Wildcard163:

Even on a small skinnig knife, I prefer a hilt because you are usually bloodied, with animal fat and hair on your hands and the knife. If skinning a large animal, you will have a tendency to hold the knife in different ways as you work on a hanging carcass or one you are kneeling next to compared to having a table where you can swing the carcass around for ease of access. I don't generally hold a knife in a hard "death grip" when skinning or filleting, so a depression, even with knurling for slip resistance doesn't impress me. The "solid wall" effect of a hilt stopping my fingers and hand from slipping forward onto the cutting edge just feels so much safer to me.

Bountyhunter