splitting elk for horses

[kentrek]

for Idaho rifle elk we typically bivy out,"hopefully" shoot a couple bulls,then call for horses to meet us at the kill. now the guy who owns the horses,my dad,likes the elk cut into quarters bone in..that means splitting down the center of the backbone..i have been using a small hand saw for ever,works..but the darn things get dull and are pretty much only good for one thing..well its time to replace my dull saw for a new one and i got to thinking..has anyone on here used a lightweight machete to "hack" an elk down the spine ? a machete seem like it would be alil more usefull while in the back-country  than a saw and id be able to sharpen it,my dad seems to think it wouldnt have enough weight behind it....

any thoughts ? any advise is much appreciated

[horsepacker]

i pack 2 small hatchets 2 motorcycle tie downs and some thin rope to keep tension on the qtrs as i hit one hatchet with the other. The wyoming saw stays sharp for a long time too

[fair-chase]

What is his reasoning for wanting to put more weight on his horses? Not saying I would ever argue with the guy hauling my kill off the mountain...Just curious what could possibly be the reason for wanting to haul more/useless weight???

[kentrek]

What is his reasoning for wanting to put more weight on his horses? Not saying I would ever argue with the guy hauling my kill off the mountain...Just curious what could possibly be the reason for wanting to haul more/useless weight???

what weight are you referring to ?

i pack 2 small hatchets 2 motorcycle tie downs and some thin rope to keep tension on the qtrs as i hit one hatchet with the other. The wyoming saw stays sharp for a long time too

also how would it be with out the tension on the qtrs ?

[fair-chase]

what weight are you referring to ?

Bone in, instead of deboning in the field. Maybe I was jumping to conclusions. The way I read it I thought you were used to deboning in the field and now you are required to quarter bone in.

[kentrek]

theres a few reasons,easy to butcher at home,meat stays cleaner,easy to pack on horses,deboning frozen meat really sucks,get more meat

[Bshiftbc]

I have always used a Wyoming saw, but this year I am going gutless. I have also heard of many people using the small, lightweight hatchets too.

[jrebel]

Wyoming saw all the way.....

[beagledog]

18 v. Sawsall
Just a thought

[Miles]

Why do you need a saw?   You can quarter the whole elk with a knife, then just have one small game bag for the rib meat/scraps. 

[kentrek]

18 v. Sawsall
Just a thought

we cut up 20+ critters a year and if were at home this is def the way to go

[washelkhunter]

Bone out, put in bags. Its real easy to keep it clean. If you have to qtr, a camp axe makes short work.

[vandeman17]

We use a hatchet and then a little hammer to hit the back of it. As long as the hatchet is sharp and you just use the edge, it should split the spine pretty easy.

[Miles]

You can quarter it (bone in) very easily with a knife.  The rear quarters aren't that hard to deal with.  Cut around the pelvis and find the ball/socket.  Get the tip of the knife in there and it comes right apart.


Here's a deer ( I took the picture to show the thickness of fat), but this is all done very easily with a knife.  After you do it once, it's very easy to find the joint. I never understood why people pack around axes or saws.    I also never understood why some insist on breaking the pelvic bone?   Even if you gut the animal it isn't that hard to pull the piss sack out the back...

[kentrek]

You can quarter it (bone in) very easily with a knife.  The rear quarters aren't that hard to deal with.  Cut around the pelvis and find the ball/socket.  Get the tip of the knife in there and it comes right apart.


Here's a deer ( I took the picture to show the thickness of fat), but this is all done very easily with a knife.  After you do it once, it's very easy to find the joint. I never understood why people pack around axes or saws.    I also never understood why some insist on breaking the pelvic bone?   Even if you gut the animal it isn't that hard to pull the piss sack out the back...

thats great info but not for me in this situation,dad wants it hung,quarted with bone in(with the ribs),when he gets there..doing it bone in is not the problem,i really don't mind taking the extra time in the field to save time back at home when cleaning up the meat

also i should mention il be packing this on my back during the hunt..that why the wyoming saw wont work cuz its kinda heavy,hatchets 2nd on my list but still heavyr then a machete


no ones ever used a machete