black bear 84 Posted August 13, 2007 Report Share Posted August 13, 2007 KNIVES FOR HUNTING Many of us hunters of long have a love affair with the tool of a successful hunt; the knife. In our minds, we have this idea of the perfect knife that will fit our hand like a glove; that will perform surgery like a scalpel; that will not need to be sharpened ever, and will remove a cape as well as field dress and skin anything from a deer to a moose. In our search for the perfect blade, we accumulate many of them that are probably as good as the best knife ever made, but in our search for Nirvana we keep adding new blades and hoping to do enough hunting to test all of them on game. On the other hand, some hunters are not interested at all in the tool. My friend Frank that has probably field dressed at least fifty deer with the same Buck hunter knife in the last 20 years removes it from the pack once every year in hunting season to field dress a deer or two, and the blade goes back into the same pack to wait for next year’s job. Perhaps his father being a butcher has something to do with it. He was taught how to field dress a deer early in life, and to him it is just a necessary job that has to be performed. To others like me it is a culmination of all our efforts and should be done as elegantly and as clean and bloodless as possible and with the most effective of tools. I have found in my long search for the perfect blade that many of today’s knives in the market qualify as superb blades for the job. A good knife blade of 3 ½ to 4 inches will be plenty for most chores. Preferences in my case are for the drop-point blades, but I have had good service from clip points or other shapes. Some of us like a fancy wood or antler handle or perhaps some engraving on the blade. Those I label dress knives and are a great way to stir a conversation between fellow hunters. I am one with that type of taste and will always appear at camp with a fancy blade. The truth is that I perform all of my field dressings with a plain one that I keep hidden in my pack. Here is one of my fancy blades, the Browning model 122 one of one thousand, and the one that does the actual field dressing, a Buck 192 Vanguard. Best wishes Black Bear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frankho Posted August 15, 2007 Report Share Posted August 15, 2007 That sounds a bit like me, I have to confess that i have a couple of knives that have never cut a single thing, let me know when you find the one that never needs sharpening i would be very interested in that one, lol. Nice knives you have there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gryphon Posted August 15, 2007 Report Share Posted August 15, 2007 BB84 are you saying that he dosent ever sharpen it... My friend Frank that has probably field dressed at least fifty deer with the same Buck hunter knife in the last 20 years removes it from the pack once every year in hunting season to field dress a deer or two, and the blade goes back into the same pack to wait for next year’s job. I have been running a Buck classic folder since 1984 and the blade is well worn down in size due to sharpening it...i am a qualified slaughterman and thus have a rough idea how to sharpen a knife too,also there have been many more than fifty sambar go under this knife and for the life of me i have to sharpen it mate. This knife has also been used extensively on softer skinned animals numbering in the many hundreds,makes no diff i still have to sharpen her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AdamK Posted August 15, 2007 Report Share Posted August 15, 2007 Here is a matching pair I had custom made for my dad earlier this year. I blooded the big one on some goats last Saturday. It is satisfying to use such nice equipment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diamond Posted August 16, 2007 Report Share Posted August 16, 2007 #### mate they nearly look too good to use! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balty Posted August 17, 2007 Report Share Posted August 17, 2007 BlackBear you can't be married -- far to many cool Expensive toys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
black bear 84 Posted August 17, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2007 Here ia another of my blades, Browning model 65 (one of one thousand). I love those stag handles, I have several knives with them. Here is a detail of the file work in the handle. Cheers Black Bear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PIG_VS_PIT Posted August 18, 2007 Report Share Posted August 18, 2007 too fancy for me.... good call balty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
butch Posted August 19, 2007 Report Share Posted August 19, 2007 Mate nice lookin Blades but there only there to do 1 thing dress an animal as far as im concerned KISS (keep it simple) so in that thought the 6 in butchers boning knife and skinner are all that gets packed in my kit aww 2 small excalaber folders. If you drop or loose them no big deal they dont cost the earth and can be bought just about most hunting stores. As for an edge well i guess it comes down to the knowlage you posses. 1S1k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gryphon Posted August 19, 2007 Report Share Posted August 19, 2007 I had this knife made up to my specs by Ron Cameron three only exist and they are what i call the Sambar Caper model...its a handy tool of course but give me my Green River anyday when the hard stuff is in front of me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maddog Posted August 23, 2007 Report Share Posted August 23, 2007 Gryphon, what method do you reckon is best for sharpening a knife. I've only got one of those stones with a course side and a finer side, i heard little circles for smaller penknives and longer strokes for the fixed handled types...what do you reckon? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gryphon Posted August 23, 2007 Report Share Posted August 23, 2007 i use a standard double sider,rough first (depending on the knife) then smooth. I wrap three sides in a rag and stick it in the vise with about 1/2 inch up,using the full length of the stone with any knife short or long and reverse the stone end for end if you are at it for a while,helps keep your stone from developing too much of a dish. Do not ever use oil on your stone and i dont give a rats f its the finest whale oil either all it does is clog the stones pores with stone and steel..use water and use it often it will actually float the debris away,if you can set up a portable bench outside and have the hose slightly running over your work as you do it all the better. Try and keep your knife on as flat a plane as poss dont fall into the trap of having your knife at too great a straight up angle either,it will sharpen but go off on the first few cuts. I worked as a slaught in a previous life and while im no expert i was taught by experts and thats how they do it mate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weihrauchpower Posted August 23, 2007 Report Share Posted August 23, 2007 Gryphon, what method do you reckon is best for sharpening a knife. I've only got one of those stones with a course side and a finer side, i heard little circles for smaller penknives and longer strokes for the fixed handled types...what do you reckon? I recently bought a Spyderco triangle sharpmaker and have to say it does a great job. I'm a chef so i like to keep things razor sharp, my Buck stays so sharp you can shave with it! I'll never use a steel again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
black bear 84 Posted August 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted August 31, 2007 Years ago I was invited to join a German hunting club in the Catskills, which had access to huge woods and was managed for quality deer. The members hunted from hotchsits and performed the "last meal" ceremony in the deer they got, all very proper and traditional Teutonic customs. To "fit" in I dusted off my Mannlicher style Mauser 30-06 rifle and bought a White Hunter II Puma knife. Here is it. Best Black Bear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john foxwell Posted September 2, 2007 Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 I actually make knives as a bit of a hobby. Here's a few i've made for hunters in the past: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny H Posted September 2, 2007 Report Share Posted September 2, 2007 I actually make knives as a bit of a hobby. Here's a few i've made for hunters in the past: Impressive knives there John. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJak Posted September 4, 2007 Report Share Posted September 4, 2007 Crikey, some impressive knives, I purchased the centenary edition Leupold scope, knife and coin set recently. the knive is very nice, although not really sure how practical it is for field use. I'm not sure if i will use it in the field or keep it. As i am new to hunting i am not sure if i should use it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bushy.243 Posted September 6, 2007 Report Share Posted September 6, 2007 BlackBear, what do you use as an EDC ? Cheers Bushy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
black bear 84 Posted September 8, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 8, 2007 BlackBear, what do you use as an EDC ?Cheers Bushy I retired my old Blackjack mamba and I am using the Ken Onion's Leek or sometimes a SOG flash II, like those forward assist blades! All the best Black Bear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
black bear 84 Posted September 30, 2007 Author Report Share Posted September 30, 2007 Those stag handles always follow me home. Colt 1851 (one of 1200) All the best black bear Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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