As a knifemaker and having worked 17yrs in the commercial seafood industry cutting fish daily for hours. Fish cutters sharpen their knives every few fish every few minutes to maintain the edge filleting fish as you are cutting through the scales the majority of the time they don't have the luxury of time to sit as scale the fish like a casual fisherman would after a weekend fishing. Also a fish cutters knife cutting edge is not even on each side one side is say 10⁰ the other will be 18⁰ as a rough example because if it's a even cutting edge bevel whilst cutting at speed, the aim is to skin the fish with 1 pass if possible with as litle waste as possible. With a even cutting edge bevel you find the blade gets caught and will bite and you end up slicing through the skin part of the way through or you end up with alot of the flesh still remaining on the skin you removed. The uneven bevel actually gives you a sharper edge although not as pretty as it being symmetrical it allows the blade to glide through between the flesh and skin and not bite.
Very interesting. Thanks. A few nights ago I had to use a really stiff big Buck Knife to clean a red drum/redfish because I forgot my knife and my buddy had the Buck. I figured it would destroy the fish. I was totally wrong. That thick blade was awesome for getting through the scales and I didn't lose a bit of meat on either side or when I skinned the filets. I was very surprised. I have always used a filet knife and now I want a stiffer fixed blade for fish like that. I fish for flounder all summer and the flexible knife is probably better for cutting off the meat, but the center cut and skinning might be better with a thicker blade. You have me wondering how to sharpen a knife like you described with different angles.
@comfortablynumb9342 Just my thoughts I have no practical experience with multi angle edge but I'd reckon for practice you could buy a chisel ground knife and carefully work it up to whatever you want while the other side is already started at 20 or 18!?
@@TheBudgetguy_K.T It should be possible to put 2 different angles with a Lanskey knife sharpening kit by using 2 different holes in the frame/guide part.
@@barneygo2010 thats rich! Ive yet to shoot a deer... plenty of attempts to see one. But i now have 2 black bears ive harvested lol i dont dress like a hunter 😂
Got three decades of deer and hog hunting under my belt . I use two knives when I’m processing . One for gutting and one for skinning . I also switched over to CPM stainless steels for the excellent edge retention . Contrary to popular opinion they’re a breeze to sharpen with the correct sharpening tools .
The best method I have found is to not carry a knife and borrow yours. If I do get caught with my own knife, I use it as a throw flasher as soon as we see a cuda, then borrow yours
Nobody says pull through sharpeners don’t work. We just say they are trash. I use the work sharp guided field sharpener. Super cheap. Super fast. Super accurate. Use it a couple times when I’m field dressing. Highly highly recommend.
I'm not carrying a full work sharp or lansky sharpening system afield. I will simply carry a 2nd or 3rd knife. If both my partner and I are carrying our primary blades and a backup - well I haven't killed a game animal that needed more than 4 blades to get through
@@ChronicalsofAl you’ve never seen the worksharp field sharpener then. It’s really small. Check it out. They are cheap. If you don’t like it you’re out maybe $30
Only just started hunting. Moved to rural Australia a year ago. 6 weeks ago didn't own a hunting knife or even knew how to load a rifle. 6 weeks later 2 fallow does down. Shot, Gutted, skinned and butchered all by myself....feel fantastic but was very daunting. Takes me awhile but I'm learning how to keep knives sharp but it does take me awhile with a wet stone
I’ll save you some frustrations here in Australia. First don’t bother with wet stones. Spend a bit of money right up and get Sharpal ceramic stones 1000 and 6000. Get a half decent coarse stone from DMT. Learn to use the coarse stone first to get your angle management right and use a sharpel angle triangle to help you. The 1000 and 6000 will get it shaving sharp. Get a sharpening jig that lets you flip the knife. Use this to reprofile if you you make your edges too convex or get a chip. Do this and you will be set and in the end you will save a lot of money not buying junk for a total less than $400.
I personally carry 2 to 3 high quality knives and they usually get me through an animal in field conditions. I use a knife until the edge goes away then put that knife in my pack and grab another. When I get back to camp I have all my sharpening tools and work over the knives. It's always worked well for me but I've never guided.
Just wanted to shout out and say how helpful your videos have been. Believe it or not, I am a first time hunter at 61 years old. Applying for big game draws in the western states. Training hard and learning to prepare for this upcoming season. Awesome videos that are very helpful. Thanks
I respect the fact that you are starting something new and a challenge. I started riding a dirt bike at 54 as something my son wanted me to do. Been hunting big game for decades and at times, I feel like I don’t know anything. Good luck this season.
I typically carry 3 lightweight knives when I’m backpack hunting. One is a replaceable blade knife which I use for caping/ skinning cuts, one is specifically used on cuts going around joints and dirty areas, and the other is used for everything else. I do carry a small worksharp sharpener, but rarely have to use it in the field. I prefer to sharpen my blades and do a quality job back at camp.
Those pull thru sharpeners damage your edges because they take off metal parallel to your edge greatly weakening it, get a good sharp edge and strop it on leather as needed and it will stay sharp.
When I was a meat cutter (butcher) at Safeway, we kept a 17 degree bevel and used a honing steel to realign the inperfections whenever there was the slightest resistance. Sharpening varied from a light touch up weekly to a full aggressive rebevel every couple months if there were nicks to remove.
Honing steels do actually sharpen the edge, they don't realign it. They take off steel, just not much thanks to it being adhesive wear and not abrasive wear. You use it to microbevel and you need to make a new primary bevel now and then as it stops working once the edge gets too thick.
Great video; lots of good information. I always keep 3 knives and sharpener in the rucksack. A sharpening steel works better in the field on a knife with blood and fat; a ceramic/diamond rod gets clogged up. If you sharpen your field knives with a steel all of the time, then you run into less problems; using the same method and same sharpener on the same knife all of the time, it just works; it builds muscle memory and you keep the same angle on the edge whether you are in the shop or the field.
After cutting meat for 15 years, Hunting for 40 years, It is not unreasonable to clean and skin more than one elk or deer with one knife, To many people think they know how to sharpen yet still have no idea how to maintain their edge. First who uses the blade to fully skin? Use your hand and skin while the animal is warm (fisting the hide off). Use a knife with a gut hook as well. Make your initial cuts with the gut hook. They hold an edge forever. But the only thing you really need is a quality set of stones to sharpen your knife. Norton tri stones work for every custom slaughter house, Grocery store, Big packing houses, All use them. It is the only system I use on hunting knives. Also edge angle, 22 degrees for boning, 25 for skinning. 25 for some reason handles the hair and dirt and doesn't dull as fast.
Excellent explanation and info! I’ve used a WS Field Sharpener for years and after trying the method you described, my knives have never been sharper! Thanks and keep up the great content!!!
Hoooray and thank you Cliff. Outdoors is one environment where sharp knives are essential , though knives are used a lot indoors as well for a multitude of tasks. So if a man can't sharpen a regular knife blade , there's a fundamental flaw in his most basic of skill sets. Greetings from South Africa.
When im hunting big game like elk i have the work sharp sharpener and have a leather strop with me and i mostly just strop it halfway through and after im done it’s still razor sharp
You are 100% dead-on with this. Having used tools for a living, for my hunting knives (all my knives in fact ), I keep a "working edge". I don't need shaving sharp edges, I just need sharp ENOUGH. A good edge doesn't have to be sharpened much, just honed as needed. I'll pass them over a file of some kind (usually diamond) and finish it off back passing them over cardboard and finally leather to a clean edge. The Work Sharp field sharpener is my favorite.
I feel like much of this is essentially understanding profiling, sharpening, polishing and honing. They are all different steps that accomplish different things.
I am a knife maker and a hunter. Most common problem I see, especially with wild boar is just the grease build up, good to keep some burlap scrap to clean blade frequently. My second go to is a leather strop. Soon as I feel it's not cutting optimal, a strop makes quick work. When i am skinning, processing in my barn, I have a cheap harbor freight 1" grinder with a leather stropping belt, that thing is my best friend to quickly get my knife back to scary sharp in seconds, so long as the blade is not too far gone and needs to get to a whetstone.
I have a smal medium/coarse stone and a lansky dogbone ceramic rod in my pocket when hunting, but almost never need to shapen knife during gutting, has taken out deer, skinned and take of head and legs with same knife, I use the same guideline as you tog Keep blade sharp longer, greetings from Sweden.
Mr Gray you are exactly correct. I have a number of knives my father made. His personal knife was made in the early 60s. A very small knife that is ground as a skinning knife EXCEPT he always ground a convex edge on his knives. Why, all it took to keep them sharp was to touch them up with a stone regularly. The knife itself is in total right at 7 inches. He used it in what many of the You Tubers call “bushcraft. I have seen him baton with it, then use is to cut his food, he kept a small stone to touch it up once it became difficult to slice or drag during any cut. I just pulled it out , the blade has not been touched since 1991 when he had a stroke. It will still shave hair. He was able to get access to used planer blades and ground his knives from these. He did not reheat them nor did he temper the steel. He used a cheap hardware store stone, one side coarse the other fine. A smaller stone in the field. He refused to call them handmade, he called them homemade. There is one made from a short thick planner blade 3/8” thick that knife has more of a an edge somewhere between a Sabre grind and a Scandi grind. The handle is part of an Elk antler someone gave him. I use it as a clever. I can take solidly frozen kielbasa sausage and slice it with that knife, there is no obvious secondary bevel, it will still pass the paper cut test and will shave hair from my legs. I have not honed it sine it came to my possession in 2001 upon his death. He gave most of them away. I doubt many knew what they had been given…a knife that will last many lifetimes. I was heartbroken last week when the last knife he made broke while I was trying to clean up the poor grind. Like many of his knives it was a hidden tang just pushed into an antler of some sort. The poor rat tail of a tang was poorly ground and so was the blade . It was a recurve blade. I think of it as his best designed but most poorly executed build. I have kept the blade and I might try to get a new tang welded to it. I don’t weld, so I will first have to find a piece of steel to end as tang. It will need to be 3/16 and not overly hardened, I try to keep any knife I do ( I do not have his skill or equipment) as I am learning the hobby is to keep the spine and tang fairly soft. If you will send me an email ( fishindul@aol.com) I will send you some picture of the knives I managed to keep he ground. One I designed in tbe mid-70s and he tried to hollow grind it, but it is really a Sabre grind. It also will still shave hair. I used it during Scouts and many camping trips in college. Sadly as he aged, he started giving knives away at an accelerated rate. Originally, he only gave them to close friends and a few relatives. At the moment all I have to grind with is a very old 1x30 Delta machine with no flat platten. Plus I do not have his skill or eye. He also was an incredible wood worker. People never appreciated what he was able to do. When you write me, I will tell you the story of the “ eagle atop his back yard shed. Dave Bishop
I hunt occasionally, but I'm a farmer I butcher about a thousand pounds of meat a year. I have two knives made by a local knife maker. one with a 8inch blade and one that is about 3in. I sharpen on a whetstone and use a leather strop. Great video, spend the money on a good knife fellas
This why I carry 2. One for the hide then one for everything else once the hide is cut. The hair is hard on the edge and I like to sharpen at home when possible.
Good advice. I’ve found that having more than one knife is helpful too. I use a small folding knife with serrated edge just for cutting the hide. This saves a lot of edge life on the primary knife.
Good points. However, what you did not cover is convexed edges. I've got a Bark River in 3V that is wonderful to dress a deer with and I don't ever worry about the edge. I'll take it to sandpaper and a mouse pad about once a year at most. Normally, stropping brings the edge right back really quickly.
Everything you said in this video is what I've been telling hunters/outdoorsmen for decades.....but they just don't listen, maybe you'll have better luck.
Thanks Cliff. I've really enjoyed using a quality knife (Argali Serac) with S35 steel, and the Worksharp sharpener (a fantastic tool that has taught me angles). Always make sure it is sharpened upon return, so never dull when walking in field. Your bang on around bones/angle of blade when working on animals. Great tips about how to better do this without rubbing on bone. Like the notion of "feathering" through backstraps etc. I've also caught myself thinking this is sharp enough at step 2 (diamond sharpening) on the Worksharp - but have always worked through the steps, your points around bevel sharpness were great! Carry Baby Wipes with me, so can clean the blade if it needs a touch up in field - which has been a no so far. Thanks. Great tips!
I carry two skinning knives when I deer hunt. One to get through fur and to make initial cut....one for inside clean up. I've also found smaller blade knives are ideal. Like 3.5 " blade
On my very first hunting trip, my dad taught me how to sharpen a knife. I used an old diamond sharpener that my grandpa gave my dad and I learned how it’s been passed down to me and one day. I’ll pass it down to my kids and teach them know how to sharpen a knife. It’s an easy skill to learn.
Agree completely. I actually prefer 1095, 5160, 80crv3, and even 1075 for cleaning game. They get dull fast, but get sharp fast and yes, throwing a micro bevel on is something I do all of the time. Just have to take it back to normal at some point. Great video!
Pull throughs are fine as long as they are the round rod type and not the carbide ones. I use those on a lot of thinner knives with softer steel. My hunting and camp knives are all thicker 60+ RC crucible steels with convex grinds, so they get hand sharpened and stropped.
Great information, Cliff. As a hunter and woodworker, I fully appreciate the need for sharp blades and the skills to keep them that way. One of the greats in the woodworking field is Ron Hock and his book “The Perfect Edge”. If anyone wants to do a deeper dive into this subject, I highly recommend this book.
technically disposable or replaceable blades were the first to be used. we got our razor blades and knives first for obsidian stone. we would take one stone then chip it to have flecks that were just large enough to be held. then when those would dull or more likely break we would chip off more. but sharpening a steel knife is a good talent to have.
So generally I don't use the links provided for multiple reasons. However, you sold me on the work sharp field sharpener. Just ordered one to be delivered in the next 3hours.
Short Rapala classic wood handle filet knife is one of my favorites to cary hunting. It’s the lightest. Weighs nothing. Super cheap. Hones back quickly because it’s soft. Super sharp point for getting inside the hide quick. One of these and a red pull through sharpener from same company is the lightest best combo I’ve found. The steel is so soft you can even use the case for the knife to strop it sometimes if you just need minor touch up. I have lots of knives and was a butcher for a long time.
A buddy had the Worksharp up at camp this past Nov., I liked it and forgot what it was called, thanks to you reminding me, I just ordered one from your link, I hope you made a couple cents on the sale and thanks.
Say what u will. Cliff knows his stuff. I have a twist on what he said about replaceable blades. I use them but I also save them and resharpen, best system around for western hunting for me cause I dont have to worry about whether or not im getting the animal back to camp. I can always worry about a dull blade later
A knife with high quality steel especially one made by a custom knife maker (Erickson Knife Works)is worth its weight in gold. Make sure it’s sharp before you go in the field. Have a honing steel and a ceramic rod. Use the part of the blade closest to handle to cut that dirty hair around the legs. When you have to cut the skin get under it and cut up towards the hair not down through the hair.
One of the absolute worst things that you can do to a sharp blade is cut from the outside in. I found that by cutting from the inside out I can get through an entire animal without dulling the blade. Small change with a huge improvement.
I'm no big game hunter but occasional small game and fish as a survival instructor. I always put a secondary convex edge on my working blades. You can keep it sharp by just stropping on a leather belt. I think people have to realize that field sharpening is way different from sharpening and possibly restoring the edge at home and I've seen people carrying 3 big sharpening stones, some oil, etc. in the field. Not only expensive but also heavy and bulky. I carry a small sharpening stone (usually the Fallkniven DC3 or something similar in size) and my leather belt with some toothpaste as stropping compound. I use a budget stainless steel knife for this something like a Mora Basic 546, Mora companion in stainless or the Hultafors RFR. I can carry two of them and only spend 20 dollars total. I have field sharpened them on about everything from the bottom of a ceramic cup (just a few strokes) to my small sharpening stone and stropped to align the edge and get the burr off. So nothing you say is not true but I just have a different approach on the matter.
I remember a description of a PH that used a low-carbon steel skinning knife. Not the greatest edge retention but easily sharpened on his leather boot sole.
I like those pencil sharpener types that slide out from the handle, more than enough to bring back a usable edge, I use the wet stones at home. A strop can be used either place but I keep mine at home unless I decide I'm chip carving or something.
Thanks for real life field issues. Took a minute to make your case. As a butcher, shop work and field work are different as are the knives, game and sharpening technique. 10 days in the Alaska backwoods 3 fishermen, 1 fillet knife, 300 pounds of salmon and a light weight Corona sharpener took care of that and more. If you like something else, do it! But please don’t touch my personal knives.
I'll admit I use multiple blades when dressing big game when I hunt or go with someone else who were. I have as my dressing knives an Ulu, Chinese cleaver, fillet knife, westcott ceramic box cutter knife, and Mora as well I don't see how when processing that a variety of blades/style isn't more common. This doesn't include some of the other blades on myself as well that I've rarely used. A good trick to remove the burr on the blade is that you can strop with paper (clipboard and few binder clips). I normally use diamond plates and leather/paper strops when home to put on, maintain, or repair an edge. I'm also okay with draw sharpeners as well though I recommend put very little pressure to preserve the steel vs pushing it through hard like most do.
The LT wright large northern hunter, small northern hunter and winker hunters axe will make quick work of dressing/quartering game. I keep a small strap and ceramic rod in my kill kit for touch ups. No issues. To each their own. Nothing wrong with replaceable blade knives. I would not say incapable, I’d say more convenient to some. Simmer down big guy.
The gauchos of south America have an excellent EDC. They have a sheath that holds both their fixed blade knife and the chaira honing steel to keep the knife sharp when skinning & butchering beef cattle.
Finally, someone who actually USES a knife, talks about the real factors in what makes a knife good for outdoors. I personally am SICK & TIRED of knife reviews where some putz opens a new box, takes out a new knife, opens it, closes it, reads the item description off the website where they bought the knife, then says... "Its a great knife and you should buy it." Im so tired of that crap. I like to listen to people like this guy who actually know what they are talking about.
Have you tried the Lansky crocksticks? They have 4 holes. One set of two holes gives you a 20 degree angle, the other gives you a 25 degree angle. You get coarse and fine ceramic rods with it. They also make the same product with a set of diamond rods. Spyderco also makes these and their angles are 17 and 20 degrees. You can get very fine, fine, coarse, and diamond rods for them. If you've never used them, all you have to do is hold your knife blade perpendicular to the rods and swipe down. Very easy to do. Been using crocksticks since the 70s and they work great. Clean with an eraser. Most of my knives are either scandi ground or convex ground, but that's a different story. :)
honestly that's why I switched to a scandi grind for every use simply because its so easy to resharpen in the field. a cheap paddle sharpener and a stick to rip off the burr and away you go.
I'm wondering what kind of knives these people are using. I think any knife made by Spyderco with their typically superb heat treat and an excellent blade steel like K390, S90V, S110V, Rex 45 etcetera would hold their edges well enough to fully process several deer. I think they are just using knives by manufacturers who don't appropriately heat treat their blades and they get subpar performance from the knives as a result.
@@MisterDeets don't take only an s110v knife into process. You can use it for soft tissue forever, but it can chip on bones. In order to have such superb edge retention it has to be hardened past 60 hrc but then it becomes a bit chippy. Have something like s45vn for the work around bones and joints. It's easy to sharpen and still holds an edge forever.
First knife guy that knows what is going on when a knife is used. Talking about Elk and deer, what about hippo and Giraffe. Thanks, there is a difference between gadgets and what works for the outdoors man.
We don't have hippo or giraffes here but I'd really like to know what you use to process hippos and giraffes. Hippo skin has to be super thick, i would think!
Excellent video. I just say start the day with a sharp knife, a knife sharpened in the shed, workshop, or kitchen table. Most important are equal flat sides to the bevels and a finished apex with no foil bur hanging off it. Then have a field system to keep a working edge, micro bevelled even, to get a long job finished. Use immediately the "popping sharpness" is lost. My preferred field sharpness restorers are the DMT Diafolds butterfly diamond hones (red), and a white ceramic rod by Spyderco or Smiths. (These don't weigh much.) A little more pressure and slightly higher angle is fine, and it only takes a few wipes. Yes, I can do it in the dark. As only the edge is on the hone blood muck isn't an issue. I just want the working sharpness back to finish the task. Can't see, don't care, what the actual edge looks like, and all can be put back to "perfect" back home. I freehand sharpen a lot, but have found the new Work Sharp Professional Precision Adjust is better than anything I can do to get "factory great" again. I do like a medium thin blade rather than some thick stocked thing. However, larder knives, like Victorinox, are best for food prep, butchering, back at home. For that they are great. There is more than one way to skin a cat. Take your time, and think each cut (twice), as that is faster..and safer too. Some people have real talent at getting the natural bounty processed for the table. Professionals get more practice. Just think what you are doing, we have been doing it a long time, its not rocket science.
As an outfitter & guide we use replaceable blades because it saves time & energy. Also use different style blades for the various aspects of processing animals with the same knife. Sharpening knives & or blades is easy, can do it in my sleep. We process upwards of 40-50 animals between September & December, spending time sharpening a knife can wait until the meat is in the freezer & the cape is at the taxidermist. Work smart not hard folks!
The truly scary situation with changing Havalon blades,etc. is- your exhausted, your hands are wet and probably cold and your fumbling around with a “razor blade” in the snow mud, etc. No thank-you. How many of the Havalon type knives blades are lost, thrown down, etc.! Just “waiting” to slice someone. I always carry an extra knife and a diamond honing rod-two is one and one is none!
Ceramic honing rod or steel is the best way to keep your edge working while field dressing game. Start with a razor sharp blade, and hit it lightly with the ceramic rod frequently. That's all I've ever needed
Great advice. No joke though, Mora companion sharpened on 1000 stone then a 6000 stone followed by leather strop was able to gut and skin my deer and debone it. For a cheap knife it has pretty good steel and is razor sharp with a mirror finish.
Using a lower edge angle does reduce toughness but increases edge retention. Uneven bevels is not a problem, even chisel grinds can do ridiculously fine work if sharpened correctly. Going up to high grits does not remove a burr, simply refines it and makes it smaller. To remove the burr you should do alternating light passes on your last stone, then follow that with stropping. Taking multiple knives is always the way to go, even if you have quality steel. Microbeveling works but it is even harder to maintain a consistent angle doing so free hand. What you are likely doing is creating a new burr, which is why you think you’ve sharpened well. This is why most of the time people touching up their edge doesn’t last as long as their original edge. The burr is what’s sharp and it tears out easily.
I love that explanation of the replacement blade a lazy hunters solution, it does the job its not an heirloom item that your gonna pass down to your grandkids. Id rather build skills than buy gear
It’s not that those pull through sharpeners won’t put some type of working edge on a knife; the problem is that they ruin a knife, especially if used frequently. Using a pull through to put a temporary microbevel on the blade isn’t really what people are referring to when they say those sharpeners are useless. They mean that they are useless when used for actual sharpening. However, even if a pull through sharpener is only used for microbeveling , it sucks at that as well. A good microbevel should only be a hair more obtuse than the secondary bevel. Unless you measure the angle of the sharpener and then reprofile the knife to an edge angle a few degrees lower,, the microbevel will be too large. Even the carbide sharpener or ceramic rod are better than the pull through sharpener since you can at least control the angle. Though too aggressive to use on a good knife, the Corona carbide sharpener is great at one thing: striking a fire steel. I’ve tried many strikers, and it (Carbide sharpener) is hands down the best.
That is because most RUclips knife people do not actually use their knives. I carry a sharpener with me at all times, even in the city. One of the best knives I have found to use is the Victorinox Rabbit knife. Simple steel, easy to sharpen to a high sharpness edge, great blade geometry, ergonomic handle. Best $30 I have spent on a knife.
Ok here’s a plan I don’t see discussed as an option in the field… bring several knives sharpened so when you feel a blade loosing its edge you can easily just grab another knife with a perfectly sharp edge! I grew up as the Son of a butcher so having sharp knives to work with has always been a topic of discussion! Why sharpen in the field when you can just have additional tools available?
Why not ever sharpen… just use a replaceable blade knife? It’s just personal preference. I think knowing how to quickly sharpen a knife is a good skill, limits gear, limits cleanup.
All the fancy knife steels, like you say knife nerds get excited about ... the sharpest knife I've ever used was a carbon steel kitchen paring knife my mother had when I was growing up. Old school carbon steel is a fantastic knife material; as long as you take a little care of your knives.
When I was in poultry processing I went to the tool crib and traded my deboning or whatever knfe about every 3000 to 4000 chickens or roughly every 3 hours. We ran about 25-26 birds per minute. The maximum number by law was 23/minute but the company didn't exactly care about rules. It was the hell!!! The pain from RMI repetitive motion injuries- was unbearable. At night I would wake up with my hands literally feeling like they were on fire while being crushed in a vise. They would lock up in a claw position and stay that way for hours.
I've noticed on certain steels and when cutting certain materials, it's better to have a coarser grit finish like a 600 grit. This appears to create some micro serrations like a saw blade and gives the edge that "bite". K30 for instance gets a bit too glassy for me at higher grits and doesn't seem to work great or hold an edge. Then I'll go to a 600 grit and bam. Also, the heat treat and geometry is more important than the steel often times. I have a sog with cryo d2 that blows through any of my Chinese " super steels". You simply cannot get a great heat treat when mass producing these things and keeping the price low. No Chinese company is going to put the knives in the oven and then take them out and let them completely cool, then put them back in and quickly quench in the proper medium, then dip in liquid nitrogen, then temper, then temper again at a different temperature, then make sure they keep the blade cool while grinding and sharpening. They simply wouldn't make any money. Just keep that in mind when buying super steels. Go spyderco or custom if you really want to see the potential of a steel. Look up the recommended heat treat protocol of a steel and see how complex it is before going cheap. Cpm3v for instance is tough to do right and the wear and tear on the ovens and belts makes it very tempting to take shortcuts. Just something to think about.
Those pull through sharpeners you say every one hates, I use those and give them away as gifts especially to people that don't know how to sharpen a knife. But, I tell them that it does not sharpen a knife well. What it does well is keep a sharp knife sharp.
Hone before actually dull, and you'll get longer use before needing profiling, sharpening or polishing. Also, maybe consider having multiple knives... A skinning knife, boning knife, slicing, chopping, etc...
I have a compact sharpening steel that I use and hit on it a few licks with my knife all through the skinning process. If you watch all professional butchers this is what they do all all day as they work. Hit it with the steel as soon periodically all through the skinning process. Take your time!
I like the micro edge. When the bead forms it is because the steel is unable to hold that thin edge. After i get the bead, i remove it by inceasing the angle.😊😊😊
I don't use just one blade for large animals, I have a Victorinox Hunter XT to start, and to deal with the initial rough work, gutting, some joint work, use the saw where required as well since Vic steel will roll instead of chipping, then I will switch to basically 3-4 thin fixed blades made of M2, one gets dull I'll use the next one...etc. No animal barring maybe an elephant would require more than 3 knives from M2 plus the Vic XT. More importantly are you trying to reinvent the wheel? Micro bevelling is just a fancy way to say convex, lol. Do a good convex and you only need to touch up the apex in the field.
Easier to sharpen often a little bit than beat it down for a huge project. Same with chainsaw. When they stop cutting optimally take a few to edge it up.
This video is the equivalent to a Prius owner telling sports car owners that driving fast doesn’t matter. You should try it out sometime, it’s pretty fun.
This is great. Sure , if I want to shave my arms, I want my diamond stones. But, you are so right - if you need sharp NOW, those pull throughs are great. Does it "ruin" your knife? Maybe, but my tools work for me, I don't work for them. I also like carbon steel over the super hard stainless steels.
Great video! I've been working on my knife sharpening skills for a couple of years now, and you touched on plenty that i hadn't thought about before. To the "get to the point" comment, i would say, shut up and pay attention! You might just learn something here.
As a knifemaker and having worked 17yrs in the commercial seafood industry cutting fish daily for hours. Fish cutters sharpen their knives every few fish every few minutes to maintain the edge filleting fish as you are cutting through the scales the majority of the time they don't have the luxury of time to sit as scale the fish like a casual fisherman would after a weekend fishing. Also a fish cutters knife cutting edge is not even on each side one side is say 10⁰ the other will be 18⁰ as a rough example because if it's a even cutting edge bevel whilst cutting at speed, the aim is to skin the fish with 1 pass if possible with as litle waste as possible. With a even cutting edge bevel you find the blade gets caught and will bite and you end up slicing through the skin part of the way through or you end up with alot of the flesh still remaining on the skin you removed. The uneven bevel actually gives you a sharper edge although not as pretty as it being symmetrical it allows the blade to glide through between the flesh and skin and not bite.
Very interesting. Thanks.
A few nights ago I had to use a really stiff big Buck Knife to clean a red drum/redfish because I forgot my knife and my buddy had the Buck. I figured it would destroy the fish. I was totally wrong. That thick blade was awesome for getting through the scales and I didn't lose a bit of meat on either side or when I skinned the filets. I was very surprised. I have always used a filet knife and now I want a stiffer fixed blade for fish like that. I fish for flounder all summer and the flexible knife is probably better for cutting off the meat, but the center cut and skinning might be better with a thicker blade.
You have me wondering how to sharpen a knife like you described with different angles.
@comfortablynumb9342 Just my thoughts I have no practical experience with multi angle edge but I'd reckon for practice you could buy a chisel ground knife and carefully work it up to whatever you want while the other side is already started at 20 or 18!?
@@TheBudgetguy_K.T It should be possible to put 2 different angles with a Lanskey knife sharpening kit by using 2 different holes in the frame/guide part.
To be honest we never actually checked what degree the angles were as we would free hand sharpen so you don't have to be exact
Yeah, I’ve noticed this myself. My hunting knife has a 15 degree side and an 8 degree side and it works surprisingly well on both animals and wood
I don't have this problem because I can't even find animals. Chess not checkers gentlemen.
I feel this, having these problems is a good thing, lol.
I’m the biggest JINX at our deer/ bear camp! All works out! Hahahahaha. They say that I dress like a hunter! LOL Peace Be The Journey!
You can find em nice and neat at the grocery store lol . That’s where I do all my fishing .
Pin this comment. 🥳
@@barneygo2010 thats rich! Ive yet to shoot a deer... plenty of attempts to see one. But i now have 2 black bears ive harvested lol i dont dress like a hunter 😂
Got three decades of deer and hog hunting under my belt . I use two knives when I’m processing . One for gutting and one for skinning . I also switched over to CPM stainless steels for the excellent edge retention . Contrary to popular opinion they’re a breeze to sharpen with the correct sharpening tools .
This is the correct advice, most modern steels will stay more than sharp enough to skin an animal
Why one just for gutting?
@@clintwestwood3539 I prefer a slightly longer heavier blade for splitting the sternum and gutting .
Have you tried the EKA Swingblade?
@@PeterPan-lo1ci
I use one of those. Very handy.
The best method I have found is to not carry a knife and borrow yours. If I do get caught with my own knife, I use it as a throw flasher as soon as we see a cuda, then borrow yours
Bwhaha that is a damn good strategy.
Nobody says pull through sharpeners don’t work. We just say they are trash.
I use the work sharp guided field sharpener. Super cheap. Super fast. Super accurate.
Use it a couple times when I’m field dressing.
Highly highly recommend.
Facts. The WSFS makes this long video pointless. I couldn't imagine doing this video unless it was requested 😂😂😂
Also destroy your blade.
I'm not carrying a full work sharp or lansky sharpening system afield. I will simply carry a 2nd or 3rd knife. If both my partner and I are carrying our primary blades and a backup - well I haven't killed a game animal that needed more than 4 blades to get through
@@ChronicalsofAl you’ve never seen the worksharp field sharpener then. It’s really small. Check it out. They are cheap. If you don’t like it you’re out maybe $30
@@TeensierPython that's fair, I thought it was like a lansky
I honestly never have any issues with my knives. Always stays sharp the whole hunt. But I never end up getting a deer or elk.
I’ve had that same issue many times.
😂
Only just started hunting. Moved to rural Australia a year ago. 6 weeks ago didn't own a hunting knife or even knew how to load a rifle. 6 weeks later 2 fallow does down. Shot, Gutted, skinned and butchered all by myself....feel fantastic but was very daunting. Takes me awhile but I'm learning how to keep knives sharp but it does take me awhile with a wet stone
I’ll save you some frustrations here in Australia. First don’t bother with wet stones. Spend a bit of money right up and get Sharpal ceramic stones 1000 and 6000. Get a half decent coarse stone from DMT. Learn to use the coarse stone first to get your angle management right and use a sharpel angle triangle to help you. The 1000 and 6000 will get it shaving sharp. Get a sharpening jig that lets you flip the knife. Use this to reprofile if you you make your edges too convex or get a chip. Do this and you will be set and in the end you will save a lot of money not buying junk for a total less than $400.
That's great! I hope you have a long and awesome life there!
lol don’t listen to Michael just get good with the whetstone and that’s all you’ll need
I always have either a ceramic rod or small diamond plate. Also a quality steel helps.
Correct
dc3
I personally carry 2 to 3 high quality knives and they usually get me through an animal in field conditions. I use a knife until the edge goes away then put that knife in my pack and grab another. When I get back to camp I have all my sharpening tools and work over the knives. It's always worked well for me but I've never guided.
I keep two Case Trappers in my pocket specifically for skinning. I only hunt whitetail though.
@redd8456 case steels are stuck in the 80s, get a nicer knife with better steel and you would only need to carry one
It would best serve you to have a quality knife that will not go dull so fast. It is NOT quality knife if it goes dull halfway through a deer
I do exactly the same thing. I always carry at least three knives in my hunting pack.
Those pull through sharpeners work until they have removed enough steel that the blade edge is too thick and then it doesn't work worth a shit.
Just wanted to shout out and say how helpful your videos have been. Believe it or not, I am a first time hunter at 61 years old. Applying for big game draws in the western states. Training hard and learning to prepare for this upcoming season. Awesome videos that are very helpful.
Thanks
Thanks man! Good luck
I respect the fact that you are starting something new and a challenge. I started riding a dirt bike at 54 as something my son wanted me to do. Been hunting big game for decades and at times, I feel like I don’t know anything. Good luck this season.
Started 2 years ago, at 60. Best of luck to you.
I typically carry 3 lightweight knives when I’m backpack hunting. One is a replaceable blade knife which I use for caping/ skinning cuts, one is specifically used on cuts going around joints and dirty areas, and the other is used for everything else. I do carry a small worksharp sharpener, but rarely have to use it in the field. I prefer to sharpen my blades and do a quality job back at camp.
This is exactly what I do too
Those pull thru sharpeners damage your edges because they take off metal parallel to your edge greatly weakening it, get a good sharp edge and strop it on leather as needed and it will stay sharp.
Correct
This ^ just sharpen correctly, then strop as needed. Carry a spare. 2 is 1.
absolutely correct thankyou 🤝👍
You don't hunt.
@tolt1776 what do you mean?
When I was a meat cutter (butcher) at Safeway, we kept a 17 degree bevel and used a honing steel to realign the inperfections whenever there was the slightest resistance. Sharpening varied from a light touch up weekly to a full aggressive rebevel every couple months if there were nicks to remove.
FINALLY.....someone that knows what they are doing!👍👍👍👍
Honing steels do actually sharpen the edge, they don't realign it. They take off steel, just not much thanks to it being adhesive wear and not abrasive wear. You use it to microbevel and you need to make a new primary bevel now and then as it stops working once the edge gets too thick.
Great video; lots of good information. I always keep 3 knives and sharpener in the rucksack. A sharpening steel works better in the field on a knife with blood and fat; a ceramic/diamond rod gets clogged up. If you sharpen your field knives with a steel all of the time, then you run into less problems; using the same method and same sharpener on the same knife all of the time, it just works; it builds muscle memory and you keep the same angle on the edge whether you are in the shop or the field.
After cutting meat for 15 years, Hunting for 40 years, It is not unreasonable to clean and skin more than one elk or deer with one knife, To many people think they know how to sharpen yet still have no idea how to maintain their edge. First who uses the blade to fully skin? Use your hand and skin while the animal is warm (fisting the hide off). Use a knife with a gut hook as well. Make your initial cuts with the gut hook. They hold an edge forever. But the only thing you really need is a quality set of stones to sharpen your knife. Norton tri stones work for every custom slaughter house, Grocery store, Big packing houses, All use them. It is the only system I use on hunting knives. Also edge angle, 22 degrees for boning, 25 for skinning. 25 for some reason handles the hair and dirt and doesn't dull as fast.
Excellent explanation and info! I’ve used a WS Field Sharpener for years and after trying the method you described, my knives have never been sharper! Thanks and keep up the great content!!!
Hoooray and thank you Cliff. Outdoors is one environment where sharp knives are essential , though knives are used a lot indoors as well for a multitude of tasks. So if a man can't sharpen a regular knife blade , there's a fundamental flaw in his most basic of skill sets. Greetings from South Africa.
thanks!
When im hunting big game like elk i have the work sharp sharpener and have a leather strop with me and i mostly just strop it halfway through and after im done it’s still razor sharp
You are 100% dead-on with this. Having used tools for a living, for my hunting knives (all my knives in fact ), I keep a "working edge". I don't need shaving sharp edges, I just need sharp ENOUGH. A good edge doesn't have to be sharpened much, just honed as needed. I'll pass them over a file of some kind (usually diamond) and finish it off back passing them over cardboard and finally leather to a clean edge. The Work Sharp field sharpener is my favorite.
I feel like much of this is essentially understanding profiling, sharpening, polishing and honing. They are all different steps that accomplish different things.
I am a knife maker and a hunter. Most common problem I see, especially with wild boar is just the grease build up, good to keep some burlap scrap to clean blade frequently. My second go to is a leather strop. Soon as I feel it's not cutting optimal, a strop makes quick work. When i am skinning, processing in my barn, I have a cheap harbor freight 1" grinder with a leather stropping belt, that thing is my best friend to quickly get my knife back to scary sharp in seconds, so long as the blade is not too far gone and needs to get to a whetstone.
I have a smal medium/coarse stone and a lansky dogbone ceramic rod in my pocket when hunting, but almost never need to shapen knife during gutting, has taken out deer, skinned and take of head and legs with same knife, I use the same guideline as you tog Keep blade sharp longer, greetings from Sweden.
Mr Gray you are exactly correct. I have a number of knives my father made. His personal knife was made in the early 60s. A very small knife that is ground as a skinning knife EXCEPT he always ground a convex edge on his knives. Why, all it took to keep them sharp was to touch them up with a stone regularly. The knife itself is in total right at 7 inches. He used it in what many of the You Tubers call “bushcraft. I have seen him baton with it, then use is to cut his food, he kept a small stone to touch it up once it became difficult to slice or drag during any cut. I just pulled it out , the blade has not been touched since 1991 when he had a stroke. It will still shave hair. He was able to get access to used planer blades and ground his knives from these. He did not reheat them nor did he temper the steel. He used a cheap hardware store stone, one side coarse the other fine. A smaller stone in the field. He refused to call them handmade, he called them homemade.
There is one made from a short thick planner blade 3/8” thick that knife has more of a an edge somewhere between a Sabre grind and a Scandi grind. The handle is part of an Elk antler someone gave him. I use it as a clever. I can take solidly frozen kielbasa sausage and slice it with that knife, there is no obvious secondary bevel, it will still pass the paper cut test and will shave hair from my legs. I have not honed it sine it came to my possession in 2001 upon his death. He gave most of them away. I doubt many knew what they had been given…a knife that will last many lifetimes. I was heartbroken last week when the last knife he made broke while I was trying to clean up the poor grind. Like many of his knives it was a hidden tang just pushed into an antler of some sort. The poor rat tail of a tang was poorly ground and so was the blade . It was a recurve blade. I think of it as his best designed but most poorly executed build. I have kept the blade and I might try to get a new tang welded to it. I don’t weld, so I will first have to find a piece of steel to end as tang. It will need to be 3/16 and not overly hardened, I try to keep any knife I do ( I do not have his skill or equipment) as I am learning the hobby is to keep the spine and tang fairly soft. If you will send me an email ( fishindul@aol.com) I will send you some picture of the knives I managed to keep he ground. One I designed in tbe mid-70s and he tried to hollow grind it, but it is really a Sabre grind. It also will still shave hair. I used it during Scouts and many camping trips in college. Sadly as he aged, he started giving knives away at an accelerated rate. Originally, he only gave them to close friends and a few relatives. At the moment all I have to grind with is a very old 1x30 Delta machine with no flat platten. Plus I do not have his skill or eye. He also was an incredible wood worker. People never appreciated what he was able to do. When you write me, I will tell you the story of the “ eagle atop his back yard shed.
Dave Bishop
I hunt occasionally, but I'm a farmer I butcher about a thousand pounds of meat a year. I have two knives made by a local knife maker. one with a 8inch blade and one that is about 3in. I sharpen on a whetstone and use a leather strop.
Great video, spend the money on a good knife fellas
What steel are they made from?
This why I carry 2. One for the hide then one for everything else once the hide is cut. The hair is hard on the edge and I like to sharpen at home when possible.
Good advice.
I’ve found that having more than one knife is helpful too. I use a small folding knife with serrated edge just for cutting the hide. This saves a lot of edge life on the primary knife.
Good points. However, what you did not cover is convexed edges. I've got a Bark River in 3V that is wonderful to dress a deer with and I don't ever worry about the edge. I'll take it to sandpaper and a mouse pad about once a year at most. Normally, stropping brings the edge right back really quickly.
Highly agree with what this guy has to say. Can relate in a lot of ways
I swtiched to using the Havalon system. Replaceable razors. Quick, inexpensive, done.
Everything you said in this video is what I've been telling hunters/outdoorsmen for decades.....but they just don't listen, maybe you'll have better luck.
Thanks Cliff. I've really enjoyed using a quality knife (Argali Serac) with S35 steel, and the Worksharp sharpener (a fantastic tool that has taught me angles). Always make sure it is sharpened upon return, so never dull when walking in field. Your bang on around bones/angle of blade when working on animals. Great tips about how to better do this without rubbing on bone. Like the notion of "feathering" through backstraps etc. I've also caught myself thinking this is sharp enough at step 2 (diamond sharpening) on the Worksharp - but have always worked through the steps, your points around bevel sharpness were great! Carry Baby Wipes with me, so can clean the blade if it needs a touch up in field - which has been a no so far. Thanks. Great tips!
Thanks man! I know several folks that like that Argali!
Some good points there man. Imagine having to re-pressure flake your obsidian edge to keep it sharp.
If you have the skills and the tools it would only take a minute.
I carry two skinning knives when I deer hunt. One to get through fur and to make initial cut....one for inside clean up. I've also found smaller blade knives are ideal. Like 3.5 " blade
That’s a great approach
I learned a while back that replaceable blade knives are the way to go, then pleasantly they keep getting more popular and getting more innovation
On my very first hunting trip, my dad taught me how to sharpen a knife. I used an old diamond sharpener that my grandpa gave my dad and I learned how it’s been passed down to me and one day. I’ll pass it down to my kids and teach them know how to sharpen a knife. It’s an easy skill to learn.
Agree completely. I actually prefer 1095, 5160, 80crv3, and even 1075 for cleaning game. They get dull fast, but get sharp fast and yes, throwing a micro bevel on is something I do all of the time. Just have to take it back to normal at some point. Great video!
Pull throughs are fine as long as they are the round rod type and not the carbide ones. I use those on a lot of thinner knives with softer steel. My hunting and camp knives are all thicker 60+ RC crucible steels with convex grinds, so they get hand sharpened and stropped.
Great information, Cliff. As a hunter and woodworker, I fully appreciate the need for sharp blades and the skills to keep them that way. One of the greats in the woodworking field is Ron Hock and his book “The Perfect Edge”. If anyone wants to do a deeper dive into this subject, I highly recommend this book.
I’ll check it out. Thanks John.
Always carry a pull through sharpener in my pack, handy, small and light.
No replaceable blades for me, just more gear to loose and carry.
technically disposable or replaceable blades were the first to be used. we got our razor blades and knives first for obsidian stone. we would take one stone then chip it to have flecks that were just large enough to be held. then when those would dull or more likely break we would chip off more. but sharpening a steel knife is a good talent to have.
Finally someone explaining things were I can understand now I know why my knife won’t stay sharp
So generally I don't use the links provided for multiple reasons. However, you sold me on the work sharp field sharpener. Just ordered one to be delivered in the next 3hours.
Short Rapala classic wood handle filet knife is one of my favorites to cary hunting. It’s the lightest. Weighs nothing. Super cheap. Hones back quickly because it’s soft. Super sharp point for getting inside the hide quick. One of these and a red pull through sharpener from same company is the lightest best combo I’ve found. The steel is so soft you can even use the case for the knife to strop it sometimes if you just need minor touch up. I have lots of knives and was a butcher for a long time.
A buddy had the Worksharp up at camp this past Nov., I liked it and forgot what it was called, thanks to you reminding me, I just ordered one from your link, I hope you made a couple cents on the sale and thanks.
Say what u will. Cliff knows his stuff. I have a twist on what he said about replaceable blades. I use them but I also save them and resharpen, best system around for western hunting for me cause I dont have to worry about whether or not im getting the animal back to camp. I can always worry about a dull blade later
35 minutes well spent! Peace Be The Journey!
A knife with high quality steel especially one made by a custom knife maker (Erickson Knife Works)is worth its weight in gold. Make sure it’s sharp before you go in the field. Have a honing steel and a ceramic rod. Use the part of the blade closest to handle to cut that dirty hair around the legs. When you have to cut the skin get under it and cut up towards the hair not down through the hair.
Correct
Nobody is saying pull through sharpeners don’t work, they’re saying they suck and they remove way too much material for the edge you get
One of the absolute worst things that you can do to a sharp blade is cut from the outside in. I found that by cutting from the inside out I can get through an entire animal without dulling the blade. Small change with a huge improvement.
I'm no big game hunter but occasional small game and fish as a survival instructor. I always put a secondary convex edge on my working blades. You can keep it sharp by just stropping on a leather belt. I think people have to realize that field sharpening is way different from sharpening and possibly restoring the edge at home and I've seen people carrying 3 big sharpening stones, some oil, etc. in the field. Not only expensive but also heavy and bulky. I carry a small sharpening stone (usually the Fallkniven DC3 or something similar in size) and my leather belt with some toothpaste as stropping compound. I use a budget stainless steel knife for this something like a Mora Basic 546, Mora companion in stainless or the Hultafors RFR. I can carry two of them and only spend 20 dollars total. I have field sharpened them on about everything from the bottom of a ceramic cup (just a few strokes) to my small sharpening stone and stropped to align the edge and get the burr off. So nothing you say is not true but I just have a different approach on the matter.
I remember a description of a PH that used a low-carbon steel skinning knife. Not the greatest edge retention but easily sharpened on his leather boot sole.
I like those pencil sharpener types that slide out from the handle, more than enough to bring back a usable edge, I use the wet stones at home. A strop can be used either place but I keep mine at home unless I decide I'm chip carving or something.
Well said.Multiple knives exponentially increases all of your techniques.
Thanks for real life field issues. Took a minute to make your case. As a butcher, shop work and field work are different as are the knives, game and sharpening technique. 10 days in the Alaska backwoods 3 fishermen, 1 fillet knife, 300 pounds of salmon and a light weight Corona sharpener took care of that and more. If you like something else, do it! But please don’t touch my personal knives.
I'll admit I use multiple blades when dressing big game when I hunt or go with someone else who were. I have as my dressing knives an Ulu, Chinese cleaver, fillet knife, westcott ceramic box cutter knife, and Mora as well I don't see how when processing that a variety of blades/style isn't more common. This doesn't include some of the other blades on myself as well that I've rarely used. A good trick to remove the burr on the blade is that you can strop with paper (clipboard and few binder clips). I normally use diamond plates and leather/paper strops when home to put on, maintain, or repair an edge. I'm also okay with draw sharpeners as well though I recommend put very little pressure to preserve the steel vs pushing it through hard like most do.
The LT wright large northern hunter, small northern hunter and winker hunters axe will make quick work of dressing/quartering game. I keep a small strap and ceramic rod in my kill kit for touch ups. No issues. To each their own. Nothing wrong with replaceable blade knives. I would not say incapable, I’d say more convenient to some. Simmer down big guy.
Correct
The gauchos of south America have an excellent EDC.
They have a sheath that holds both their fixed blade knife and the chaira honing steel to keep the knife sharp when skinning & butchering beef cattle.
Finally, someone who actually USES a knife, talks about the real factors in what makes a knife good for outdoors.
I personally am SICK & TIRED of knife reviews where some putz opens a new box, takes out a new knife, opens it, closes it, reads the item description off the website where they bought the knife, then says... "Its a great knife and you should buy it."
Im so tired of that crap.
I like to listen to people like this guy who actually know what they are talking about.
Watch Joe X reviews. He doesn't do that crap.
Have you tried the Lansky crocksticks? They have 4 holes. One set of two holes gives you a 20 degree angle, the other gives you a 25 degree angle. You get coarse and fine ceramic rods with it. They also make the same product with a set of diamond rods. Spyderco also makes these and their angles are 17 and 20 degrees. You can get very fine, fine, coarse, and diamond rods for them. If you've never used them, all you have to do is hold your knife blade perpendicular to the rods and swipe down. Very easy to do. Been using crocksticks since the 70s and they work great. Clean with an eraser. Most of my knives are either scandi ground or convex ground, but that's a different story. :)
Balls, Biceps, and Bevels. Asymmetry in Nature. I enjoyed your TED talk! 😂
honestly that's why I switched to a scandi grind for every use simply because its so easy to resharpen in the field.
a cheap paddle sharpener and a stick to rip off the burr and away you go.
I totally get it
Great video, been microbeveling for years but I'm pretty sure my Spyderco in K390 at 12 DPS could field dress a dinosaur.
I'm wondering what kind of knives these people are using. I think any knife made by Spyderco with their typically superb heat treat and an excellent blade steel like K390, S90V, S110V, Rex 45 etcetera would hold their edges well enough to fully process several deer. I think they are just using knives by manufacturers who don't appropriately heat treat their blades and they get subpar performance from the knives as a result.
@@MisterDeetsI recommend virtuovice on this. He tested most knife steels (hunting deers in Japan) and talked about this topic extensively.
Seriously, my maxemet para 3 could do the same. Using cheap knives only get you so far.
@@MisterDeets don't take only an s110v knife into process. You can use it for soft tissue forever, but it can chip on bones. In order to have such superb edge retention it has to be hardened past 60 hrc but then it becomes a bit chippy. Have something like s45vn for the work around bones and joints. It's easy to sharpen and still holds an edge forever.
Crock sticks for honing knives has been my favorite by far.
First knife guy that knows what is going on when a knife is used. Talking about Elk and deer, what about hippo and Giraffe. Thanks, there is a difference between gadgets and what works for the outdoors man.
We don't have hippo or giraffes here but I'd really like to know what you use to process hippos and giraffes. Hippo skin has to be super thick, i would think!
Great explanation on knife wear from actual experience.
Excellent video.
I just say start the day with a sharp knife, a knife sharpened in the shed, workshop, or kitchen table. Most important are equal flat sides to the bevels and a finished apex with no foil bur hanging off it.
Then have a field system to keep a working edge, micro bevelled even, to get a long job finished. Use immediately the "popping sharpness" is lost.
My preferred field sharpness restorers are the DMT Diafolds butterfly diamond hones (red), and a white ceramic rod by Spyderco or Smiths. (These don't weigh much.) A little more pressure and slightly higher angle is fine, and it only takes a few wipes. Yes, I can do it in the dark. As only the edge is on the hone blood muck isn't an issue. I just want the working sharpness back to finish the task. Can't see, don't care, what the actual edge looks like, and all can be put back to "perfect" back home.
I freehand sharpen a lot, but have found the new Work Sharp Professional Precision Adjust is better than anything I can do to get "factory great" again.
I do like a medium thin blade rather than some thick stocked thing. However, larder knives, like Victorinox, are best for food prep, butchering, back at home. For that they are great.
There is more than one way to skin a cat. Take your time, and think each cut (twice), as that is faster..and safer too.
Some people have real talent at getting the natural bounty processed for the table. Professionals get more practice. Just think what you are doing, we have been doing it a long time, its not rocket science.
As an outfitter & guide we use replaceable blades because it saves time & energy. Also use different style blades for the various aspects of processing animals with the same knife. Sharpening knives & or blades is easy, can do it in my sleep. We process upwards of 40-50 animals between September & December, spending time sharpening a knife can wait until the meat is in the freezer & the cape is at the taxidermist. Work smart not hard folks!
The truly scary situation with changing Havalon blades,etc. is- your exhausted, your hands are wet and probably cold and your fumbling around with a “razor blade” in the snow mud, etc. No thank-you. How many of the Havalon type knives blades are lost, thrown down, etc.! Just “waiting” to slice someone. I always carry an extra knife and a diamond honing rod-two is one and one is none!
Ceramic honing rod or steel is the best way to keep your edge working while field dressing game. Start with a razor sharp blade, and hit it lightly with the ceramic rod frequently. That's all I've ever needed
Great advice. No joke though, Mora companion sharpened on 1000 stone then a 6000 stone followed by leather strop was able to gut and skin my deer and debone it. For a cheap knife it has pretty good steel and is razor sharp with a mirror finish.
yeah man it's a great knife
FINALLY, a knife instructional that addresses the issues we pros deal with! Thank you, Sir!
I might not have the lightest pack but carrying a couple extra sharp knives is easier than fixing them in the field that is what midday at camp is for
Using a lower edge angle does reduce toughness but increases edge retention. Uneven bevels is not a problem, even chisel grinds can do ridiculously fine work if sharpened correctly. Going up to high grits does not remove a burr, simply refines it and makes it smaller. To remove the burr you should do alternating light passes on your last stone, then follow that with stropping. Taking multiple knives is always the way to go, even if you have quality steel. Microbeveling works but it is even harder to maintain a consistent angle doing so free hand. What you are likely doing is creating a new burr, which is why you think you’ve sharpened well. This is why most of the time people touching up their edge doesn’t last as long as their original edge. The burr is what’s sharp and it tears out easily.
Hunted 30+ years hunting big game never only ever had to use a honing rod after gutting and skinning. I used a buck 192 alaskan guide for 25 of them.
I love that explanation of the replacement blade a lazy hunters solution, it does the job its not an heirloom item that your gonna pass down to your grandkids. Id rather build skills than buy gear
It’s not that those pull through sharpeners won’t put some type of working edge on a knife; the problem is that they ruin a knife, especially if used frequently. Using a pull through to put a temporary microbevel on the blade isn’t really what people are referring to when they say those sharpeners are useless. They mean that they are useless when used for actual sharpening.
However, even if a pull through sharpener is only used for microbeveling , it sucks at that as well. A good microbevel should only be a hair more obtuse than the secondary bevel. Unless you measure the angle of the sharpener and then reprofile the knife to an edge angle a few degrees lower,, the microbevel will be too large. Even the carbide sharpener or ceramic rod are better than the pull through sharpener since you can at least control the angle.
Though too aggressive to use on a good knife, the Corona carbide sharpener is great at one thing: striking a fire steel. I’ve tried many strikers, and it (Carbide sharpener) is hands down the best.
I’ve seen folks do a great job with a beat up old machete, it’s really the skills.
Good video on issues that occur on the field
That is because most RUclips knife people do not actually use their knives. I carry a sharpener with me at all times, even in the city. One of the best knives I have found to use is the Victorinox Rabbit knife. Simple steel, easy to sharpen to a high sharpness edge, great blade geometry, ergonomic handle. Best $30 I have spent on a knife.
Ok here’s a plan I don’t see discussed as an option in the field… bring several knives sharpened so when you feel a blade loosing its edge you can easily just grab another knife with a perfectly sharp edge! I grew up as the Son of a butcher so having sharp knives to work with has always been a topic of discussion! Why sharpen in the field when you can just have additional tools available?
Why not ever sharpen… just use a replaceable blade knife? It’s just personal preference. I think knowing how to quickly sharpen a knife is a good skill, limits gear, limits cleanup.
Another great video. Thanks for the mico bevel tip.
All the fancy knife steels, like you say knife nerds get excited about ... the sharpest knife I've ever used was a carbon steel kitchen paring knife my mother had when I was growing up. Old school carbon steel is a fantastic knife material; as long as you take a little care of your knives.
When I was in poultry processing I went to the tool crib and traded my deboning or whatever knfe about every 3000 to 4000 chickens or roughly every 3 hours. We ran about 25-26 birds per minute. The maximum number by law was 23/minute but the company didn't exactly care about rules. It was the hell!!! The pain from RMI repetitive motion injuries- was unbearable. At night I would wake up with my hands literally feeling like they were on fire while being crushed in a vise. They would lock up in a claw position and stay that way for hours.
😮
I've noticed on certain steels and when cutting certain materials, it's better to have a coarser grit finish like a 600 grit. This appears to create some micro serrations like a saw blade and gives the edge that "bite". K30 for instance gets a bit too glassy for me at higher grits and doesn't seem to work great or hold an edge. Then I'll go to a 600 grit and bam. Also, the heat treat and geometry is more important than the steel often times. I have a sog with cryo d2 that blows through any of my Chinese " super steels". You simply cannot get a great heat treat when mass producing these things and keeping the price low. No Chinese company is going to put the knives in the oven and then take them out and let them completely cool, then put them back in and quickly quench in the proper medium, then dip in liquid nitrogen, then temper, then temper again at a different temperature, then make sure they keep the blade cool while grinding and sharpening. They simply wouldn't make any money. Just keep that in mind when buying super steels. Go spyderco or custom if you really want to see the potential of a steel. Look up the recommended heat treat protocol of a steel and see how complex it is before going cheap. Cpm3v for instance is tough to do right and the wear and tear on the ovens and belts makes it very tempting to take shortcuts. Just something to think about.
Those pull through sharpeners you say every one hates, I use those and give them away as gifts especially to people that don't know how to sharpen a knife. But, I tell them that it does not sharpen a knife well. What it does well is keep a sharp knife sharp.
Hone before actually dull, and you'll get longer use before needing profiling, sharpening or polishing. Also, maybe consider having multiple knives... A skinning knife, boning knife, slicing, chopping, etc...
I have a compact sharpening steel that I use and hit on it a few licks with my knife all through the skinning process. If you watch all professional butchers this is what they do all all day as they work. Hit it with the steel as soon periodically all through the skinning process. Take your time!
I like the micro edge. When the bead forms it is because the steel is unable to hold that thin edge. After i get the bead, i remove it by inceasing the angle.😊😊😊
I don't use just one blade for large animals, I have a Victorinox Hunter XT to start, and to deal with the initial rough work, gutting, some joint work, use the saw where required as well since Vic steel will roll instead of chipping, then I will switch to basically 3-4 thin fixed blades made of M2, one gets dull I'll use the next one...etc. No animal barring maybe an elephant would require more than 3 knives from M2 plus the Vic XT.
More importantly are you trying to reinvent the wheel? Micro bevelling is just a fancy way to say convex, lol. Do a good convex and you only need to touch up the apex in the field.
Easier to sharpen often a little bit than beat it down for a huge project. Same with chainsaw.
When they stop cutting optimally take a few to edge it up.
This video is the equivalent to a Prius owner telling sports car owners that driving fast doesn’t matter. You should try it out sometime, it’s pretty fun.
Perfect comment!
@@RevHiker thanks g
I own a Prius in addition to my 1969 Chevelle, fast is fun, but so is getting 56 mpg.
Says the self proclaimed frontier man who doesn't hunt lol
@@tolt1776 what are you going on about?
This is great. Sure , if I want to shave my arms, I want my diamond stones. But, you are so right - if you need sharp NOW, those pull throughs are great. Does it "ruin" your knife? Maybe, but my tools work for me, I don't work for them. I also like carbon steel over the super hard stainless steels.
I use the replaceable blade knives. Only reason is convenience. They are perfect for hunting
Great video.
What was the folding knife you had in your hand at the beginning, and throughout the video?
Replacement blades are quick to use and quick to replace. Scalpel sharp takes time in the field. Unless u use a replacement scalpel.
Having a sharp knife is always important even in your own kitchen
Tungsten Carbide pull-through sharpeners are a lot harder than even the hardest steel. That’s why you have to be so careful with those things.
Thanks for the information and your time!
Great video! I've been working on my knife sharpening skills for a couple of years now, and you touched on plenty that i hadn't thought about before. To the "get to the point" comment, i would say, shut up and pay attention! You might just learn something here.
Firshermen with dull fish hooks is one of my pet peeves.