Having recently participated in skinning a couple critters I realize I do not have a good skinning knife, though I got by.

Also I think the "gut hook" for pulling through hide without puncturing deeper is a feature I want.

Suggestions?

I would suggest BRKT, but I don't think they have a gut hook. Stu you there???

If not BRKT then Knives of Alaska.

Good post I`m interested too... that time is gonna come soon for me!

This is a pretty darned good skinner with a gut hook, and for a pretty darned good price.

http://www.kniferus.com/servlet/the-408/158OT/Detail

I've used this on deer, elk, rabbit, pheasant, and salmon.

You can spend a lot more money if you want. I would start here and keep it sharp and you should do just fine.

Looks pretty good, thanks.

How do you keep the gut hook sharp - or is this an issue?

Or you can get something like this, another quality knife for the money, but much more expensive.

http://www.knifeart.com/chreskinfibl.html

I don't think the term "guthook" is really appropriate either. It gets used a lot to describe the curved detent on the back of skinning blades that is sharpened along the inside radius, allowing the knife to cut through the hide without risk of puncturing/cutting into the paunch of an animal. I call that a "zipper" feature. A guthook is more descriptive of the unsharpened hooked probe commonly found as a second tool on folding knives used for dressing birds. The hook is used to reach into the body cavity and extract the innards of the bird whereby they are more easily separated and removed. Without a guthook, dressing a bird can be tedius and often messy.

A zipper edge on a skinning knife is pretty handy, but a skilled hunter can readily use the tip of his hunting blade and the index and middle fingers of his off hand to do the same task. Once a slit is made in the hide, it is pretty easy to slip the two fingers underneath and ride the tip in between the fingers and at an angle so the blade edge will sever the hide as it is drug along a line with the fingers guiding it along. Done properly, the risk of overpenetration is insignificant.

My general rule is if you have the zipper edge on a knife at hand, then use it. If not, then make do with what you have and don't fret too much. It ain't rocket science. Just take your time and do a good job.

Well, I am going to be learning to dress birds soon, so maybe I need another knife?

Any combo skinning-bird cleaning knifes?

I Agree with benjammin, I have one of those knifes and it has went thru a lot of hide, thankfully not mine.

Which one?

I`ll never own another Chris Reeve knife with a handle like that... VERY uncomfortable.

Well, something like this. Again, I start with inexpensive. You can always upgrade to something that costs more and will work just as well as this one.

Bird Knife

Maybe it was just my relative inexperience, but I found I never had enough hands while skinning so a one-handed "zipper" came in pretty "handy."

No worries. As I say, I would rather have one to use than not.

Let us know what you get.

This one
http://www.kniferus.com/servlet/the-408/158OT/Detail

In my experience any knife with a sharp blade will do. Failing that a piece of flint or shard rock.

The emphasis is on sharp.

I've always found that the same knife I use for gutting - something like a Buck 104, or say a Ka-Bar "Lil Finn" - keep it sharp, and use the "sweep" of the blade. Working with 2 people (one to hold the deer still from swinging on the spreader), I can usually skin a deer in 15-20 minutes with one, and another 10 minutes to have it sectioned, in bags, and ready to go home for final butchering

Golly Big Al, our minds are one...

Is yours an old (American made) or new (Chinese made, post Taylor buyout) Schrade?

If the new, how would you rate the steel and overall quality?

I'm curious, because I can never find an objective opinion on the new models' quality.

I had an original, but my brother stole it. Now I have one of the Chinese models. It is typical and pretty good quality for what it costs. I believe it is a 420 stainless. It holds a decent edge, and I can get the zipper really sharp with my dremel tool with a cylindrical buffer bit. The handle is solid, the blade is full tang, and the sheath is nice and snug without binding. For less than $20, it is a heckuva good deal. This from a guy who owns a good number of knives costing several hundred dollars each.

From what I've been able to tell looking at them in store, the new ones look about on par with the old as far as fit and finish. Just hard to tell about metal. Thanks for the info.