Best Skinning knife for $200

[Pathfinder76]

Seyfrieds summation.

[Ken3134]

Originally Posted by Phil McCracken

Very nice!

A little curious...how thick is the handle?...

It’s thin but still comfortable. Thickest point is 9/16” height or width is 11/8”. No liners and it is fairly thin blade stock. 0.09”. Less than 1/8”

I’d say they got it right if you are experimenting handle sizes.

Ken

[Pathfinder76]

Here is a Dozier Yukon Pro Skinner. If someone is looking for a good all around blade shape and size for a reasonable price there is no flies on this one. It is a dandy for sure.

[WinFwt]

Here's four from my collection that I've used for processing big game. All will skin, just some better than others.



There are a lot of blade designs meant to do one specific job really well, whether it be caping, skinning, boning, field dressing, etc., but to find one that would do all those tasks really well isn't likely going to happen.

My personal preference is to carry a general purpose hunting knife in that 7 1/2" to 8" length, with a 3 1/2" to 4" drop point blade about 1/8" thick and 1" wide. This knife will gut and skin really well, but definitely not cape worth a darn. Caping is left to the paring style knives.

The one at the bottom of the pic, is the one I've been carrying on my belt when hunting for the last 3 years. 8 1/4" long, 3 3/4" blade, 1 1/16" wide, 5/32" spine thickness. It's a little on the heavy side because of the full tang and thickness, but fits very well and feels solid in my hand. It's main purpose is gutting and skinning, but also breaks down a moose quite well. I've carried other knives of different shapes and styles, but keep coming back to this style. The sweep of the blade edge is excellent for skinning, using about the front two thirds of the edge.

The top knife is very light and easy to maneuver but I found the blade length a little short for field dressing and skinning. OAL is 6 1/2", blade is 2 5/8" long.
The second one is made by Browning, Model 0221. Blade steel is D-2. OAL is 7 7/8", blade is 3 1/2" x 13/16" wide, very close to the shape & style I prefer.
The last one is the "skinner" in the group. Doesn't do a great job of field dressing, definitely not a caper, but does a nice job skinning. OAL is 7 1/2", blade is 3 1/2" long. What I like about this blade is the upswept style with a drop point ground into it. Doesn't have a trailing point to stick or cut things it shouldn't.

The next 2 pics show how the bottom knife fits in my hand while skinning. This is a damascus blank I purchased out of the states, then reconfigured the tang to better fit my hand, then threw some Desert Ironwood scales on it with yellow liners.


This pic shows how it I hold it slice open an animal. Thumb fits solidly in the finger groove behind the blade, knife sits at the right angle for me and tends not to cut things it shouldn't if I do my part.

[Coiloil37]

Just a heads up for you guys getting a dozier or Crotts knife. Those horizontal sheaths will hold that knife very securely and the knife is very difficult to pull straight out. You want to grab the knife with three or four fingers and put your thumb on the top of the inside half of the sheath where the arrow is pointing. Some even have the kydex curled on the split to facilitate spreading the two halves.





Lift the knife straight up. The sheath will release the knife and it’ll pull out effortlessly. The first time I bought one I held the sheath in my left hand, grabbed the knife and pulled. Hard. When it let go it came out violently and I cut one finger on my left hand to the bone.
You’ll then notice when you put the knife back in it’ll pop down and make a click at the end and it’s locked back in.

If your ordering direct you’ve got options. I like a pair so I have both vertical and horizontal sheaths and if your a southpaw he can do that too.


Aftermarket leather is always a classy option too and I wish I knew the right person for it. Bob used to make them years ago and I had one once but didn’t keep it long.











Nice cutlery to those who have posted.

[Pathfinder76]

Two toned liners are kinda neat as well.

[spurly]

So many nice knives. Makes it difficult to decide on one.

[spurly]

If anyone has a gently used Crotts, or Dozier, they might want to sell, contact me
Please. I have cash, or tradables.

[TACTICALSIXGUN]

Another vote for grohmann knives. I have several and the seconds are great as well.

[Ken3134]

Originally Posted by Coiloil37

Just a heads up for you guys getting a dozier or Crotts knife. Those horizontal sheaths will hold that knife very securely and the knife is very difficult to pull straight out. You want to grab the knife with three or four fingers and put your thumb on the top of the inside half of the sheath where the arrow is pointing. Some even have the kydex curled on the split to facilitate spreading the two halves.





Lift the knife straight up. The sheath will release the knife and it’ll pull out effortlessly. The first time I bought one I held the sheath in my left hand, grabbed the knife and pulled. Hard. When it let go it came out violently and I cut one finger on my left hand to the bone.
You’ll then notice when you put the knife back in it’ll pop down and make a click at the end and it’s locked back in.

If your ordering direct you’ve got options. I like a pair so I have both vertical and horizontal sheaths and if your a southpaw he can do that too.


Aftermarket leather is always a classy option too and I wish I knew the right person for it. Bob used to make them years ago and I had one once but didn’t keep it long.











Nice cutlery to those who have posted.

I have owned many knives and I have yet to ever have a Kydex sheath that I didn’t hate, and the Crotts knife came with that same one in your pictures. Well made and designed, but I still hate it. Leather sheath was ordered for mine the day after I received the Knife in the mail. Really like the knife though!

[Pathfinder76]

I like leather. It has its place. But, a using hunting knife is not one of them. Here kydex is king. My knives live on my pack and I just need something to cover the blade. I also need something that I can put a bloody (actual blood) knife in and can clean later. Leather is just not the best for that application.

[spurly]

Originally Posted by Ken3134

I have owned many knives and I have yet to ever have a Kydex sheath that I didn’t hate, and the Crotts knife came with that same one in your pictures. Well made and designed, but I still hate it. Leather sheath was ordered for mine the day after I received the Knife in the mail. Really like the knife though!

I like leather as well, where did you find yours?

[Ken3134]

Originally Posted by spurly

I like leather as well, where did you find yours?

Canadian Outdoor Equipment

[spurly]

Thanks

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by Ken3134

Canadian Outdoor Equipment

Have you got a picture of yours in the sheath, since they only seem to have one. I ordered both a vertical and horizontal carry LH Kyadex with the knife and we shall see how I like them, never owned a Kyadex sheath before. I have had Horse_man for here on AO make me a few leather things, including sheaths. I will likely order a custom one from him once the new knife shows up because I too really like the look of leather versus hard black plastic. I would likely have one built with the top flap, like a Russel boat knife has. Once he has a pattern he should easily be able to build them for others that are interested.

Bottom sheath

[Ken3134]

Originally Posted by Dean2

Have you got a picture of yours in the sheath, since they only seem to have one. I ordered both a vertical and horizontal carry LH Kyadex with the knife and we shall see how I like them, never owned a Kyadex sheath before. I have had Horse_man for here on AO make me a few leather things, including sheaths. I will likely order a custom one from him once the new knife shows up because I too really like the look of leather versus hard black plastic. I would likely have one built with the top flap, like a Russel boat knife has. Once he has a pattern he should easily be able to build them for others that are interested.

Bottom sheath

Here it is

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by Ken3134

Here it is

Thanks for doing that. The leather sheath fits that knife about perfect and it is a good looking leather in terms of shape and color. Pretty good for 40 bucks.

[Ken3134]

Originally Posted by Dean2

Thanks for doing that. The leather sheath fits that knife about perfect and it is a good looking leather in terms of shape and color. Pretty good for 40 bucks.

Yes, it’s about a perfect fit really, secure even when upside down doesn’t shake out. For myself it would seldom if ever be on my belt, but always in my pack that goes everywhere with me. I actually considered making one, but time is money! It’s very good quality leather, for $40 you can’t go wrong.

[Pathfinder76]

Someone buy this. It won’t last long. Remember that the wait is years if you order one.

https://www.arizonacustomknives.com/products/1041027/

[tbrown]

Originally Posted by Pathfinder76

Someone buy this. It won’t last long. Remember that the wait is years if you order one.

https://www.arizonacustomknives.com/products/1041027/

She gone


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[Pathfinder76]

Originally Posted by tbrown

She gone


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Did you get it? I knew it wouldn’t last the evening.

[madcarpenter]

Whitetail Skinner

[tbrown]

Originally Posted by Pathfinder76

Did you get it? I knew it wouldn’t last the evening.

No I didn’t. It was gone by the time I looked.


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[Pathfinder76]

Originally Posted by madcarpenter

Whitetail Skinner

That is a really nice knife.

[sillyak]

I really like my Dunn. The cut outs in the handle are perfect to grip the knife without getting in the way or feeling clumsy.

[nimrod]

goat knife are great also, for back country hunting,

[sns2]

Originally Posted by sillyak

I really like my Dunn. The cut outs in the handle are perfect to grip the knife without getting in the way or feeling clumsy.

Bud, that is a very nice knife. Have you used er yet? How’d you find er for holding an edge?

[MK2750]

It would appear the best skinning knife under $200 is $250 to $400 USD.

Grohman is having a winter sale at 20% off. It says the store is closed due to Covid so they would probably really appreciate the business.

I recently picked up a Buck 691 Alaskan Guide with S30V steel. It is a very nice knife made in the USA. It is a Vanguard clone with a rubber handle and steel upgrade. The original Vanguard is not a bad choice either.

[obsessed1]

I have a set of sog huntspoint (skinner and boning)knives in S30V that were under 100$ each. The leather sheaths are garbage though so I made my own. Pretty good knives all in all but do leave something to be desired.they do take and hold a hair popping edge. I find the skinner while being a drop point without much belly has relatively poor grip to cutting edge angle which leads to hand fatigue while doing a lot of cutting. The boning blade is great other than being stiff for a boning knife. Its slightly to big for a great caping blade and slightly too rigid for boning

[sillyak]

Originally Posted by sns2

Bud, that is a very nice knife. Have you used er yet? How’d you find er for holding an edge?

Holds an edge very well. I did two deer and a moose with it before sharpening it for the first time. Steel is S30V IRRC.