Table of Contents
- Why Do We Need A Specialized Skinning Knife?
- What Is The Best Deer Skinning Knife 2021?
- Conclusion
- Some Additional Advice For New Deer Hunters
Why Do We Need A Specialized Skinning Knife?
This question always accompanies curious minds and fledglings new to the butchering world. To answer a question as complex, or rather simple like “why do we need the best skinning knife?” we need to reassess what we know about skinning knives and what they were used for.
Well, skinning knives are for well harvesting your gains when the hunt is over. They are for peeling the skin off a carcass slowly and meticulously by skinner-shape blades that best suited for skinning game.
Some skinning knives are better suited for smaller prey, but the blades we are about to talk about are suited or meant for larger targets like deer, antelopes or elks.
Aside from the primary function that skinning knives were created for; they also have other useful applications such as:
A lot of hunters think that the skinning knife is redundant and it belongs in a butcher’s set, but I say that the skinner is powerful razor-sharp tools that cannot be replaced by just any hunting knife.
I am not saying that it is impossible to skin correctly with a hunting knife, it will just be significantly better, faster and more effective to do it with something that was designed for that exact reason in the first place.
What Is The Best Deer Skinning Knife 2021?
In the myriad of knives on the market, choosing the best skinning knife for our hunting seasons can be quite tricky for new hunters.
Over the years of successful deer hunting seasons, with dozens of skinned prey, I could see bright stars emerging among the forest.
Here are the 5 best skinning knives for deer hunters:
The 5 knives in the short list above are all high quality with many attributes of a top skinning knife that our hunters need such as:
These sharp blades can help you clean a deer within a dozen minutes with the least amount of effort. Some of them deserve an indispensable tool for hunters to field dressing deer quickly and accurately.
Skinning knife comparison chart
Preview | Knife | Blade length | Blade Material | Blade shape | Handle Material | Full tang | Sheath |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | 5.5 inches | German HC steel | Skinner | Black Pakkawood | |||
 | 4.0 inches | 420HC steel | Skinner | Phenolic resin | |||
 | 4.0 inches | 420HC steel | Skinning hook | Dynaflex rubber | |||
 | 2.7 inches | CPM- S30V steel | Drop point | DymondWood | |||
 | 3.5 inches | Stainless steel | Skinning hook | Wooden handle |
As you can see, each skinning knife above has its own advantages and disadvantages. Better knives often have more top attributes and more meticulously finished.
Let’s dive down to find yourself a skinning knife that best suits your interests and budget…
1. DALSTRONG Gladiator Skinning Knife [BEST]
Our rating:
Advantages
Disadvantages
Final thoughts
This Dalstrong product comes with everything you could ever want from an excellent skinning knife. It comes with a full-tang “skinner” blade, a razor-sharp edge, ergonomic design, and most importantly, a long-lasting edge.
Of course, all these great features don’t come without a drawback. The knife’s handle can be a problem sometimes. It just messes with the dynamic of the blade.
Overall, the Dalstrong Gladiator skinning knife is worth the money! We highly recommend it to anyone looking for the best skinning knife 2021. The blade is suitable for both hunters and chefs.
Dalstrong Gladiator is my favorite series. Besides the skinning knife, this cutlery manufacturer also makes other professional knives with very high handcrafted skills such as boning knife, butcher knife, deer gutting knife, etc.
Next is an influential and sharp skinner blade from Buck Knives
2. Buck Knives 103 Skinner Blade
(Best For Avid Hunters)
Our rating:
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Final thoughts
The Buck knife is an absolute marvel in every sense of the word. Its skinner blade is not only great for skinning deer, elks, or hogs but also great for smaller animals like squirrels, rabbits.
It comes with a blade that is made of high-grade steel with excellent edge rendition. Plus the handle is designed to be safe and comfortable for users with exceptional grip makes this Buck knife one of the best deer skinning knives at its price point.
The 103 Buck Skinner is strongly recommended for avid hunters!
Third place on our list continues to be a great product of Buck. This knife is ideal for field dressing deer with a specialized gut hook.
3. Buck Knives 393 Gut Hook Skinning Knife
Our rating:
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Final thoughts
If you are looking for the best deer skinning knife with a gut hook to field dress quickly and efficiently, I encourage this Buck knife for you.
Next is a compact but extremely sturdy hunting knife.
4. Benchmade 2.67″ Skinning Knife
(Best To Carry)
Our rating:
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Final thoughts
First of all, let’s say that this little guy is one of best hunting knives from Benchmade with a drop point blade. Its drop point blade is sharp, durable and very versatile for multi purposes.
It is also a top skinning knife with a specially designed blade to minimize accidental puncture when skinning the game.
The compact size of Benchmade knife is its most significant difference compared to the remaining blades here. Plus other great portable features such as a lanyard hole handle and belt loop sheath has made it a top choice for field hunters.
Don’t be fooled by its blade size; this skinning knife is still working very well on deer, elks, hogs.
Finally, we have a good skinning knife with a unique design and an unbelievable price.
5. Mossberg Skinning Knife with Gut Hook
(Best For Money)
Our rating:
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Final thoughts
Although this Mossberg skinning knife has some faults, it still one of my favorites on this list because it was able to provide the bare essentials with a price could not be better.
If you want to hunt but the budget is limited, or you want to find a second gut hook skinner, the Mossberg knife is a great choice!
Conclusion
Hundreds of knives can skin just as well as some of the blades on this my list. These quality knives, however, were shortlisted because they could not only do their jobs properly.
The 5 skinners all go the extra mile with absolutely astounding features. They were all built to provide a solid grip while cutting through hiding and meat. They are all exceptional and make deer skinning really easy.
Easy, however, comes in levels. Certain products promise more comfort and speed than others, and they are what we always need to watch out for. Our top picks make the entire process significantly more comfortable than others.
The Dalstrong Gladiator is the best in this lineup for a lot of reasons, but the most immediate and essential purpose is the blade length of the knife. It’s significantly longer than all the other knives in this lineup. Plus a professional curved skinner blade.
When you couple these with other factors like a full tang blade, high-grade stainless steel, and luxury imported wooden handle, it’s the most obvious choice in the list.
But if you want a field knife, you can bring it easily when hunting, then choose the Buck 393 Skinner. It is an excellent quality skinning knife with a specialized gut hook to unzip your deer quickly and easily. Must-have field dressing tool for avid hunters!
Some Additional Advice For New Deer Hunters
Here are some additional guidelines for picking the right skinning knife for newbies:
Skinner’s handle
This is one of the most important aspects to cover when we are talking about knives regardless of what they are used for.
There are three main types of handles that I have seen on a skinning knife, and the plastic is just better for skinning deer. It’s better because plastic is more ergonomically crafted to suit your hands, and it’s always slip-resistant.
Blade style
We all want to own a sturdy, reliable, and sharp knife for skinning game. So aim for fixed and full tang blades. This type of blade gives you great balance and performance.
Blade shape
I think it’s no secret that all knives don’t come with a singular design. They differ wildly and their shapes can often translate to an advantage or disadvantage depending on the game you are skinning.
We have several blade shapes but the best shape for the skinning game are skinner and drop point. Also, a gut hook blade is ideal for processing deer in the field.
Blade size
In my experience, most people almost always go for the short blade because its easier to maneuver, but you need to remember that a long blade is also an option.
Obviously, it’s meant for bigger game, and the size can be quite imposing but, in the end, you need to always go for a format that is appropriate for the kind of prey you are after.
In this case, we are going after a deer so we need to stick with the long knives if we can.
Short blades usually range from 2-3 inches mark; the medium blades often vary from the 3-5 inches mark. While the long blades typically range from 5-5.5 inches.
Blade material and sharpness
One of the reasons why people buy skinning knives is because of their sharpness. There are a lot of other reasons but none come to mind at the moment. When the skinning game, you need a sharp blade to make the lengthy process considerably shorter and less stressful.
So, when you pick a blade make sure that it’s the sharpest blade that you can get for that price and make sure that the edge is long lasting too. That is also equally important.
Another feature you need to pay a great deal of attention to is the material blades are made up of. If they aren’t made from stainless steel then to do some further research. The material the blade is made of determines its longevity and effectiveness. This is the one part of the list you must never overlook.
Knife weight
Skinning is by no means the fun part of hunting. It’s one of the most tiring and tedious parts of stripping meat. It could get pretty old pretty fast if you went with a heavy blade.
When choosing the skinning knife of your choice, you need to factor in a lot of the minute details; they sometimes seem to matter the most.
