Need opinions from the Knife guys on this Forum. I'm tired of fooling with cheap Fillet knives that are hard to use and look like junk. I'm not up to date on the latest in the world of knives, and although I admire a beautiful custom knife I've never owned one.

So who makes a really good custom or production Fillet knife?? Something that will be a pleasure to use and hold a great edge!

I would be looking at something about 7"+ for all around freshwater & saltwater use.

Thanks in advance.

Cutco, you also can carry a extra blade with you.

I have used Rapala wood handled fillet knives for 60 years and have a butt load of them, some of them belonging to my late dad and father-in-law, and all of them are still going strong. I used a Rapala with a plastic handle that I bought at Walmart in Eagle River, Alaska, last summer to fillet out a ton of Red Salmon that my kids had caught under their resident dip netting allotment. Never had to re-sharpen the knife during the entire filleting process. Always worked for me and still do. I also have a set of Havalon knives that are specifically made for fishing/filleting. None of mine are custom. The Havalon and Rapalas are production knives, but all work fine.

I use Whiteriver knife and tool fillet knife.

I am partial to the Dexter Russell 2333-9.
Carbon Steel Blade Wood Handle.Takes and holds an edge.
Inexpensive and gets the job done.
I use it for speckled trout (spotted weakfish) and Redfish.

What I do is go through the usual auction sites and search for "vintage fillet knife" and usually add a quality manufacturer from the 60's-70's era such as Kabar, Buck, Gerber, etc. The most recent knife I got is a version of this model, mine has a wooden handle with finger grooves but this gives you an idea.



This one sold somewhere for $45, to give you an idea of price. Mine I think I paid around $20 including shipping for, but it had no box and the sheath is a little worn but still quite serviceable. I have a drawer full of Browning, Schrade, Rapala, etc knives as every once in a while I change to something else and its nice to have several knives for the times you go out with friends and end up at your house with a couple buckets of unplanned fish.

Anyway, that's what I do for fillet knives nowadays.

Buck makes some good filet knives in various sizes. I'm partial to them.

Buck makes a lot of good knives period. I have never been disappointed.

*Update*
I purchased two Dexter Russell Fillet knives. One was the 7" and the other an 8" both USA made. Used them on a recent trip and put them to work on Pompano, Speckled Trout, Whiting, and a few others. The 7" was very sharp right out of the package, the 8" needed just very minor work to be equally sharp. The knives did good work, definitely better than the made in china junk I've used in the past.

I'm not ready to say there the best but I'm satisfied with them. The 8" could be a bit more flexible maybe. Both held an edge well and have a nice sharp point. Anyway just wanted to pass the info along.

Most of the fillet knives out there are not pretty to look at. Big oversized handles make em downright ugly. So a custom made fillet knife that's as pretty to look at as it is sharp may be something I look for down the road.

I love my Bubba Blade knives. Not pretty to look at but extremely sharp and I've been cleaning lots of crappie with it!

I like that Ka-bar! I'll look for one of those to throw in the boat.

I filleted literally 1000's of halibut, salmon, catfish and panfish with a "normal" fillet knife.
Now I will only use an electric. Current favorite is a Mr Twister.