Hey guys, i think i remember a thread like this before, but it isnt on the first page soo...

What do you guys use for your hunting knife? Right now i have a folding custom made knife, but i dont like the 3" blade or the fact that it is folding. I am going to see if i can have the same guy make me a fixed blade 5 or 6 inch bladed, leather handled knife. It should be too hard for him, seeing as he has made more complicated ones. I was going to buy a buck, but this guy is local, and i hunt with him, so i dont want to carry a knife around him that isnt the one he made for me.

NH_Hunter

i prefer folders. got rid of my last fixed blade recently.

right now i have a pair of identical buck folders that i use (that way i can get thru the seasons w/o having to stop and sharpen). the blades are -shrug- 3.5 - 4 inches, brass bolsters, wood handle. i like 'em.

NH,

   Case xxx 2 knife set. First blade is about 5 & 1/2" second one is 3 & 1/2" 

Spot

Fellers thet ride hosses need a fixed blade.  When you only got one hand free, an' are 'bout ready to go over a cliff cause a mule jus' went bezerk over a llama on the trail an' tied you to yer saddle with his lead, puttin' a foot thru yer reins, you'll be hard pressed to git thet folder into action afor you learn a mighty hard lesson.  Had a pack hoss git all tangled up with her piggin' an' my mule las' month.  She went down hard an' I was able to git her outta it quick with my sheath knife.  Sometimes there ain't time to play 'round with them "civilized" blades.  City boys allays got sumthin' agin wide-brimmed hats an' sheath knives.  Two of white man's best contributions to the world.

schrade/old timer "sharpfinger"

buck "cocobola woodsman"

usmc ka-bar

us army m7 bayonet

victorinox "hunter" swiss army knife

and, if all else fails, the leatherman pst ii

   Muella ...fixed blade 4" strong blade and a honkin good handle. Also, a buck 110 folder in my pack.

            bc

Fella's;

I've got several, depends on what I'm doing.  Let's see, two Buck Vanguards one with the gut notch & one plain blade.  A Puma hunter fixed blade.  My dad's USN K-Bar which was with him on Guadalcanal.  A Gerber Lovelace design boot knife. In folders there's my everyday carry knife that's a Kershaw lockback with what I call a bird blade.  An I-R Buck Ranger, and an I-R A.J. Foyt commemerative.  A little Case folder, a Swiss Camper I think, & maybe a coupla others knocking around.

900F

Muleskinner wrote:   Sometimes there ain't time to play 'round with them "civilized" blades.  City boys allays got sumthin' agin wide-brimmed hats an' sheath knives.

the kind of hunting you are talking about is not even possible, let alone warranted in south dakota. so, i carry a folder because i got tired of being poked in the side, and having to maneuver the knife around everytime i wanted to do something besides just walk. i guess this makes me civilized, which is obviously a very bad thing.

at any rate, for the kind of hunting i do, a folder is not only all that's required, but worlds more comfortable, too. there just isn't any mountains here, and the black hills is possibly the most 'wilderness' we have, and even there a good 5 minute walk will at least put you in sight of a well traveled, possibly paved, road. i'd love to hunt mountains and real wilderness... but i don't. guess i'll just go sit in a corner and sharpen my folder...

Hey There

   I usally carry two when I'm hunting a Buck and a Case.

  My case is an older version of the one,slightly different blade.

  And my Bucks a gift from one of my boys that indispensable.

 MIKE

Kingpin,.... I don't know wher you can find a "Green River butcher" thet's "finished"!!

I order "Green River butcher blades" from, Track of The Wolf, for under $15.00 plus ship'n. They also sell the "maple slabs" for the handle  ($2.50), and the "pins" ($1.50),... so,.. for 'bout $20.00 you can build a good knife. A boot-repair, or saddle-shop, can make you a good "sheath".

I enjoy build'n butchers with "rawhide" sheaths (old style), and I can make ya one, if ya want me to.

rondo -

what would you want for one? the materials are about 20$, but you should get something for your "time and effort!" also, the sheath would be great!

PM me or announce the amount here on the thread. if i can "afford" one, i sure would think about getting one! a chance to order a piece of history~~

Tas,.... The materials fer tha knife is approx. $20.00 (if ther ain't ben a price increase, in the last year).

The sheath is "double rawhide" 'round the blade area, the sheath coninues up the handle, with 'bout 1 1/2" of the handle exposed. The rawhide is then covered with either buckskin, or elkskin. The sheaths actually take more time to make, then the knives.

I could make a couple of bucks if I price'em at,.... $45.00 for knife'n sheath! (and I'll pay ship'n)

SSE has a knife'n sheath, thet I made,..... if you can contact him, he'll probably tell ya all 'bout it.

Rondo,

   Post a pict or two, God know's my wife's gonna kill me cause I have a collection of old knives from farm houses (late 1890's blades).  But I just got to see what yer talk'n bout.

Spot

Due to the "flash" of the camera, the handle looks "black".

It's actually "aquafortised" curly maple, and does show some "curl".

I'll try it at 25%.

Like I mentioned before, the sheath is blood stained, and I made this butcher 4 years ago, and it's seen a lot of use.

rollinb -

that looks like a TRUE mountain man's knife! i like it!

i got aout half right now. will take a few days to get the other half saved up, then i will mail it down. it is amazing the little bills you can pick up in change when going to the store for a gallon of milk, or other assorted chores. even more amazing how they add up!

i made a plains drum once, used "earth paints" to put designs on it. ever try that with the sheaths? or, would this "take away" from the "historical" aspect?

hmmmm...my wife used to do decent bead work with glass beads. not true OLD OLD beads from back in the day, but the same type made the same way from the same places! maybe i will have to buy her some flowers??

This is my specialty blade:

It's an old Western bought in 1968. Long replaced by the 102.

Actually I carry either a Buch Woodsman 102 or a Buck Vanguard - R. I have a Remington folding knife, but never carried it.

Rollinb,

    You don't carry that hog sticker do ya?  I can see cuttin up meat with it, but not takin it afield. 

Edip,

    Hey, how long you been sharpenin that knife, not too much of it left.

Spot

Tas,.... Jest let me know if'n you want one, and I'll put in an order with TOTW.

The sheath could be "quilled" (with natural-dyed porkypine quills), but I don't even "TRY" thet kind'a work, with my "stubby fingers"!!

Spot,.... Actually I do carry this knife in tha "field"!!

I wher it, slipped thru my "sash" or my wide leather belt, either way is very comfortable and safe. The "double rawhide" sheath prevents any accidents from happen'n.

Spot,

I keep it handy in camp and hunting trips to use it instead of my carry

 knife for menial tasks. It sees some severe duty and I try to keep it

 sharp - thusly the excessive wear. So that's about 35 years use. The

 Buck 102 (4 inch blade) replaced it in 1973 for a MT hunt trip.

Good Luck, Gene

Rollingb,

   Texas Knifemaker's supply carries the Green river Butcher for ~$10 and the skinner for under $8.  For those of you who are interested in doing one yourself, it is fairly easy, but can get addicting.

--Carl

Carl,.... Welcome!!.... and, Thanks!!.... I usually git most everthin from TOTW 'cause thet is wher I git my riflegun "parts" (kind of a "one-stop store" fer me,.. tho ther prices DO fluxuate).

Welcome agin,.. to BSB, glad to have you aboard!!

rollingb,

Thanks,  came over from the other board as it was gettng a bit thin.  Just went by TOTW and that site is going in my bookmarks.  I am trying to get a couple of muzzleloaders back into service, and that looks like a good site.  BTW the russell knife blanks run just about the same price there as at TKS.   Since we are talking knives, just finished this lockback kit from knifekits.com.  This is my everyday carry now, and will see service in the woods this fall.   The scales on this one are mammoth.

--Carl

Carl,.... WOW!!.. thet folder is sure purty!

What kind'a muzzleguns do you have?? Do you hunt, or compete with'em?? 

rollingb,

I have 3 that are functional, and one pistol kit that still needs finishing.  I have a kentucky long that I have had for close to 20 years, hasn't been shot in at least 15.  I need to go through that one and get it into shape to hunt with (probably clean it up and replace the nipple).  I was just given a great plains rifle that has a cracked stock.   Real purty rifle, so I want to get the stock repaired and get a new flint in it and see how she shoots.  The last is a colt navy replica that was my fathers.  He got it a couple of weeks after I was born, so it has sentimental value.  When I went in the Marine Corps, my brothers screwed around with it and lost a few parts off of it.  So I need to get that replaced and fixed up.  I have been feeding my habit with my lever rifles, but am missing the smell and big cloud of black powder more and more. 

I used to go to rondevous and rabbit hunt with black powder, and I would like to take advantage of some of the black powder seasons here.  Never been really big on the competition aspect of shooting.

--Carl

Hey guys, i aquired a new hunting knife for my birthday! The same guy who gave me my last one, this year got me a sweet new Shrade. It is the Maine Great Escape Edition. It has pictures of moose and ducks on the grip. It slices through steak like nothing! I love the look of the Shrades too, they are soo damned beautiful!

NH_Hunter

rollinb,

Jis' take two jugs of "apple pie in a bottle" and call me in the mornin'...

Selway,.... Thet "apple pie", will "kill tha hell out'a ANY virus" fer sure!!

My "jug" is a 2 gal., thet otta be 'nuff to cure 2 "potlickers"!!

Rollingb,

     No big hurry, am gettin couris hey they come out though.

I'll have to do with what i got fer this month.

Spot

RB -

i'm with spotshooter! no hurry at all, but sure am gettin' "giddy" about seeing it! i trust your skill and am looking forward to a little slice of history. who knows? after this, i might have to get one of them front stuffers and see how they work!

about that other matter we were talking about, send me a PM if you want all the information and gory details. my mother has it all spread out back to "who-knows-when" and it might prove interesting!

RollingB,

    How do you make the shealths ?

Spot

Spot,.... I make'm out double-rawhide, and buckskin.

Rawhide can only be "worked" when it's wet, plus it shrinks.

I cut out an oversized pattern for a butcher from wet rawhide, then sew it up, and let it dry naturally with a knife in place. If it dries too fast all kind'a weird things and "shapes" occur. Once the first inner-sheath is dry, I make anuther thet is a liddle larger, and slip it over the first, then let it dry. After both layers are good and dry, I make a third from buckskin, and she's done.

I use my personal butcher to shape the rawhide sheaths while ther dry'n, 'cause I don't want to send you a "brand-new" butcher thet's rusted,.... and they do rust if ther in a wet rawhide sheath.

It usually take several days fer each layer of rawhide to dry at "room tempature", and be'ns I'm use'n my butcher for each sheath, it takes twice as long to make two sheaths.

These "butchers" will git a "discolored-rusted look" to'em over time and usage, but my plan is, to git'em to you all "shiney and bright", and let you fellers break'em in!!