Field Dressing Tools

[DBake]

What tools do you use to field dress your trophy?

[boneaddict]

A sharp knife.

[Hunting Cowboy]

A sharp knife.

Exactly! I carry two Case LSSP 2159 lock blade knives and a stone for sharpening.

For caping, I have a small taxidermy kit

When elk hunting I will carry a Camp Ax - (a small hatchet), and a small folding saw for breaking down into managable sized loads.

[boneaddict]

Gerber saw for cutting off legs, which can be done with a knife if you know what you are doing, and for skull caping.  Had to use an ax on the moose.  Just easier.

[GoldTip]

I carry a caping knife and a skinning knife and a wyoming saw.

[Coasthunterjay]

  Heres what i use 



just joking, just my handy knife and friends.........

[DBake]

Heres what i use 



just joking, just my handy knife and friends.........

I got to get me one of those!

You guys prefer fixed or folding knifes? Do saws and axes serve the same purpose?

Just a heads up, I have never been hunting before. I have become more interested in hunt in the recent years, as I am starting to put together my own hunting gear.

[addicted]

when i used a folding blade it was hard to clean out all the nooks and crannys. i got a kershaw interchangable blade system as a gift and it worked pretty darn good this year. IMO.

[boneaddict]

MANY deer have been field dressed with a folding blade, but I use a fixed blade. 

[high country]

I keep a gerber axe in my camp or truck, but mostly I just use this-

http://www.knife.com/product_p/53642.htm

everything I need. saw, sharp as hell locking blade, best gutting blade ever made, and the swiss army toothpick/tweezers......a backpacking perfection for the hunter.

I have a schitt load of knives including a bunch of customs and the swiss army hunter is my go to knife....if I lose it I am out 30 bux.

as for cleaning a folder-some good ol' hot water is all I use, just spray out the gooey goodness and be done.

[tmike]

A couple of sharp knives and a sharpener. Be careful on the folding blades when they gum up they may not lock. I almost found out the hard way.

[Hunting Cowboy]

when i used a folding blade it was hard to clean out all the nooks and crannys. i got a kershaw interchangable blade system as a gift and it worked pretty darn good this year. IMO.

As in most cases with hunting gear......to each his own. I have never made claim that this was the best knife for the job, but I have field dressed and caped a lot of animals over the years and it's what I learned using and what I've become a custom too using. I have tried many knives and own many including fixed blades. I am very comfortable and efficient using this particular Case knife. It has a little different blade design and IMHO better steel than my Buck 110 folding knife. My advise would be use what works for you, get good at it then you can depend on it.

as for cleaning a folder-some good ol' hot water is all I use, just spray out the gooey goodness and be done.

Agreed!

[addicted]

As in most cases with hunting gear......to each his own............. My advise would be use what works for you, get good at it then you can depend on it.

there ya go. thats probably the best advice on alot of things

[gray brow]

I use a folding Buck finger groove lock back.  Hard steel.  When properly sharpened, and I don't drag it across too much bone or cut too much hair, it pretty much handles an animal without need to resharpen.  If it needs a touch up, the Buck Steel in my pack sharpens it up fast.  Probably been using that knife for 15 - 16 years, now.  Tough knife.

Other than that, I carry a Wyoming II in the nylon case, which I think ends up lighter than my shorter, original Wyoming saw in the leather case.  The II curls around the bottom of my fanny pack like it was designed to go there.  These II saws are nice because they have a long, honest to goodness meat saw blade you can really work with.  Even the shorter original Wyoming beats hell out of the folding saws, in my opinion; I tried a few of the new fangled folders but they just weren't tought or efficient enough for me after I used the first Wyoming I had.

But, hey, any saw works better than no saw. 

[LongTatLaw]

From elk to deer to boar to bear to coyote... same 4 items.

One meat pack with padded hip belt and sternum strap (80$ sportsmans warehouse)
one hatchet - 7$ at walmart
one hand saw that folds up that doubles as a skull cap cutter by afternoon and treestand limb cutter by morning
One very sharp knife

The hatchet and saw is permanently attached to the meat pack and only removed for cleaning and cutting. Several knives in a sack attached to meat pack.

I use the knife for cutting and cape the skull right there on the scene. Then use saw to remove skull cap with horns but removing the cape from the skull isnt fast unless your well practiced and slow means just cape to the neck and then cut the head off. To remove the head no saw or hatchet is required... just cut a gash in the meat ect and then give the head about 3 full turns and it pops right off.

The hatchet I use for brute force on legs and hips where a saw will do the same job in a softer but slower way.

The hatchet does better for removing ribs for eating as well.

IMO