Fillete knives the story!

[croixflats]

Whats your story behind your knife?

How did you decide? Any significance to your knife? Not looking for an opinion thread on what is the best, but cool to state so. Let us know of that purchase of that knife that treated you well be it that utra expense of A COUGER to a Kmart blue light back in the eighties or a knife you found at a bait shop in the 50s or one that was made at any time in history.

Me as a youngster what ever was the slimmest and sharpest, lot of times sharpest won over. Till The Rapula knife, dont ask the date, been tried and true till I found a fold up Chicago Cutlery fillet knife on the road around ten years ago. Been a great knife through those years. Bought a electric last year love it but still go bock to old school. Just invested into a Leech Lake knife to further the traditional way of filleting. Might be cheating

As simple a knife is it still represents a part of our history and can be past on to those we care about. Be sure you pass it to the person that has partaken in those memories.

[fiddleFish]

I've acquired an assortment of fillet knives from thrift shops, auction junk boxes, etc. I have a 4" rapala I bought new in 1976 and a Chicago boning knife I found (another roadside Chicago find).

My favorite is the Forschner 6" straight flexible boner (I didn't make up that name) I bought at Mandeville back in my meat and sausage curing days. I think I paid under $10 for it during their annual 40% off Forschner sale. Its a utilitarian knife with decent steel and a plastic grip, and this is the one I reach for when I want to get the job done.

[DTro]

Well, one day my wife was looking at curling irons, and I stepped around the corner to look around at other stuff and seen an Oster electric knife on sale for 14.99. I thought to myself, hey why should that be any different than a fishing specific knife that is $50 or so.

And for $15 it was almost free, so I bought it and it works wonderful.

[Esox_Magnum]

I was at a swap meet, guy had a knife display, of course me being a knife junkie had to look. Guy tells me how many important people own his knives, wasnt to impressed yet and started walking away when he says hey ever see a knife do this?? So he burys the pint in a block of wood bends the handle down touching the block pulls the knife back out and it's still perfect. Goes on to tell me if I break it bend it or dull it for life he'll fix, replace or sharpen it for free. That was 22 years ago, no idea on fish it has cleaned has been resharpened twice in that time and still looks new. He has passed now but his daughter and son in law carry on the trade and I have a knife my grandkids will someday own and use. Easaley is the brand of knife.

My eclectric I just got whatever was on the rack.

[speednut]

When we got married I discovered my wife had a better fillet knife than I did so I use it.

[highlife4me]

About 10 years ago my wife's niece got a job selling Cutco knives. She talked us into letting her do a demonstration - her first one. We told her we didn't need any knives since we got to sets when we got married a few years earlier but she did the demo anyways, just for practice. We ended up buying the fillet knife and a multi purpose shears. No complaints about either one but I must say the fillet knife is the best one I have used.

[leakywaders]

I'm pretty much always on the lookout for fillet knives that are not stainless steel. Last year in a local antique store, I found a really nice, USA made Case fillet knife with the XX Chromium steel blade. Sharpens up really nice.

A couple springs ago I was hunting ramps down by a local creek and found a fillet knife half buried in the mud and weeds. It's made in Japan and says IPCO on it. Sharpens really nice for a stainless steel blade. It had a really blocky handle on it so I reshaped it with a rasp. It's now my "traveling" fillet knife. Much better than your run of the mill rapala knife.

Neat story, Esox!

[deadeye]

I got a Original Rapala knife when I was 13 and I have had it since. I run it through the little ceramic sharpener each time I use it and it has served me well. Whenever my friends and I go fishing they always ask to use my knives so it must be pretty sharp still. Its kind of crazy to think of how many fish that thing has cut up. It has been with me in all the places I have fished and always gotten the job done well.

Lately I have been looking at the leech lake knives and am really considering getting one. It would be nice to have a better knife for sure. I like how the back of the blade is sharp for the first cut. That would definitely keep the main cutting edge nice.

[Craigums]

I traveled to okinawa and found a retired swordsmith named hattori hanzo to fashion me a fillet knife.

[jBohmer]

So I was out on LOTW on open water years ago with my cousin. Caught a lot of fish and a lot more than a buzz (thank god my cousin was too young to drink so I had a ride home). Well after I wrecked my Dads fish finder (was using his boat), falling in the water and wrecking my Moms cell phone which was in my pocket, and leaving my favotite sweatshirt at the landing we got to my Grandparent's (who we were staying with for the weekend). My uncle was telling me about the best knife that he has ever had and let me use it (big mistake). Meanwhile I was trying to hide my intoxication as my family up north is quite conseravtive when it come to alcohol. Anyway I finished cleaning the fish with only minor cuts. I bagged up the fish and cleaned up after myself in the garage. But I could not find my uncle's knife anywhere. I began to think that I might of wrapped it up in the newspaper that I was cleaning on. Well I was right, the next morning I went out to the burning barrel where I threw the guts and promptly lit the night before. I looked into the ashes and there it was, well at least some of it. The handle was gone and the metal had a nice blackened patina to it. I felt horrible, I paid him for it but I am not sure if he was ever really ever able to get the same one again. I think it was just a cheap one, it HAD an orange plastic handle and it was sharp as hell! Just another of life lessons learned that day, but man the fishing was great!

[Huey]

That ain't nuthin!

Laura Rapala personally forged my filet knife mined in Finland. It's inscribed, "plinka, blinka, kukka ser mer". Which is Finnish for "catch walleyes, sowna, and drink barley pops". At least, that's how I read it.

I bought my Rapala fillet knife from an outfitter in Ely 20+ yrs ago. It's cleaned hundreds of fish, a lot of ducks, grouse, and rooster pheasants, and a couple deer.

I've been looking at those Leech Lake knives for a few years so now I will probably get one of those. Just read more about them. HSO.com should get a sales commision.