Guthooks?

[Speratus]

New Hunter looking to invest in a knife for taking care of things in the field. Would you reccommend a Gut Hook or just a regular knife?
Cheers!

[longstonec]

talk to Vantage Point Outfitters (the Hermit) he sells Havalon knives which are fantastic and he also sells some other fixed blade or folding blade knives.
Cheaper version of a "gut hook" is an olfa knife with carpet blades... but really you dont need it. so "regular" knife. unless you like to spend alot of time sharpening knives

A:buy a havalon or

B: buy a good knife.

C: buy a good knife and a havalon or

D: buy a good knife, a havalon, and a leatherman

(option D is the best)

[tinhorse]

Just go with a "regular" knife. Don't buy a $20 walmart one or you will be sharpening it every few minutes when skinning game. Get a decent one that will last you a life time and longer. I have one knife with a gut hook and have used it a couple times but find it gives no advantage really and just using fingers to separate the guts from the skin and cutting with a knife carefully is better.

[Fred1]

Buck 119
Small knife for fine stuff - guys here like the Havalon - I havent tried it yet
Gut hooks are good - once you get the hang of them - they need practice - DO NOT get a knife with a gut hook on it.
Lots of options...

[moosecamp]

I picked up one of these last year and it did a deer then a moose with a quick touch up of the stone. Get the orange one easier to find when you put it down.

http://www.outdooredge.com/hunting-knives-swingblade-s/13.htm

[warnniklz]

I prefer a regular knife, just on part of the fact I'm not very good with gut hooks and I find they make a mess.

[Weatherby Fan]

Ive used a Wyoming Knife gut hook for 25 years,one without the external skinning blade !

Guthooks are not necessary but I like it and have used it lots and it works for me,other than that I use a $6 disposable victornox serated paring knife,same idea as the havalon knife but a bit more versatile and you just throw the knife and handle away when worn out.I would say the Havalon may be a bit better for caping a head.

We used the victornox for working on nets when I ran a seine netloft,razor sharp,functional and come with a sheath u can hang on your belt or pantspocket.

[elkeater]

i have one of the outdoor edge swing blaze knifes and i think its awsome. u have the skinning blade and the zipper blade. ive done a bear and four deer with it and all it needed was a quick scuff

[Speratus]

wow guys! what a wealth of info! so it seems the consensus is no knives with guthooks on them. keep the advice coming!
Thank you!
D

[dakoda62]

Bought my first Havalon last year. Probably the last knife I will ever buy. Scary sharp lol.

[Jason Melo]

This is the knife I use for everything from deer to moose to black bear. I have never had a problem with it and its fairly cheap! Army navy carries them and I believe they are $50. The little serrated blade is the best thing I've found to open up a cavity without puncturing the guts because of the round end. http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41TAHVW1FDL._SL500_AA300_.jpg (http://www.huntingbc.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=swiss+army+deer+knife&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&docid=eKhhLHL4psDMvM&tbnid=NXMoU7-R0aNyEM:&ved=0CAUQjRw&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FVictorinox-Swiss-Hunter-Olive-53642%2Fdp%2FB000687AWC&ei=cZC2UYv6JcTQiwLJuID4BA&bvm=bv.47534661,d.cGE&psig=AFQjCNFnbmddT4dDn2fetCMa0-ezz_kcBA&ust=1371005417134464)

[Rhyno]

I am going to have to put another vote in for a havalon, crazy sharp...and with replaceable blades you never need to sharpen again! As to the original question.....no need for a gut hook, i owned a knife with one and didn't like it.

[.330 Dakota]

My question is,,how do you properly sharpen a guthook on a knife,,,I had one and I hated it

[Steeleco]

My question is,,how do you properly sharpen a guthook on a knife,,,I had one and I hated it

Don't buy one and it won't need to be sharpened LOL I have a zipper as I didn't like or need the "swingblade" easy to find on E-bay and cheap. For the rest of my skinning I use a Vanguard and or a Alpha hunter.

Buy good, buy once! and buy what fits best in your hand.

[Sofa King]

as far as an actual hunting knife, i'd go with one without a guthook.
i prefer my knives to be knives.

but for cleaning game, i strongly recommend the outdoor edge game-skinner.
it fits in the hand like a dream, and you don't have to put your blade down to grab something.
and it is very strong, you can put the blade against that pelvic bone on a deer and bang down on the handle with your palm and chop right through.
i've found that it holds an edge extremely well and is very sharp.

it sure ain't no self-defence knife though.

[dabber]

canadian tire sells a folding utility knife for about $14 and you can put a disposable hooked blade(I think it's a carpet blade) in that way you can save your good hunting knifes edge for cutting meat and other things other than hair.

[Sofa King]

canadian tire sells a folding utility knife for about $14 and you can put a disposable hooked blade(I think it's a carpet blade) in that way you can save your good hunting knifes edge for cutting meat and other things other than hair.

those aren't carpet blades, they are roofing hook blades.
i've felt the cut of them many times, have many, many a scar.
a friend sliced himself up the arm with one, the doctor was amazed at the cut.
he thought it had to have been done by a scalpel.

[Ambush]

they are roofing hook blades.
i've felt the cut of them many times, have many, many a scar.

Must be a very slow learner. How many times did you fall off roofs? :mrgreen:

Getting a Havalon Piranta several yeas ago changed my knife needs. That and a very sturdy, sharp "utility" knife [Falkniven F1] fills all my needs.

[Sofa King]

fell off 3 rooves.
highest fall was 24 feet.
no injuries except a bruised palm where my hand landed on a rock hidden under the snow.

not a slow learner.
if you're cutting shit non-stop, all day every day, it's inevitable that you'll get cuts.
same as working with fire, you do it long enough, you'll get burned.

[Marlin375]

those aren't carpet blades, they are roofing hook blades.
i've felt the cut of them many times, have many, many a scar.
a friend sliced himself up the arm with one, the doctor was amazed at the cut.
he thought it had to have been done by a scalpel.


I used one on a bear a couple of weeks ago and it was friken awesome. Had all the major cuts done in less than 30 seconds......less effort than a zipper and deadly straight.

[Amphibious]

my favorite knife:

http://www.knivesofalaska.com/item.asp?id=167&r=store%2Easp%3Fc%3D21

I really like the elliptical blade. skins, guns, and not to bad at deboning (although I usually bring a small fillet knife for that)

[Ron.C]

tried a guthook once, but prefer to use a regular knife. I used a Gerber Gator folding knife for years and thought it worked well until I bought a Fallkniven F1 of Hermits at VantagePoint Outfitters last fall. This knife is amazing and I've done an elk, Bear, and 4 deer with it since. It has a convex edge that takes a bit of practice to master how to sharpen it, but once its sharp it holds its edge better then any knife I've ever seen. A couple passes on a strop between animals is all it needs.

http://www.vantagepoint-outfitters.com/fallkniven-f1-fixed-blade-hunting-knife/

Hermit also carrys the Havalon knives, and they look pretty slick and seem to have a large following.

[hare_assassin]

I picked up one of these last year and it did a deer then a moose with a quick touch up of the stone. Get the orange one easier to find when you put it down.

http://www.outdooredge.com/hunting-knives-swingblade-s/13.htm

+1

Love my swingblade. Not really a traditional "guthook", but much better. It is like opening a zipper. Fast,easy, one-handed.

[ROY-alty33]

Yes gut-hook, especially if you are not comfortable or experienced in field dressing