Good skinning knife?

zr600

New member
What’s a good skinning knife? Would one of them outdoor edge knifes be good for skinning coyotes? Could it be used double duty as a field dressing knife for deer? Any ideas would be great.
 
I use a Cold Steel Pendleton Mini Hunter for coyotes. Skinned a bobcat with the outdoor edge replaceable blades knife. The blade did get some chips in it when doing the head of the bobcat, could have just been me, I'm no pro skinner.
 
I would try to buy the best steel you can afford.
Decades ago I started out with a Sharpfinger knife for my trapline. It worked pretty well, I poked myself a couple times and sharpened it a lot.
Then I got a buck 102 Woodsman 440 steel($50) which is a versatile tough little knife. Worth owning. Sharpened it quite a bit.
I have had a number of others come and go.
Have a Gerber skinner ATS 34 steel that I love the ergonomics and it holds an edge reasonably well.
Now it's a Knives of Alaska Cub Bear D2 steel good for the fine skinning details and holds an edge much longer. Well worth the $50.
Stepping up is the Benchmade Skinner S30 steel Holds an edge well but costs more. Got it as a gift so don't know the exact cost.
 
For coyotes I'd get a Victorinox Paring knife. They run about $5-$6 each. Heck, get two of them. Then for your deer chores, I'd look at something from Buck Knives maybe. A Buck 110 is about $35.00 and is a lot of knife value. There are probably other options I'm not thinking of at the moment but those two jump to mind immediately.
 
Havalon for small game/predators and caping heads.
Outdoor edge whitetail or mule deer skinners for large body skinning only duties.
 
Piranta

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I got one as a gift.....they're handy in the fur shed but I ain't giving away my Russel Woods Walker or Victorinox Parer just yet and I danged sure wouldn't recommend one for an all purpose Coyote skinner/Deer processor like the OP mentioned.

I'd heed GC's advise cept I don't like cleaning the goo out of a folder after gutting a Deer. Course I don't gut em any more but that's another thread.I like the Buck 102 instead. Big enough to work on a Deer and small enough to skin a Coyote. You should be able to pick one up with enough left over in your $50 budget for a Victorinox too. Everyone should have one or two of those little Vicki parring knives.

I've skinned a bunch of Coyotes in the field with this old 102 but I prefer a smaller knife in the shed.

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I have field knives and fur shed knives. Used packing house knives make up the bulk of my fur shed knives. For fur when it is warm, quite a few knives will work to open and skin.

A blade for gutting Deer and then skinning Deer could be one knife, but I would prefer two totally different knives.
 
Originally Posted By: zr600What’s a good skinning knife? Would one of them outdoor edge knifes be good for skinning coyotes? Could it be used double duty as a field dressing knife for deer? Any ideas would be great.

I agree with everyone here. A quality steel knife that you know how to sharpen is invaluable.

However to answer one of OP's questions directly... The outdoor edge razor knives are fantastic. Being able to go back to shaving sharp in a matter of seconds is very handy. I've skinned entire hogs with em. They are TOO sharp for some applications though so I keep a dull knife around when I'm using one.

That being said, I do keep a lot of good sharp knives around for light duty use. Some knives are just too good to get too dirty
lol.gif
 
Originally Posted By: RePetePiranta

4qWoVAYl.jpg


I got one as a gift.....they're handy in the fur shed but I ain't giving away my Russel Woods Walker or Victorinox Parer just yet and I danged sure wouldn't recommend one for an all purpose Coyote skinner/Deer processor like the OP mentioned.

I'd heed GC's advise cept I don't like cleaning the goo out of a folder after gutting a Deer. Course I don't gut em any more but that's another thread.I like the Buck 102 instead. Big enough to work on a Deer and small enough to skin a Coyote. You should be able to pick one up with enough left over in your $50 budget for a Victorinox too. Everyone should have one or two of those little Vicki parring knives.

I've skinned a bunch of Coyotes in the field with this old 102 but I prefer a smaller knife in the shed.


gCTLc0Tl.jpg


Originally Posted By: RePetePiranta

4qWoVAYl.jpg


I got one as a gift.....they're handy in the fur shed but I ain't giving away my Russel Woods Walker or Victorinox Parer just yet and I danged sure wouldn't recommend one for an all purpose Coyote skinner/Deer processor like the OP mentioned.

I'd heed GC's advise cept I don't like cleaning the goo out of a folder after gutting a Deer. Course I don't gut em any more but that's another thread.I like the Buck 102 instead. Big enough to work on a Deer and small enough to skin a Coyote. You should be able to pick one up with enough left over in your $50 budget for a Victorinox too. Everyone should have one or two of those little Vicki parring knives.

I've skinned a bunch of Coyotes in the field with this old 102 but I prefer a smaller knife in the shed.

gCTLc0Tl.jpg





What kinda critter is this? Looks like a bobcat
 
Originally Posted By: RePeteThe carcass is a big ol Bore Coon.

F85rn2el.jpg


The pelt with the Buck knife is a Coyote.

That is one BIG Trash Panda....!!!
 
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