Just wanted to see what the favorite hunting knives for Africa(or elsewhere) are on this forum. Personally I am a big fan of Arno Bernard's fixed blade knives. Also any favorite handle materials or special/unique features.

A hunting knife is pretty much irrelevant for Africa unless you want to look like John Sharp!

I have carried a Blackjack Knives Yukon Skinner folder for 8 trips and never needed anything else. The skinners I've seen work would embarass me If I ever even took my knife out of my pocket they are so good.

Ive been carrying the same old Buck 110 folding hunter since around 1969. Its not modern or beautiful by any means, but I can go from 'whole deer' to 'butcherd and in the freezer' with no other tool.

If you like BlackJack knives, you might be interested to know that the guy who used to run BJ now has Bark River Knife and Tool - which is outstanding!

Bark River Knife & Tool

Their web site isn't really up to date on their full product line, but you can see a lot of what they have on http://www.knifeforums.com/ in their forum.

Bark River Forum

They make convex ground (full convex, from the spine down) knives, which are very strong and real cutters.

bob

Like Will said, you probably won't be using your knfe in Africa for any dressing or skinning, but no man should leave the house without a good utility knife on him. That being said my favorite hunting knife is one I had made by Mike Clerc of Javelina Knives. WWW.javelinknives.com. It makes me look forward to skinning critters. Favorite utility knife: folding Benchmade or Emerson.

Bulldog

I carry a pocket knife to slice apples, remove slivers, clean fingernail. Leave the real work for the professional skinners and their own tools. The best thing you can do is just stay out of the way.

Mark

So gentlemen, if the knife is irrelevant in Africa how do you propose we skin and cape our game? or cut an apple or eat biltong???????

Or are you making this applicable to the visitor hunter only ?

As a local I have a host of must have knives, all gets used.

I carry a Swiss army knife ( the Champion model ) with me somwhere in my kit for all away from home turf hunts. It has a number of must have features. The wood saw handy, and most important the tweezers. During my militray days in Rhodesia and later Angola this knife with it's tweezers was a saviour, thorns and splinters !

Then there is a whole kit of caping and skinning knives. Mostly butchers knives by Solingen that we buy from the local Co-op or Crown Mills.

I have in this kit a few surgical scalpel handles with the No 23 blades and a old table spoon and screwdriver which tip has been rounded on the edges ( to turn and skin the ears).
None of these knives have any cosmetic value, they are strictly utalitarian and the blades short, in fact the shorter the better for control.

For the big stuff we have a panga ( machete) with two T shaped metal handles welded on the the spine of the machete after the grip was removed It is used by two persons to split giraffe and elephant skin. One pushes down on the blade and the other pulls on it.

If your personal knife is not a Puma, you are second class.

For Africa, I only take a utility knife such as a swiss army knife or gerber multi tool. I also take a benchmade folder, because I always have one.

My fav hunting knife for working on critters is a gerber pro hunter. They stopped making them So I bought them as I could find them so as to have spares. Work great, but don't have a macho look. Maybe that is why they didn't sell well.

Regards, PG

I own many knives both custom and production but damned if a customer did not get me off on Swiss Army Hunter model. The lock back blade is sharp, the folding saw is awesome, the round nose gutter is fast and nasty and how can you not use the tweezers now and then?
I carry the Swiss Army Waiter model in my pocket daily. The corkscrew has made me new friends more than once.

I like knives of Alaska and Muela. I use them on all my hunting from up here in Maine to over in Africa.

BlackJack knives, eh? I got a few before they went belly-up. Hell for stout. Glad to see they came back.

quote:

Originally posted by Will:
A hunting knife is pretty much irrelevant for Africa unless you want to look like John Sharp!

Will,

Don't you join in when your elephants are being skinned?

I actually have lent a hand in skinning my animals on occasion when hunting in Africa. Of course, when you hunt furry cuddly animals in France you have to skin them yourself. I really like my Capstick African from http://www.damascususa.com Damascus blades can be sharpened like razors of course and there is some pride in ownership in having a handmade knife. It's a good thing we don't require that every big bore rifle sold in America actually be used in Africa, sales would crumble.

quote:

Originally posted by Will:
A hunting knife is pretty much irrelevant for Africa unless you want to look like John Sharp!

Will,

I second that! The only time you need a knife on safari is at the dinner table.

Actually a Leatherman is probably a good thing to have along no matter where you go.

For Africa, I carry either a Randall sheath knife (#3 or #23), Chris Reeve 'Sebenza', or Scott Cook large 'Owyhee Hunter'.

I wore and used the Scott Cook (Micarta handle) in Tanzania this season, and it stayed sharp through various utility-type cutting chores. I didn't resharpen it, because it didn't need it, then I used it to field dress and skin an elk this last week. It's STILL sharp enough to do another elk.

Scott Cook's LOH is rapidly becoming my favorite fixed-blade hunting knife. It has a perfectly-shaped ergonomic handle and cunningly-shaped blade that is superbly suited to real-live, real-world hunting use. It's light, neither too large nor too small, simple, uncluttered, rugged, and eminently practical for any hunting purpose. In 33 years of hunting, it's the very best knife I've ever used, and it comes with the very best, highest-quality sheath that's available from any knifemaker.

http://www.scottcookknives.com

AD

I've never used a knife in Africa, but for my annual whitetail hunts I've come to favor the Cold Steel Pendleton Hunter for field dressing, and the Spyderco Moran fixed blade knife for skinning and taking the meat off the carcass. On this year's hunt I also had along the AR Hunter Lite knife, courtesy of Tim and Bryce Wegner of Blade-Tech, and it was scary sharp and did a great job of skinning and removing meat cleanly and easily.

quote:

Originally posted by DC300:
Will,

I second that! The only time you need a knife on safari is at the dinner table.

I took my favorite knife......and also never used it.....except at the dinner table...

and yes...a leatherman is also a fine tool in the pocket.

.

Bob Dozier KM-3 Agent. Whether in Africa of N.A., or any point in between, it's the last knife you will ever need. Paired up with a multi-tool (leatherman is my multi-tool of choice), you could take over most African Nations.

I'll second the Scott Cook LOH. My PH (yes Will it's was John Sharp) like it so much he now owns it. Personally, I like my Randall #25 that I've had for years. For every day carry, I sport a Benchmade 9050 SBO (auto) and of course a Swiss Army Camping pocket knife that was with me every time I went flying (or hunting). It even has a small pair of tweezers and a plastic toothpick! jorge

I never go on a hunt with less than two knives.
Other than my pocket knife, I usually pick a special knife to use and add memories of where it has been and what it has done.
Africa this year I started breaking in a new knife. It is a D'Holder Flat Back Hunter. It performed very well.
My first trip to Africa on the road transfer to camp all of the caping / skinning knives were lost. If it were not for my knives, well you get the picture.
Knives that we hunters carry and what is used in Africa can be worlds apart.

[url="http://www.hunt101.com/?p=345999&c=555&z=1"] [/url]

James

A good quality (personal choice) folding knife and a combination tool is all the client needs unless he want to do the skinning and caping himself.

My personal choice when skinning my own game is a Muela with belly ripper and a Muela with a longer round blade for skinning. I have a custom knife with a narrow long blade to finnish off the non dangerous game.

Wimpie

I like the Chris Reeve Ubejane. Indestructible!

Best,

John

quote:

Originally posted by Will:
A hunting knife is pretty much irrelevant for Africa unless you want to look like John Sharp!

Isn't anyone listening???

Listening to what? I'll cede the point that a lot of us tend to carry too much garbage while hunting in Africa. Having said that, If you don't carry on your person at least 10-15 rounds of spare ammo, a KNIFE,(or multipurpose tool or both), a compass (or preferably a GPS), matches or a lighter, and some water, well, let's just say you're not very prudent. jorge

PS: I also carry my pasport and some cash in a ziplock bag and some motrin and of course paer towels or toilet paper.

quote:

Originally posted by jorge:
Listening to what? I'll cede the point that a lot of us tend to carry too much garbage while hunting in Africa. Having said that, If you don't carry on your person at least 10-15 rounds of spare ammo, a KNIFE,(or multipurpose tool or both), a compass (or preferably a GPS), matches or a lighter, and some water, well, let's just say you're not very prudent. jorge

PS: I also carry my pasport and some cash in a ziplock bag and some motrin and of course paer towels or toilet paper.

I carry my gun and 10 rounds of extra ammo. And I can walk further and faster as a result of not carrying the extra baggage.

I simply don't believe in relying on the PH to take care of my every need. In fact, I prefer to take care of myself as much as possible. So I carry my own pocket knife, my own hunting knife, my own binoculars, passport, etc.

This thread is about favorite knives, but I'm amazed at the number of clients who rely on the PH and trackers to do all of the looking, while they stand around and wait for the signal to shoot. I always carry good full-size binoculars (the pocket jobs are near-useless), and I use them throughout the day. Many times, I've spotted game before either the PH or trackers (it pays to be a life-long hunter from the western U.S.), and some of my very best African trophies are on the wall and in the salt because I spotted them first, while the PH and trackers were looking elsewhere.

AD

Oh hell, I know I don't need a knife in Africa!Well, except for that time I killed a cape buffalo in Mozambique and went back with the game scout, tracker and skinner to take the horns and hide and found none of the three had a knife. I was damn glad I carried a few with me that night.

In my role as Bwana, I carry a custom elephant ivory handled, damascus blade, drop point built to my specifications by Mike Miller. It is beautiful and very useful when needed. Although it was built as a "show" knife I have actually used it on deer, hogs and a cape buffalo and to cut the tail off and a bit of elephant for grilling this past May. For serious skinning and general knife chores I carry a Dozier like my brother's. It is small and light and retained in a Kydex sheath. This knife stays sharp through hard use and can be used to gut, skin, quarter, cape and render into serving portions any game animal I hunt locally. When hunting I always carry a Leatherman as I have had to help work on Landrovers, cut down snares and pull throns from my boots soles in Africa and use it to work on guns, tree stands, feeders, blinds, packs, horse tack and vehicles in the U.S. My day-to-day knife I always have with me is a mini Swiss army knife with a tiny blade that is razor sharp, a combination screw driver nail file, scissors, small fine edge tweezers and toothpick. I use this knife the most for small chores and it is permitted in almost all courthouses and federal buildings, but unfortunately not on any airline as I have had to toss a few over the years when I forgot I was carrying it prior to boarding.

I know that is a lot of blades, but when you need a knife, or pliers, or scissors, or small saw or tweezers you usually need one very badly. I would not fail to take a gun or bow hunting and will not hunt with out at least one knife adequate to do the job on the game I am after regardless of the location of the hunt. Besides, the business dealings and table manners of my hunting companions, especially in Africa, demand the use of a knife once in a while.

Perry

EXACTLY! I'll relate to you another story. When my friend Todd kiled his buffalo up in Dande, it was late in the afternoon and we had been walking for hours. Luckily, our PH sent the apprentice PH back for the truck but after we killed the buff, Todd and I stayed by the buffalo while the rest of the guys, (PH, and the two trackers) went back to help in cutting a new path for the vehicle to get to the buff.

Bottom line is that we were in the dark and in the bush for over an hour. It was wonderful, we could hear leopads 'rasping' and lions 'coughing/roaring, etc and it was darker than a well-digger's ass. We used the knives to cut some small pieces of wood to start a small fire. The path the truck had to take was rather precarious and we had no clue as to where we were, except for the fact that I had my GPS with me, I knew exactly how to walk out of there in the dark had something happened to the PH. And none of this made me look like John Sharp. jorge

quote:

KNIFE,(or multipurpose tool or both), a compass (or preferably a GPS), matches or a lighter, and some water, pasport and some cash in a ziplock bag and some motrin and of course paer towels or toilet paper

500gr if this gear over and above your normal load will "slow you down" you really need to work out more!

When the shit hits the fan, I'm going to be carrying 15-20 rounds of ammo, a gps or compass, cigarette lighter and knife. Since I don't know when things will go FUBAR, I better carry that stuff all the time.

When I'm in the condition that the extra weight of those things slows me down, then I will just book ranch hunts and shoot everything from the Cruiser.

Regards,

Terry

P.S.
500 Grains, do you carry an ultra-light rifle? No sense in having one of those standard-weight rifles slow you down. Just think how much further and faster you could go. Hell, hunt naked and barefoot - then you could be the fastest hunter in all of Africa. However, that would make it difficult to carry much spare ammo, unless you have really good sphincter control.

Inspired by this thread I today bought a new hunting knife, a Fallkniven F1. Seems very nice and has the right feel to it (can´t define it any better).

What does FUBAR stand for?

Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition

I thought it would be along those lines...Thanks!

Now I have fugly AND fubar.

It is a true acronym, you pronounce the word - FUBAR pronounced "foo bar"

Regards,

Terry

I was of the opinon that a knife we not needed, but a PH and myself had two Kudu an Impala in the truck and it was late and thought were going to have to skin, but we found the skinner. Bottom line, I would have like to had a knife other than my little pocket knife, I would have had no problem in pitching in, most of us have skinned our game other than Africa, wouldnt have been that big a deal.