What type of knife do you use.

cathryn · February 22, 2008, 09:45:25 AM

Heres a pic of the type of knives i use.

they come from the meat packing plants after they get done with them. theyre a couple bucks a piece and are easy to sharpen and keep the edge for a decent amount of time. The ones i got came through Paul Dobbins.

They go through rats skin like butter.

Jimmie in Ky · February 22, 2008, 03:39:01 PM

Cathryn, I used a number of these last fall at a processing station I was working at. None were sharp when I went to work for him. I got a number of them back up into shape and we used those. He had the same style form 3 diferent manufacturers. One company used white plastic handles , one used black, and the third used wood. I learned that they all were not created equal . Some were good enough to hold an edge for several hours of hard use with a steel handy. Some othrs were'nt worth a crap, edge was gone within an hour of use. I wish I could remember the name brand of the good ones. All I can remember is that they had wood handles on them. We were boning 25 to 30 head a night. I can tell you this much, run hard from the ones that have white handles.

But I beleive all of them would have held up quite a while under light use such as skinning and at least one pair did . I sharpened a pair for ht guy doing all the skinning and kept them that way while I was there. I only had to hit each of them a few licks each day to bring them back. He used a steel to keep them up during the day while he was skinning the animals we would work up each night. These two had the wood handles as well. Before all of you get too exited , he had a pull system set up to do most of the work.

I found this style boner to be very useful. Not too big to do most work we did. Blades were almost as flexible as a filet knife and worked well around the tight areas. I would like to get a couple of these myself. Jimmie

cathryn · February 22, 2008, 04:42:52 PM

the type i have are Victorinox Fibrox, they werent too sharp when i got them but a little sharpening and they were great. thats all i have used. I have 4 different ones, all a little different and they skinned over 200 coon over 200 muskrats ,and some mink, possum, coyote fox and bobcat. A little quick touch up every now and then and they stayed razor sharp. I like them alot.

I have never saw the wooden handled ones.

Silvertip · February 27, 2008, 12:16:06 AM

I use and have used many different knives for skinning over the years. However, for rough skinning I prefer a pelting knife, really just a boning or paring knife, like the one that cathryn shows in her picture. There are many different brands carried my the trapping supply houses, I think the ones I currently have were made by Chicago Cutlery but the Victorinox are excellent knifes just more expensive.
All knifes get dull, some faster than others, but the trick is to be able to restore the edge to a usable condition quickly. Butchers have had this problem since time began, they solved it by first honing their knives to establish a good edge but then maintaining the edge with a steel as they work. This is the approach I use. Just a few swipes on the steel restores the edge as it dulls. The added bonus of using a steel is the type of edge it imparts, it looks like a miniature saw under the microscope which causes the edge to cut fibrous flesh more easily because the microscopic teeth garb hold and cut rather than sliding off.
For fine skinning I use scalpels, pocket knives, and woodcarving knives. These I sharpen using an LS Lansky Sharpening System or Bench Hones to establish the edge, bevel etc. Then I use a strop to finish the edge and to maintain the edge.
For a better writeup on this procedure see: http://www.woodcarvers.com/sharpening.htm

Jimmie this is where I get my strops and yellowstone that I told you about last year at LBL. http://www.woodcarvers.com/

Jimmie in Ky · February 27, 2008, 01:36:23 AM

Thanks Silvertip. That is one I don't have listed in my addies. And guy's , if you wantg the best in stones and hones check out the woodcarving supply sites. And come to think of it, some of htose swiss carving knives would likely make good skinners and much cheaper than most of what you find. Jimmie

cathryn · February 27, 2008, 07:57:43 AM

theyre a great knife no doubt about it and at a couple bucks a piece for throwaways from meat processing plants, you cant beat them thats for sure.

They have paid for themselves over and over again.

vvarmitr · February 29, 2008, 08:16:27 AM

I was always a Buck Knife man then my S-I-L bought me a folding Kershaw. Now I'm a Kershaw man.

Someday though I hope to get a Spydeco. I've heard nothing but raves about them.

For my sharpening I use ceramic stones. I have the Spydeco "V" sticks w/ two different grits & can slap an edge on a knife right quick! I also have a piece of leather, suede side up, that I put white compound on. We're talking about shaving when I'm done w/ a good knife.

As for the waterstones, to me it seems, are for people who are romantic about the work they do. There is a lot of maintainance to keep 'em in shape & you can't let 'em freeze. They put on a great edge no doubt, but it's to much messing around for me.

Another plus w/ the ceramic stones is you don't need any oil or water - no mess! The maintainance they need is when they load up w/ swarf (the metal & stone pieces) you take Comet & a Scotchbrite pad & wash the swarf out. Sometime in the future you will need to true 'em up & you just rub 'em against another ceramic stone.

Here is Spydeco's link http://spyderco.com/

Hawks Feather · February 29, 2008, 10:27:38 AM

V. V.

I think this is the knife you should get for skinning.

http://spyderco.com/catalog/details.php?product=304

Jerry

northern coyote · March 21, 2008, 08:13:10 AM

a handed down Buck Stockman, a cheapo buck deer skinner and a Knives of Alaska muskrat (hey, that butterknife lookin tipe really helps in the tircky spots) match themwith a good wet stone and im set for hours

Tikaani · April 22, 2008, 07:17:11 PM

I use a surgical scalpel with replaceable blades for everything up to a wolf. I get the the blades from a taxidemist friend. Usually takes three to four blades for a wolf and wolverine, two to three for arctic fox, reds and lynx.

John

alscalls · April 22, 2008, 08:47:13 PM

I use a custom knife made from german stainless. Sweedish is my favorite steel for holding an edge german can be almost too hard. I have skinned a lot of animals and nothing bugs me more than to have to re-sharpen in the middle of the job.
Sweedish stainless of good quality is hard to sharpen but holds an edge for a long time.
You can buy just a blade and customize it to your needs with a little research.
I use a Forschner 40017 boning knife and larger for cutting meat. Thease can be bought at LEM products in Ohio.
I have never used a scalpel But I am kind of old school It sounds like a good idea for ears and such.

Tikaani · April 22, 2008, 09:17:15 PM

Started out using them to split lips and turn ears, noses and eyes, eventually it just became the blade of choice. I try to case all my hides as if they were going to be mounts, force of habit I guess. I am not a taxidermist but have a couple of friends that go through wolves and wolverines for possible mounts and are particular about how they are skinned.

John