very quickly around the salt.

I’m particularly fond of the stiff boning model. It will cut meat, fish or whatever very well. I’ve even used mine as a draw knife a few times. I wouldn’t hesitate to use it for defensive purposes either - although it’s a bit long.

 

[tactikel]

My Grohmann circa 1962 has dressed countless fish, game birds, and squirrels. I don't deer hunt but dressing one out would not be a problem. Best all around game knife ever made.
BTW mine was stamped " Russell 1962" Sold as a Canadian belt knife.