What Makes A Good Hunting Knife?

One of the most important pieces of hunting equipment you can purchase is a good quality hunting knife. There are a lot of different hunting knives that are available, so how do you select the hunting knife that works best for you? To be honest, you will probably need to own several different types of knives depending on the type of game that you hunt. We provide you with suggestions that we hope will make your shopping for hunting knives an educational and productive experience.

A hunting knife should should feel right when you hold it. You should feel comfortable when you are holding the knife. Many hunters think they need to have a large hunting knife, but in reality, you will probably feel more comfortable handling a smaller knife. If you are using your knife to skin an animal, you need to have control over the blade, and many hunters have difficulty skinning an animal with a knife with a large blade. Bottom line, if the hunting knife doesn't feel good in your hand when you pick it up... don't buy it.

The next consideration when selecting a good hunting knife is the construction of the handle. While knives with bone or antler handles look rustic, they don't provide you with the best grip, especially in wet situations. You should consider knife handles that are made of Thermoplastic Rubber (TPR). These rubberized knife handles always provide you with good grip in cold, wet and bloody situations.

Another very important factor is the type of game that you will be hunting. If you are hunting elk, you will want a knife with a larger blade than if you are hunting cotton-tailed rabbits. Does that mean if you are hunting moose that you need a Bowie knife? Most likely not. For big game, medium length hunting blades are more than adequate. Remember, in most cases, you only need the knife to make an incision to gut the animal, internal cuts to cut away tissue holding the internal organs, the ability to cut ligiments at the joints, skinning the animal, and boning out the meat if you are packing the animal out.

Folding blade or fixed-blade knives really depends on your preference. Some hunters prefer folding blades because they feel they are safer to carry. If you do select a folding blade hunting knife make sure that the blade firmly locks open. If there is any indication that the blade might close while you are using it, you could easily cut yourself. Folding blade knives can be difficult to keep clean. The slot the blade fits into can become dirty with blood, tissue and dirt.

Blade style is another consideration. A feature that many hunters find useful is a gut hook on the end of the blade. While it may take a while to get used to using, a gut hook is used to run right along the belly of the animal for a quick incision to slice the hide, but not puncture the stomach. It can be difficult to keep the gut hook sharp, but a round ceramic rod or file works quite well.

Next you should consider the alloy that the knife blade is made of. Stainless steel knife blades are becoming more popular because they are easier to keep clean and look better longer. The stainless steel knife blades are more difficult to sharpen than the high-carbon steel blades.

The last suggestion is not to store the knife in a sheath. The oils that are found in a knife sheath will pentrate the metal of the blade and cause the blade to become discolored. Even stainless steel blades will become discolored, although more slowly than a high-carbon steel blade.

To summarize, select a hunting knife that feels comfortable in your hand, that is well-balanced, doesn't slip when wet, and is easy to keep sharp in the field. If you keep your knife clean and take care of it, it will be a great hunting tool that you will use for years.

Most Popular Hunting Knives To Buy

There are many companies that make quality hunting knives. When you buy hunting knives, you want to make sure that your hunting knives are guaranteed. We have outlined the important features you should look for when you buy a hunting knife, now take the time to shop around and find the hunting knife that meets your needs.

Buck Hunting Knives have been manufactured for over 100 years and Buck knives are considered to be some of the best hunting knives on the market. You can buy Buck hunting knives with folding and fixed blade with rubber or beautiful rosewood handles. Several of the Buck hunting knives have gut hooks that make for easy gutting.

All Buck hunting knives are warranted for the lifetime of the original purchaser against breakage or malfunction caused by defects in materials or workmanship. This applies to normal use for which the knife was intended, not abuse or misuse. Buck Knives will repair or replace any defective knife with the same or comparable model.

Gerber Hunting Knives warrants their knives to the original purchaser that the knife, if used in accordance with their instructions, will be free of defects in material and workmanship for as long as he or she owns the product. At Gerber's option, defective product will be repaired, replaced or substituted with a product of equal value.