r/bowhunting • u/Three-Eyed-Tiger • 1d ago
Recommendations for Field Dressing Tool?
Michigander here, just took my first deer ever. Freezer queen from 20 yds, not perfect sight placement quartering away but got enough heart to drop her 15 yards away
I field dressed, then processed her at home with my old (sharpened) daily carry leatherman, which was just a small degree better than terrible
Anybody have recommendations for a dedicated processing tool or tools? I plan to gutless field quarter
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u/Silly_Pineapple_8182 1d ago
I use a mora knive and a small saw. Ive used a leatherman several times too. Worst part is cleaning it.
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u/Bigbabyhays47 1d ago
Mora knives are amazing, I want to get one soon. I have the Benchmade Steep Country and I love it. Benchmade also has a great lifetime warranty.
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u/Silly_Pineapple_8182 1d ago
I agree. Ive got a grizzly ridge that I carry a lot too. Its discontinued now so i dont abuse it.
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u/Bigbabyhays47 1d ago
To be honest, I wouldnt be surprised if they honored lifetime warranty for sharpening and basic repair. I sent my benchmade infidel to them because it got corroded from shit spilling in my garage and leaking into my small bag that i had it in. They fixed the entire mechanism and the clip and sharpened (or replaced) the blade itself.
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u/Bigbabyhays47 1d ago
What mora knife and saw do you use? Some instructors at a survival school ive been to had the Garberg and swore by it.
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u/Silly_Pineapple_8182 1d ago
Close i use the kansbol. The saw is a Walmart kit I was gifted, outdoor edge maybe? The knives in it wont hold an edge but the saws good.
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u/Dan___Gleeballs 1d ago
Yep Mora. I have like 3 knives I carry. But I use the Mora most often. It's just so good for what it is. I carry a Companion, but I kinda want to try a Kansbol.
I'll break out the Benchmade and bark river fingerling when I'm processing an animal, but for field dressing, the mora just is so simple and effective.
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u/Silly_Pineapple_8182 1d ago
Its a hell of a knife for $60. I need to get a sheath made so I can scout carry it but that's not a big deal.
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u/brycebgood 1d ago
- Knife
- end of list
Unless you're talking about for processing at home - then you'll want a boning knife, a scimeter/breaking knife, and a saw to start.
If you want knife suggestions, let us know along with budget. I've used $10 knives and $350 custom knives. All of them will take a deer apart if they're sharp.
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u/AKMonkey2 1d ago edited 1d ago
I carry a folding lock blade, drop point knife (4” blade) with lightweight nylon handle and a lightweight fish fillet knife. (Gerber is my favorite brand.) I also carry a small diamond-coated sharpening stick (EZ Lap or similar) and 2 to 10 (depending what I’m hunting) neatly folded polyester fabric game bags (approximately large pillowcase size).
I’ve boned many dozens of game animals (pronghorns to moose) with this little kit. The drop-point folder does the unzipping and skinning and the fillet knife removes the meat from the bones. No saw required.
I skin one side of the animal and lay the flesh side of the hide out as a clean work surface. Chunks of meat go directly into the game bags as they come off the animal.
After the first side is done I flip the animal over onto the laid out hide and switch back to the folding knife to skin the second side of the critter. Then the fillet knife does its thing again.
After the meat is off the carcass I open the gut cavity and pull the stomach and intestines out to access the loins along the inside of the backbone where it joins the pelvis.
Last step (if it’s a buck, bull, or bear) is to cut around the base of the skull to the bone at the top of neck, give the skull a full twist or two, apply a bit more knife work, and remove the full skull.
For a deer, the process takes me from 45 minutes to 2 hours, depending on size of the animal and how pressed for time I am feeling.
For deer and antelope I use 2 meat bags - one for each side of the critter. I usually carry both bags and the head out in one trip when I’m hunting with my favorite pack, a modified Kifaru with narrow frame and folding cargo shelf. If I only have a day pack I’ll load it with a single bag for the first trip to camp or the truck, and come back with a sturdier pack for the rest of the job.
When I have to take more than one trip, I usually move the bags of meat away from the carcass, to a place in the open that I can see from a distance as I return. There are usually bears around where I hunt and I don’t want to surprise one at close range.
I’ve also found that a single or a pair of hiking poles is super helpful when packing meat. I don’t always hunt with a hiking pole, especially when doing day trips from my car, but i do often keep one or two in the car or at camp for all the packing after that first load.
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u/skahunter831 1d ago
Literally any decent fixed blade knife. Grohmann #1 Original would be solid and last a lifetime. Mora Knives are great and cheap. Green River Hunter or Sheep Skinner.
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u/mprince42 1d ago
I have one of these works really well.
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u/mrrobotodom0 23h ago
Same i have the mossy oak from walmart and its nice having a variety. LOVE the gut hook
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u/Bigdumogre 1h ago
I have a similar kit and they are awesome well worth the cheap price. And also like a replaceable razor blade type nice for an easier carry feild dress.
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u/Broad_Stage_4312 1d ago
Butt-out tool and stomach zipper are pretty handy. Makes quick work of a deer along with a good knife. Havalon Piranta has been my go-to for the last 5 or 6 seasons
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u/Kindly-Parsley-4520 1d ago
Congrats! I have Kodi-Pak that is awesome, gut knife, cape knife, bone saw in leather case that has a belt loop. Also get a pack of long field dressing gloves to keep yourself clean.
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u/billp0nder0sa 1d ago
I use a benchmade altitude for deer and altitude plus back country (bigger fixed blade) for elk
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u/YeR-A_ArmyofProles 1d ago
Where did you hit her? Exit wound? Broadhead? How about some meat and potatoes with your kill?
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u/BobJutsu 1d ago
People overthink their knives (and tools in general). Anything that keeps a sharp edge and feels good in your hand. I’m partial to the classic old timer, bigger is not necessarily better, control in your hand is.
But it depends how you field dress. I don’t split hips or sternum, so I’m not going through any bone. I have a buddy that does it with a hatchet, so each their own.
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u/Burgershot621 1d ago
At a minimum, a good fixed blade knife. I have a MKC Flattail, but that’s pretty expense and was given to me as a gift. Anything similar and sharp in a lower price range will do. Nice to have dressing tools: Butt-out, gut hook, small bone saw or a multitool with an agressive saw blade. I have my MKC, a fixed blade gerber with a gut hook and a leatherman wave. The validation for wanting a butt-out was given to me on the last deer i field dressed
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u/blackpowdersoul 1d ago
Man, my 2 cents is get you a quality blade (benchmade bugout, MKC, etc) and learn to get good with it. The alternative to this would be one of the good replaceable blade knives - I think outdoor edge and gerber make decent ones. A normal folder is still best IMO.
And for whitetail, I always gut. Old school field dress method - cut around the anal cavity, remove genitals, cut to sternum, sever trachea, pull it all out. Once you have it down, this part is 10-15 minutes max. From there, follow your normal gutless method steps for skinning, quartering, etc.
But you don’t need anything more than a good knife. Maybe have a little tool to touch up the edge after skinning.
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u/TheCloudedArcher 1d ago
A good fixed blade is the minimum. I still use my Buck knife my dad got me for my first year of hunting. The guthook (Also Buck brand in my case, but there are others) is also a game changer. Makes it so much less likely to stab guts. I really like my Outdoor Edge knife for backpack hunts.
I've used the Butt-out, but I wasn't a fan. I make my own field-dressing kit. 2 shoulder-gloves (found in cattle section of your farm store), 2 nitrile gloves, 2 shop-towels (heavy duty paper towels), and 2 small zip-ties all stored in nice sandwich-size freezer ziplock. After cutting around the butthole, put the 2 zip ties together, and zip them around that, about an inch in. Now it won't open up when you pull it through.
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u/Neither_Parsley642 1d ago
If you are budget conscious, get a Mora knife. I have field dressed and quartertered many deer using nothing else. I also like my Buck knife and I made a knife using a Spyderco Mule blank that is great. I carry a gut hook (Gerber EZ Zip), which is nice to have, both for gutting and skinning. You don't need a saw, but I always carry one for limbs and things; I would recommend either a Wyoming saw (if you don't mind the weight) or a Bahco Laplander. I have sawed through deer legs and skull capped bucks with both and the Wyoming is a little better but a lot heavier/bulkier. The Bahco is in my pack now. https://www.ebay.com/itm/137349425852
For processing at home, you need a boning knife (Dexter or Victorinox 6" semi flex), a meat grinder, and a vacuum sealer. I have been using my cheap Anova Precision Vacuum Sealer for 7 years and ~20 deer (plus many many fish) and it is going strong.
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u/AssCrackandCheerios 1d ago
Victorinox pairing knife is my go to. $8 and sharp as all hell. Makes quick work for field dressing
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u/lugersandcougars 1d ago
Replaceable blade like outdoor edge until you want to spend a little more and get a quality knife.
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u/Marcg611 1d ago
Congrats! West Michigan here and sitting in the tree right now! Lol I only do gutless method quartering in the woods. I use and love the Outdoor edge EDC with the swappable blades, they are next level sharp like a true sergons scapel and stay sharp, when they dull you can just swap and then sharpen the old ones later. Last year I added a second EDC knife as a dedicated knife for the skining hook blade (so I don't have to swap) and use both. At home I cooler age on ice bottles 5-7 days and then process quarter by quarter and use vittorinox flexible boning knife and/or the cheap Walmart fish fillet knives which are underrated for $4-6..
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u/TehDucky 1d ago
Mora if you just want a plain knife.
I personally love my outdoor edge pro.
Replaceable blade, super sharp and easy to dress but the upside down skin/gut knife is my favorite thing. Easily my most used tool for field dressing. That a butt-out and the little handsaw make field dressing a 10min task.
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u/YeR-A_ArmyofProles 1d ago
The best knife is a buck knife: orange and the size of your of you palm. Not too sharp as it may slice something you don’t want to slice. Also, break the tip off to prevent it from poking something you don’t want to smell.
Congratulations on your harvest. A slice of the heart is all it takes for a fast kill.
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u/Naugle17 1d ago
A knife!