Calvin45
Well-Known Member
Is it tricky to get at the tenderloins that way?
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Is it tricky to get at the tenderloins that way?
marksman1941
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You've gotta be careful. If there's any bloat, tenderloins are hard to get to. No bloat, you can open up up the top of the chest cavity and go in for them by feel
ESEE IZULA has been my got to for as long as I can remember. I cannot get on board with replaceable blades. I've tried them, and care very little for them. I like backbone to my knives and the scalpel style just break and are a pain to deal with disposal.
Been told to try a Benchmade but the prices of some of these skinning knives are plain outrageous. Good knives I'm sure but deff not worth the tag IMO. My ESEE's are easy to sharpen and are simple and strong. Perfect blend of performance and price as far as I'm concerned. There's probly brands that hold edges better but im not into spending $500 for a blade that gets used during the fall.
Been told to try a Benchmade but the prices of some of these skinning knives are plain outrageous. Good knives I'm sure but deff not worth the tag IMO. My ESEE's are easy to sharpen and are simple and strong. Perfect blend of performance and price as far as I'm concerned. There's probly brands that hold edges better but im not into spending $500 for a blade that gets used during the fall.
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dfanonymous
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Theres some tricks.
Make a cut along the bottom of the spine from the last rib to the pelvic girdle. Push that bloat down and more often than not you can literally pull it out. If you want to cut them out, just push the guts down and stay high on the bone. Use your finger high on the blade for control.
It's really pretty easy.
Kiowa Cowboy
Well-Known Member
I agree with this. Nobody needs a Benchmade to skin a deer or elk. They are way overpriced. I use mine because I already have it. I like it because it holds a good edge. But there a plenty of other good options that will do the same.
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Calvin45
Well-Known Member
I really like Buck knives for the same reason. They're "outdated" or old school or whatever at this point but I find they offer a lot of value and functionality for the price…one might even say "bang for your BUCK"
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I'd say the only advantage to gutting it is you can have it in the box of the truck quicker if it's super cold outside.
Clearly tougher but not rocket science either. as the guys mentioned you can basically just pull them out once ur hand is in there.
I have been primarily gutless method for a long time. It's the only way to go IMO. Quarters seem to cool faster, easier to transport, and no carcass to deal with. Although we rarely kill anything within a mile of a road, when we do, we still use gutless for the reasons mentioned above. The loins are actually very simple to remove. As with anything, there ain't nothing to it but to do it. You know the basic anatomy of the animal so just get in there and try it. You'll find the method that works best for you and eventually you'll see it's rather simple. I think the key is to run your fingers up and down both sides to separate the loin from where lives, until you basically feel it's only connected on either end and slip your knife in and snip both ends. Lots of times if you do it right you can almost rip it out as it's really only connected on either end.
Kiowa Cowboy
Well-Known Member
The longer I have hunted the less I leave behind. I don't fault anyone for using whatever method they want or leaving the parts they don't eat or can't carry.
But I no longer leave the heart, kidneys, or liver behind. I am trying to learn how to properly cook the heart. But even if it does turn out, I just feed it to my dogs.
When my kids were all home and hunting, I used to process 3 to 5 deer per season. I always take the neck meat, tenderloins, rumps, and backstraps for our consumption. I cut the front shoulders and leg meat into strips with the connective tissue attached and dry them for dog treats. My dogs love them! I feed the front and rear leg bones to my dogs. I freeze some of them and dole them out throughout the year. They love it! I feed the liver and kidney to my dogs as well. I now only leave the rib cage. Sometimes, I even give my dogs the hide to chew on. Yes it makes a huge fur mess in the backyard, but they love it! Why give it all to coyotes?
I actually do enjoy the heart but it's often obliterated anyways.
Here's how I clean it, and honestly I just season it with steak spice and grill it. If its a big heart the thick side can be butterflied to even out cooking times.
+1 on the gutless method.
The first time you do it it's a learning experience, but easy after that. After doing it a couple times, i can have a deer skinned, broken down in the cooler pretty efficiently. The last one which I had a helper we were right around 30 minutes. Granted it died 100 yards from the road so our trips were short and light. You don't have to deal with the hide or carcass after that point either.
The tenderloins as mentioned aren't hard. After you get the hind quarters off, cut where they attach inside the hip area, follow them up the rib cage, and where they stop you can push up to see which ribs you are between. Make a horizontal cut between the ribs up to the spine (get you fingers out of the way first of course) and this will cut the front connection and they peel out.
I have done my last couple with a Gerber Vital only. I have a fixed blade on hand too but didn't need it. The biggest difference is you use can't pry or force a cut with the scalpel blade knives. You follow the edges of the muscle groups. The hip and shoulders pop out and you may need to cut a few tendons/ligaments if they don't break when you pop the joint but if you separate the muscles fully they are not difficult to do. You can still get the liver or other organ meat pretty easily as well.
The first time you do it it's a learning experience, but easy after that. After doing it a couple times, i can have a deer skinned, broken down in the cooler pretty efficiently. The last one which I had a helper we were right around 30 minutes. Granted it died 100 yards from the road so our trips were short and light. You don't have to deal with the hide or carcass after that point either.
The tenderloins as mentioned aren't hard. After you get the hind quarters off, cut where they attach inside the hip area, follow them up the rib cage, and where they stop you can push up to see which ribs you are between. Make a horizontal cut between the ribs up to the spine (get you fingers out of the way first of course) and this will cut the front connection and they peel out.
I have done my last couple with a Gerber Vital only. I have a fixed blade on hand too but didn't need it. The biggest difference is you use can't pry or force a cut with the scalpel blade knives. You follow the edges of the muscle groups. The hip and shoulders pop out and you may need to cut a few tendons/ligaments if they don't break when you pop the joint but if you separate the muscles fully they are not difficult to do. You can still get the liver or other organ meat pretty easily as well.
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highfinblue
Well-Known Member
I have many, from custom to brand names, and almost all my skinning and field dressing and boning meat from squirrel to elk is with the old Puma Lieutenants. I only buy the ones with the stamped blades, made in Germany. You can find them around, last one I bought was around $100. I've found several new in the box old stock and they are fantastic knives.
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