Hunting knife

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An assortment of hunting knives Hunting knives.jpg
An assortment of hunting knives

A hunting knife is a knife used during hunting for preparing the game to be used as food: skinning the animal and cutting up the meat. It is different from the hunting dagger which was traditionally used to kill wild game. [1]

Contents

Some hunting knives are adapted for other uses in the wild; such as a camp knife, which hunters may use as machetes or hatchets when those specific tools are not available. In this case, their function is similar to a survival knife.

Design

A hunting knife with a deer-antler handle Hunting Knife.JPG
A hunting knife with a deer-antler handle

Hunting knives are traditionally designed for cutting rather than stabbing, and usually have a single sharpened edge. The blade is slightly curved on most models, and some hunting knives may have a blade that has both a curved portion for skinning, and a straight portion for cutting slices of meat. Some blades incorporate a guthook. Most hunting knives designed as "skinners" have a rounded point as to not damage the skin as it is being removed. [2]

Types of knife

Type of blade

Examples

Hunting knives include the puukko, the Yakutian knife, and the Sharpfinger. Most American designs are based on a smaller version of the Bowie knife. Knifemaker Bob Loveless popularized the drop point hunting knife and William Scagel popularized the Camp knife. [2]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Utility knife</span> Knife used for general or utility purposes

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knife</span> Tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade

A knife is a tool or weapon with a cutting edge or blade, usually attached to a handle or hilt. One of the earliest tools used by humanity, knives appeared at least 2.5 million years ago, as evidenced by the Oldowan tools. Originally made of wood, bone, and stone, over the centuries, in step with improvements in both metallurgy and manufacturing, knife blades have been made from copper, bronze, iron, steel, ceramic, and titanium. Most modern knives have either fixed or folding blades; blade patterns and styles vary by maker and country of origin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kukri</span> Knife associated with the Gurkhas of Nepal

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blade</span> Sharp cutting part of a weapon or tool

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bowie knife</span> Pattern of fixed-blade fighting knife

A Bowie knife is a pattern of fixed-blade fighting knife created by Rezin Bowie in the early 19th century for his brother Jim Bowie, who had become famous for his use of a large knife at a duel known as the Sandbar Fight.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grind</span> Cross sectional shape of a blade in a plane normal to its edge

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A puukko is a small traditional Finnish general purpose belt knife with a single curved cutting edge, solid hidden tang and, usually, a flat spine. Military models of puukko were popular in the Russian criminal underworld under the name "Finnish knife" or finka since the 20th century. The modified version were among the models on which the Soviet military knife NR-40 was based and which was informally called "finka".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pocketknife</span> Knife that can be carried in a pocket

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Survival knife</span> Knife designed for wilderness survival use

Survival knives are knives intended for survival purposes in a wilderness environment, often in an emergency when the user has lost most of their main equipment. Most military aviation units issue some kind of survival knife to their pilots in case their aircraft are shot down behind enemy lines and the crew needs tools to facilitate their survival, escape, and rescue. Survival knives can be used for trapping, skinning, wood cutting, wood carving, and other uses. Hunters, hikers, and outdoor sport enthusiasts use survival knives. Some survival knives are heavy-bladed and thick. Other survival knives are lightweight or fold in order to save weight and bulk as part of a larger survival kit. Their functions often include serving as a hunting knife. Features, such as hollow handles, that could be used as storage space for matches or similar small items, began gaining popularity in the 1980s. Custom or semi-custom makers such as Americans Jimmy Lile, Bo Randall, and Chris Reeve are often credited with inventing those features.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Butcher knife</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ernest Emerson</span> American knifemaker and martial artist

Ernest R. Emerson is an American custom knifemaker, martial artist, and edged-weapons expert. Originally an engineer and machinist in the aerospace industry, Emerson became a knifemaker by producing knives for a martial arts class and making art knives early in his knifemaking career. In the 1980s he became better known for his combat knives and popularizing a style of knife known as the Tactical-folder.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sharpfinger</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sliding knife</span>

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commander (knife)</span> Folding Knife

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fillet knife</span> Flexible knife used in the preparation of filets

A fillet knife is a kitchen knife used for filleting. It gives good control and aids in filleting. It is a very flexible member of the boning knife family that is used to filet and prepare fish. Fillet knife blades are typically 15 to 28 cm long. This allows them to move easily along the backbone and under the skin of meat.

References

  1. Marrone, Teresa (1999). Dressing & Cooking Wild Game: From Field to Table: Big Game, Small Game, Upland Birds & Waterfowl the. Complete Hunter. pp. 8–11. ISBN   978-0-86573-108-0.
  2. 1 2 Pacella, Gerard (2002). 100 Legendary Knives. Krause Publications. pp. 88–94. ISBN   0-87349-417-2.
  3. Daniel (2023-02-06). "Details About OTF Knives - Hunting Knives News, Reviews & Specifications" . Retrieved 2023-02-06.