Well bounty, it all depends on what I'm doing with the knife. A guard hasn't got any business on a small skinning knife, however, I've seen 14 inch Bowies without guards that made me laugh out loud. There's really is no good single knife, two at least, and I prefer three... a small skinner/filet knife, a general purpose folder/pocket knife, and a big beefy blade to finish up, a Bowie or a machete. Although, I once had a six pound butchers cleaver that served me well and pleased me to no end... think of a short handled battle axe... <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />.

Troy