Author Topic: Need a small game knife...( made in America ) (Read 10612 times)

Poopers · « **on:** March 19, 2011, 05:09:32 AM »

Can anyone recommend a small AMERICAN made knife that is good for dressing out small game? I was a bit angry earlier today when I almost got a good ole' Buck brand knife that was made in China. Glad I have one of the old American made models for deer.

EDIT

I found out some Bucks are USA made while others are Chinese...

With that being said do any of you use the Buck Lancer model? Apprently its American made

pastorp · « **Reply #1 on:** March 19, 2011, 06:16:25 AM »

I used buck knives years ago but not in the bast 20 years. For small game I like any trapper slip joint pocket knifer. Case as well as several other brands all work well.

Regards,

Drilling Man · « **Reply #2 on:** March 19, 2011, 11:28:41 AM »

Hey Byron,

I've been useing this Gerber S30V (made in USA) and i like it a lot,

DM

Graybeard · « **Reply #3 on:** March 19, 2011, 11:42:55 AM »

I have an old Buck Selector from the days when it held two blades and came with three. Now I admit I've not seen it in a long time as I put it away for safe keeping which translates to I haven't got a clue where it is. It's for deer hunting not small game tho.

I do have a small Case fixed blade small game knife that has been used on who knows how many small game animals and birds. I've had it since I was a teenager and that's at least 50 years I've had it.

Bear Cutlery is a local outfit that makes ALL their knives about 7 miles from my house in the city of Jacksonville, AL. They make excellent knives and have several suitable for a small game hunting knife as well as knives for about any use you can imagine. I think you can buy them direct from the factory and Smoky Mountain Knife Works sells at least part perhaps all of their product line. I prolly own 30 or more of their knives and have given lots of them away as gifts.

saddlebum · « **Reply #4 on:** March 19, 2011, 01:46:31 PM »

I like Moore Maker knives alot. They have a great selection and are very well made and reasonably priced. They are made in Matador Texas. You can go to their website and get good buys for new ones at ebay.

My favorites are USA Schrade Uncle Henry knives. They can still be had on ebay.

Case knives are still made in the US according to the website and are great knives. Also on ebay.

Wyo. Coyote Hunter · « **Reply #5 on:** March 19, 2011, 02:31:48 PM »

I bought a small Marble's sheath knife for fishing, and a Tree brand pocket knife with two blades, the old trapper model..I am NEVER with out it...

Ethan · « **Reply #6 on:** March 19, 2011, 05:44:58 PM »

My personal favorite is a Dunn small skinner. They are all VERY SHARP!http://www.dunnknives.com/products/smallskinnersmallgame.php

bobg · « **Reply #7 on:** March 20, 2011, 12:36:35 AM »

I am a big fan of Case knives. I am like GB. I have a 51 year old Case fixed blade that has done a heck of a lot of small game and a couple deer.
Gerber makes a great folder. Carried one for years.

AtlLaw · « **Reply #8 on:** March 20, 2011, 07:36:10 AM »

Mark me up for a case sheath knife . I've got a real small one with about a 3 inch blade and leather handle that I have used as my hunting knife for years. No telling how many deer it's gutted and I've never felt the need for anything bigger. 'course I do carry a folding saw to cut the breast bone...

bobg · « **Reply #9 on:** March 21, 2011, 05:04:33 AM »

Sounds like the same as mine Richard. Only mine is four inches. Dad bought it for me 51 years ago. He said the only reason it was 4 and not 3 was because he couldn't find a 3. He use to say you could always tell the city hunters by the big knives they thought they needed.

AtlLaw · « **Reply #10 on:** March 21, 2011, 06:54:33 AM »

Quote from: bobg on March 21, 2011, 05:04:33 AM

He said the only reason it was 4 and not 3 was because he couldn't find a 3.

That's funny!

I guess you can tell a lot about a man by the knife he carries...

I guess this is the current model of what I have.

mcwoodduck · « **Reply #11 on:** March 21, 2011, 07:11:17 AM »

AG Russel.
Small Game knife.
http://www.agrussell.com/ag-russell-woodswalker-in-leather-hip-pocket-sheath/p/AGPRS/
I give them out to people I hunt with as steak knives.
but they are reall sharp, the blade is thin but strong.
made for small game. The leather holster fits in your back pocket.

squirrellluck · « **Reply #12 on:** March 21, 2011, 05:34:36 PM »

Guess I'm the odd man out. All my small game is done with a case trapper. It is always in my pocket anyway and holds a good edge. I thought that's why they call it a trapper

Graybeard · « **Reply #13 on:** March 21, 2011, 07:43:30 PM »

Yup Richard that looks like a newer version of my old Case. The leather is much different tho. Mine has a little leather strap with a snap to hold it in. Once upon a long long time ago that snap failed and my knife fell out somewhere along the trail I had taken squirrel hunting that day.

I retraced my footsteps as carefully as I could and as unbelieveable as it sounds found my lost knife and never again since that day have I trusted it in that leather on my belt. It goes in a pack or it stays home. I'm not losing it again.

charles p · « **Reply #14 on:** March 22, 2011, 03:18:55 PM »

I have put some case knives in my bank lock box because I think so highly of their old carbon blade knives. My current favorite however is a little black plastic lockback Case SS pocket knife that may be their cheapest product. I have an F.Dick hypersteel that I use to sharpen most of our knives and this little knife stays razor sharp. It is so light you will not even know it is in your pocket. I do not see why it would not be ideal on small game. I once cleaned three deer with a similar sized Case knife when I discovered that my larger knife had been left behind.

I like the little black plastic sided Case because it is so easy to touch up using the F.Dick hypersteel. Very fast and very efficient. I often help a professional fish cleaner when he needs me, and this little knife is every bit as sharp as the Dexter Russell fillet knives we machine sharpen for our commercial operation.

Edge maintenance is the most important factor in maintaining a sharp knife. You can not allow a knife to become dull, but rather you must touch it up constantly. This not only maintains the edge but the correct angle. That is why the professionals I work with rely on the F.Dick hypersteel to maintain an edge. We go back to the thousand dollar sharpening machine about once every six weeks or so, to remake the blade grind.

I am not a knife saleman nor have any interest in Dick products. I mention it only because of its outstanding results. PM me if you have a question.

bobg · « **Reply #15 on:** March 23, 2011, 01:24:37 AM »

I wonder if the snaps breaking on the old case sheath was common. Mine broke too. A friend of mine did a lot of leather work and made knives. He made a new strap for me. When i picked it up he gave me a knife he made. The sheath for that had no snap. It is deep enough that only the tip of the handle sticks out. Sure won't fall out of that. When my father passed away i got the only 2 guns he ever owned and his knives. A Winchester nickel steel model 12 shotgun and a Remington model 12-A 22 rifle. As big a fan as he was of case knives all i found was Kutwell, Folsom and Shrade.

jlwilliams · « **Reply #16 on:** March 23, 2011, 01:41:32 AM »

Benchmade 707.

gr8ful · « **Reply #17 on:** March 23, 2011, 02:22:07 AM »

i'm with squirrelluck just a plain jane case trapper for all my small game needs.

marine · « **Reply #18 on:** March 23, 2011, 05:13:07 AM »

I like a case trapper for small game. It fits easily in my pocket and the carbon steel blades hold an edge very well.

Wyo. Coyote Hunter · « **Reply #19 on:** March 23, 2011, 05:33:00 AM »

I used the Schrade trapper model, until I lost it, then bought the same model by Tree brand knives..I also had a number of Case trappers...when I went to replace the lost Schrade, I found they were now made in China..so bought the Tree Brand..at the time I need the knife, Case was not available in my area..Both are excellent..except for splitting the breast bone of elk and deer the trapper knife does a fine job of dressing all game..while a saw of hatchet can be used for splitting of bones, at times it is less weight to carry a good belt knife and a trapper pocket knife...BUT I guess we were just talking about small game..

mcwoodduck · « **Reply #20 on:** March 23, 2011, 08:58:26 AM »

While I like the folding knives and carry one every day.
When doing small game there is usually multiple of them and I for some reason, get blood and fur on the knife.
I went to fixed blade for small game and big game gutting for the ease of being able to wash them and not have a grease stain on the front pocket of my pants as the WD-40 or the T-9 oozes out of the newly cleaned pocket folder.
I will use a pocket folder for skinning and the Little K- bar folders with the blunt point are great for that. Really hold and edge and sharpen quickly and easily, most of the time with just a stone.
The other great little folder is the Gerber LST (If you can fing them) they too get razor sharp and hold an edge and the small blade is perfect for small game and odd jobs.

223fan · « **Reply #21 on:** March 31, 2011, 12:54:32 PM »

99% of my small game is skinned with a case trapper,they are all a person really needs for such chores.

Graybeard · « **Reply #22 on:** April 14, 2011, 02:05:04 PM »

I finally got around to taking a photo of one of my Bear Cutlery knives that I was suggesting as an excellent choice for this. The other is my Buck Selector.

OldSchoolRanger · « **Reply #23 on:** April 29, 2011, 09:56:37 AM »

Have a old Gerber "Trout & Bird", which I use for small game. Don't know if they make this model anymore.

Winter Hawk · « **Reply #24 on:** April 29, 2011, 06:23:50 PM »

Sheesh, Richard's knife looks like the one I have carried since 1982. I have it in an old Gerber sheath. No snaps and it is a touch loose, but it rides in my pack most of the time anyway so that's no problem.

My every day (and I mean every day) is an old Schrade Trapper I have had for about 20 years. It replaced the one I had before which is at the bottom of the Tongass Narrows. I have a belt holster I made for the first one in the mid 1970s. It goes on my belt as soon as it goes on my pants, every day.

I used the Trapper one time to gut, skin and bone out two deer on Prince of Wales Island. I had somehow not put the fixed blade in my pack. It got to be a real chore towards the end of the second buck when both blades were less than sharp, but it got the job done.

A consideration for a small game knife would be an Old Hickory paring knife. You would have to make a sheath which is no biggy, but I think it would be just about what you are looking for. High carbon steel blade, made in the USA and not expensive. Hmm, I might have to get one myself!

-Kees-

ironglow · « **Reply #25 on:** April 29, 2011, 06:45:21 PM »

McWooduck beat me to it! One of the secret bargains in small knives is the AG Russell Woods Walker..handles like an extension on your finger and the price is very friendly.

One American made company I can vouch for, is Queen Cutlery ... All made in Titusville, PA. Many hand operations by highly skilled cutlers. Bob Breton, pres of Queen is apersonal friend and I know his insistence on quality. BTW: Queen & Ontario are "sister companies"..

http://www.queencutlery.com/index.htm

You didn't say whether you were looking more for a straight or folding knife.. For folding there are very nice trapper knives...foir straight, look at thje "light hunter" line.

inthebeech · « **Reply #26 on:** May 12, 2011, 06:46:05 AM »

I'll submit a plug for Tidioute cutlery. They are the only maker any more of folders using the tried and true 1095 alloy - it oxidizes but us old timers know that there is no excalliber - and us knife makers are even more sure that it doesn't exist because we bladesmiths have been chasing it forever (1084, O1, O6, L6, W1, W2, 5160, 52100, A6, 6150... Yeah, you could say we've tried a few different alloys). If you know how to sharpen a knife properly, you'll likely not get any other alloy blade to the point where you can "easily" shave yourself - of course a shaving edge has no place on an outdoorsman's knife.
Try them. Their heat treatment (evidenced by their grain structure and yield strength properties) is a bit different than Old Timers (the last manufacturer to use 1095) but they are still great knives. Your best selection and deals are from Cumberland Knifeworks. I carry Tidioute because I will not make folders. If I did make them, I'd still buy Tidioute.
Ed

saddlebum · « **Reply #27 on:** May 12, 2011, 08:35:13 AM »

@inthebeech

Thanks for the tip on Tidioute knives! They look real good and I have never heard of them before.
Here is a link to a site that shows some great traditional designs from Tidioute.

http://www.collectorknives.net/greateastern.html

http://tidiouteknives.info/

ironglow · « **Reply #28 on:** May 12, 2011, 12:35:56 PM »

Quote from: inthebeech on May 12, 2011, 06:46:05 AM

I'll submit a plug for Tidioute cutlery. They are the only maker any more of folders using the tried and true 1095 alloy - it oxidizes but us old timers know that there is no excalliber - and us knife makers are even more sure that it doesn't exist because we bladesmiths have been chasing it forever (1084, O1, O6, L6, W1, W2, 5160, 52100, A6, 6150... Yeah, you could say we've tried a few different alloys). If you know how to sharpen a knife properly, you'll likely not get any other alloy blade to the point where you can "easily" shave yourself - of course a shaving edge has no place on an outdoorsman's knife.
Try them. Their heat treatment (evidenced by their grain structure and yield strength properties) is a bit different than Old Timers (the last manufacturer to use 1095) but they are still great knives. Your best selection and deals are from Cumberland Knifeworks. I carry Tidioute because I will not make folders. If I did make them, I'd still buy Tidioute.
Ed

INB;
If you look at the home addersses, you will find trhat Queen and Tideoute are both made in Titusville, PA. I believe the Tideoute is a spinoff from Queen. I'll have to check with Bob..we have a deacon's meeting on Sunday and we are both opn the board.
Queen uses a steel similar to 1095, which is D2 tool steel on many of their knives, for the shiny ones, it's ATS34;
http://www.queencutlery.com/honeyamberm.htm
Queen's sister company Ontario, still uses a lot of 1095..especially on straight knives; Machetes, military, and commercial/agricultural. The Ontario plant is in a small town about 5 miles from my house..good, conscientious country folks work there. Here is an Ontario store where you can order if you wish. http://www.ontario-knife-store.com/ Click on the top left for bargains. Those RAT knives are beauties, and I have bought them for presents for good friends..

Ladobe · « **Reply #29 on:** May 24, 2011, 09:49:52 AM »

While I have several, here's my favorite. This was my one-armed grandfathers knife that he gave me just before he died about 52 years ago. Before his Emphysema got so bad that he had to be on oxygen all the time and he had trouble walking... back when he could still hunt and fish with the family he used it for everything from trout to sage hens to elk (and to do his finger nails).