Wanting A Quality Fillet Knife

[MikeinFresno]

Started fishing a couple of years ago. Like to eat a fish now n then. I bought the cheap one from Walmart and want to upgrade in the under $100 range. What do you guys use?

[Alpster]

It's hard to beat a good old Rapala "Fish & Fillet". It's made by "Forschner" and is easy to sharpen. If you want to spend more $ you can buy a "Wusthof" or "Henkels Pro S" boning knife for right around your $100 price tag. They will last forever. I have all 3 of the knives I have recommended above. The Rapala goes with me in the boat, the others stay at home. I hope this is helpful.

Ronnie

[tholmes]

It's hard to beat a good old Rapala "Fish & Fillet". It's made by "Forschner" and is easy to sharpen. If you want to spend more $ you can buy a "Wusthof" or "Henkels Pro S" boning knife for right around your $100 price tag. They will last forever. I have all 3 of the knives I have recommended above. The Rapala goes with me in the boat, the others stay at home. I hope this is helpful.

Ronnie

I Agree with Alpster re: the tried and true Rapala fillet knives. I have a couple (4" and 6") that have served me well for over 30 years. They'll take and hold a razor edge, which is about all I ask from a fillet knife.

Tom

[NBR]

I've had Rapala and other knives but for speed and accuracy nothing compares with a power knife. Mine is not the battery powered job and works very. I don't use it very often probably a dozen time a year but if ir craps out I'll buy another. I think mine is an American Angler.

[basser89]

My dad gave me this one several years back as a gift and I absolutely love it!

http://www.cutco.com/products/product.jsp?itemGroup=5721

Its a great knife and holds an edge really well.

[jeb2]

I'm "into" knives. Have a few custom made, high end hunting knives. So I don't buy junk. But there is a great, low priced filet knife out there made by CRKT. It's the bigger one on this page. Holds an edge a long time and has proven very durable. CRKT makes some very nice knives. I have a few of the Rapala's, but they just don't work as well for me.

[J Francho]

Agreed, the Rapalas don't stay sharp, and that's asking for an accident - coming from a guy that cut the tip of his finger last week, LOL. I have a few, the CRKT is a nice knife. I have a couple a friend gave to me, industrial strength beasts you can get at a restaurant supply store, and and nice adjustable one from Cutco that is actually a great knife, called the Fisherman's Solution.

[basser89]

Agreed, the Rapalas don't stay sharp, and that's asking for an accident - coming from a guy that cut the tip of his finger last week, LOL. I have a few, the CRKT is a nice knife. I have a couple a friend gave to me, industrial strength beasts you can get at a restaurant supply store, and and nice adjustable one from Cutco that is actually a great knife, called the Fisherman's Solution.

Same on I recommended above.

[Jig Man]

The fish I keep to eat run in schools and we have a limit of 15 so it the other guy is my wife or s-i-l I may have 30 to clean when I get off the water. I like to move over to the side and clean mine at the lake so the excess can be used by birds and other fish instead of winding up in the landfill.

For that reason and being too lazy to use my Rapala, I have been using a cordless for at least 10 years. The one I use is no longer available unless Cabela's still has a few. When it dies I'll be looking for another cordless. BTW: I also have a sharpener for the blades so dulling is not a problem.

You might want to look into one of them if you clean a lot of fish.

[KC Bass Fanatic]

I have a Rapala and it doesn't hold it's edge very well. My go-to fillet knife is the Rapala electric. It can be powered from a wall outlet or your boat battery and it is absolutely awesome. You won't beat it for speed and it never needs sharpening.

[MikeinFresno]

thx for the replies. I thot i posted this in the general forum and couldnt find the post, wasnt in my profile either, so i posted again there, Got told................. somehow I screwed up and the post went here. Oh well. Thx again, I will look into these you guys have mentioned.

[J Francho]

It was moved here. The duplicate posts were removed.

[Hooligan]

I am a huge fan of the Knives of Alaska series. I've got the Steelheader and it's a great knife. It actually stays in the kitchen to be used as a general boning/butterfly knife fr regular use. It's 440C stainless, will take and hold a razor edge, and it's under $50. Best money I've ever spent on a fillet knife.

[Fishing Rhino]

I'll make a recommendation based on what I've seen during my lobstering days. Back then, I got my bait from fillet houses. The most commonly used knife, by those who made their living day in, and day out was the Dexter Russel. It was the most commonly sold knife for that purpose in the ship supply businesses.

The "cutters" had an assortment of knives depending on the type of fish they were processing. In addition, they were constantly touching up their knives on a smooth "steel". The sharpening steel with fine grooves is for sharpening butchers knives. The smooth steel amounts to the old time barber's leather strops. It produces a smooth edge which is better for cutting fish, while the grooved steel provides a microscopically jagged edge which is better for cutting beef.

They also had an assortment of stones to use when a few swipes across the steel were not sufficient.

But, any knife, expensive or cheap is only as good as your ability to put a keen edge on the blade.

Here's the type of knife most of the pros were using when I frequented the fish processing plants in New Bedford. The knife below also comes in an eight inch version.

http://www.dexter-russell.com/Item_Details_1.asp?id=476&line=SG

[MikeinFresno]

Great info guys. I found the CRKT at the local Fishermans Werehouse and am trying it.