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Old March 11, 2017, 01:14 PM   #1
Mr. Hill
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Hunting knife for big hands

I'm looking to upgrade from a cheap hunting knife to better quality, especially better quality steel. Use will be large game hunting, deer and elk, in the mountains. Would prefer American made. Want a 4-5" blade that can fit a big hand (I can palm a basketball). Budget up to $150 or so.

Any suggestions? I'm especially mindful of the need for a larger grip, and wary of blade grinds that will be difficult to sharpen, especially in the field.
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Old March 11, 2017, 01:27 PM   #2
T. O'Heir
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You need a larger grip, not a specially made knife. Assuming you mean a skinning knife vs a camp knife. The price usually doesn't mean better either.
Once you get past all the daft armchair commando stuff, Cold Steel makes tools for reasonable money.
So does Buck. Buck's 'Skinner', made of 420HC S tainlessSteel, has an MSRP of $83.
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Old March 11, 2017, 02:15 PM   #3
michaeldarnold
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Look at Bubba Blade too. I don't have one, yet, but from what I've see, good stuff. Lord knows I want one.

https://www.bubbablade.com/
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Old March 11, 2017, 02:26 PM   #4
rickyrick
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https://www.kabar.com/knives/detail/139

The zombie stuff is silly, you can take it all off if you want.

But this is a ka-bar, this is a serious knife... but twice the length you wanted.
I have one, razor sharp and heavy duty strong spine. I found it at a sale price 3 years ago. Again, it comes with the option to remove all of the zombie markings which I did.

I think the zombie crap is a shame, it's an awesome quality knife and the zombie stuff distracts from the real value of the knife.

Can't tell if you want a hunting weapon or a skinning knife though.
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Old March 11, 2017, 03:33 PM   #5
Mr. Hill
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I'm wanting a hunting knife to gut, quarter and slice deer & elk.
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Old March 11, 2017, 04:06 PM   #6
Pahoo
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Puma White hunter or equal

There are just too many good choices. may I suggest a Puma White Hunter or Hen and Rooster equal. ....

Be Safe !!!
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Old March 11, 2017, 05:42 PM   #7
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Loving my combo of having my large-ish mora pathfinder for general stuff and The fat tiny mora eldris for gutting n skinning
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Old March 11, 2017, 06:09 PM   #8
Dufus
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I will second the Puma White Hunter, although it does not fit the OP's wish of American made. The White Hunter has a good heavy blade and is quite versatile.

I got my first one when I was 14 yrs old. I got a good deal on another maybe 10 or so years ago, so now I have 2 of them plus a couple of other different style Puma knives.
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Old March 11, 2017, 07:43 PM   #9
Panfisher
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Cold Steel Master Hunter. I do have a couple Puma knives and they are great, but to me the handles are a little small, and I don't have big hands.
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Old March 11, 2017, 08:15 PM   #10
Bill DeShivs
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Gee, guys- he needs a larger than normal handle. No one has suggested a knife with a larger handle.
Cold Steel makes mediocre production knives with a lot of hype.
All new Puma stuff is made in China or Spain.
The Bubbablade stuff is likely Chinese.

Mr. Hill may need to contact a relatively new custom knifemaker and have what he wants built.
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Old March 11, 2017, 08:35 PM   #11
rickyrick
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A wrap with paracord can give a handle some girth, I've done it to knives, guns tools and so on.
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Old March 11, 2017, 08:45 PM   #12
rickyrick
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I have experience with svord knives, they tend to have bigger handles. These are legendary blades prized by buscrafters. They are roughly finished and many people make there own grips for them.
You can hone a svord blade to shaving sharpness
Made in New Zealand

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/SVO...Leather-Sheath

Last edited by rickyrick; March 12, 2017 at 01:06 PM.
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Old March 11, 2017, 08:49 PM   #13
603Country
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Since I was a high school kid, I've always carried a KaBar (USMC version). Best utility and skinning knife a guy could need. If that isn't expensive enough, get a knife maker to put together a fancy one with Damascus steel.
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Old March 11, 2017, 11:06 PM   #14
old roper
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Not sure how long grip needed but some of these may work.

https://www.knivesofalaska.com/store.asp
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Old March 12, 2017, 12:12 AM   #15
bamaranger
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knives

Knives are kind of a personal thing, what one guy uses and likes, another may not. As example, 603 likes the USMC Kabar as a GP utility, skinner I do not. Sure, I've got one, and carry it fair amount to build blinds, hack saplings to make shooting lanes, but......to work up a whitetail, too big, the second edge on the clip seems to always bite me, and the hilts are too big to suit. But that's me. He like them, neither of us will change.

Since everybody's offering their two cents, here's a knife with a bigger than average grip, .....the Gerber Gator. Available in both fixed and folding models, plain and partially serrated edges.
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Old March 12, 2017, 12:51 AM   #16
Lucas McCain
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My uncle Bob gave me his World War II issue Western combat knife. At that time I shot my first deer and didn't own a hunting knife. That was 52 years ago. I still have that knife. I have large hands also 2xl gloves when I can get them fit very tight. That knife fits my had easily. It stays razor sharp for a long time. And sharpens back up to razor sharp very easily. I use it for my camp knife a lot of the time. I've boned out many an animal with it. I am very pleased with it.
They don't make knives like that any more. But they still can be found at gun and knife shows in decent shape and in your budget range.
Find one and you will find our it was very well worth the price and effort.

Good Luck, and may you have a target rich environment.
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Old March 12, 2017, 09:26 AM   #17
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Mr hill.
I am good friends with Wes Whipple. He is a custom knife maker in Wyoming and he hand forges knives from ball bearings that hold an edge like you can't believe, and will make a knife to your preferences.
His prices run from about $325 up to about $550 I believe. I don't know if that range of pricing is within your budget, but if so you could not find anything better.
If you would like to talk to Wes PM me and I'll give you his number.
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Old March 12, 2017, 10:40 AM   #18
jmr40
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The Ka-Bar's and other military, woods craft knives, are good for survival or bush crafting. Not the best choice for a hunting knife. I wear XL gloves and can also palm a basketball and have never noted any full size knife handle being too small. Some small folders yes, but never a fixed blade or any full size folder.

There are literally hundreds of choices to pick from, most are good. A $12 Mora with a 4" blade is probably as good as you'll actually need. You really need to go to a large knife shop or knife/gun show were yo can handle some.

I don't have this exact knife, but overall Benchmade impresses me and this fits your other criteria including price. They make a version with a leather sheath, but I was too lazy to look for it.

https://www.amazon.com/Benchmade-150...nchmade+knives

Buck will also be another good option, but only if you choose carefully. Most come with 420 HC steel. It ain't bad, but there are better options. They make several versions with S30V steel. In fact you can have a 110 folding knife custom built with that steel for around $100 +/- depending on how expensive you go on handle material. It is well worth the $13 for the better steel. Those have a quite large handle and are a classic.

https://www.buckknives.com/custom-kn...-knife/CKS110/
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Old March 12, 2017, 11:46 AM   #19
old roper
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When you have large hands you may need 5" or longer grip. OP has to measure his grip.
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Old March 12, 2017, 12:22 PM   #20
T. O'Heir
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"...to gut, quarter and slice deer & elk..." You need the right tool for the job. A 'hunting knife' is a generic term. Should've mentioned 'em before but there are blades only available that you can put whatever size grip you need. Not stupid expensive stuff either.
"...can also palm a basketball..." Me too but it keeps escaping. snicker.
1500 x 690 pixels is far too big. Please reduce the size of your pictures.
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Old March 12, 2017, 05:41 PM   #21
Mr. Hill
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Thanks for the suggestions. I really like the benchmade saddleback mountain hunter, but I've never handled one to check the grip. Maybe the cold steel master hunter with the American blade steel (although assembled in Taiwan). The bark river knives are nice but probably out of my budget.

Last edited by Mr. Hill; March 12, 2017 at 05:51 PM.
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Old March 12, 2017, 11:22 PM   #22
Rangerrich99
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I believe they are Scandinavian, but I suggest you look at Helle. Definitely feature larger grips on several of their knives, and they make top-rate knives out of high quality steel.
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Old March 13, 2017, 01:25 AM   #23
bamaranger
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another

I mentioned one of my favorites, guess I'll mention another. I've skinned and quartered most all of my whitetails with a Buck Mini-Mentor.

This is not a large knife by any means, more like a "bird/trout" model w/ a 3-1/2 in blade +/-. Because of that, it carries easily in a pouch type sheath, despite the fact it is a fixed blade. I like the tacky rubber handle, a good grip, wet or bloody. I like the hole in the butt that allows attaching a lanyard. Very handy when skinning, or gutting. You're knife is attached to your wrist by the lanyard, and if you have to release the knife to pull at hide or entrails, the lanyard retains the knife, you don't have to search for a place to put it. A roll of the wrist returns the knife to your hand, very quick and handy. The only catch with a lanyard is that if the cord is dangling from the sheath or pocket, a limb can snatch it as you walk, and you'll be knifeless. I'll normally untie the lanyard ( a looped piece of para cord) if I'm going to hike/walk with the knife on my belt to avoid that possibility.

Of course, the MiniMentor is discontinued. Buck also made a larger "Mentor", which would likely work well for critters bigger than a typical whitetail. I think it may be gone too.
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Old March 13, 2017, 06:15 PM   #24
Panfisher
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Trying to not sound like a Cold Steel fan boy as I only own a few CS knives. If you are interested in a folder the Cold Steel Ultimate Hunter I believe has a very large handle for a 3 to 4 inch drop point blade. I think mine is the Japanese Aus8a steel. Definitely not a superb steel but does sharpen well and the handle is non slip. Be sure of what you are getting in Cold Steel as there are several different steels they use or have used. The original Carbon V may be one of the best but would be an Ebay option only as they no longer list it.
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Old March 13, 2017, 08:00 PM   #25
lefteye
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Buck and Gerber make good, durable, reliable knives. So do many several other makers. Care for the blade and proper sharpening are very important to pleasing knife performance. I have small hands and standard grips are fine, though some may be a slightly too large to allow a firm, reliable grip. I agree that tightly wrapping a grip with paracord may be a very good option to enlarge the grip to fit large hands.

Edit: typo
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