When it comes to choosing the best hunting knives, you essentially have two to choose from: folding hunting knives and fixed blades. Each has their benefits and drawbacks, and hopefully this article will shed some light on which you should choose for your needs.
A folding knife is basically a pocket knife that comes with a blade that, hence the name, folds inside of the handle of the knife. They are much smaller than fixed blade knives, and therefore can be simply carried around in your pants, unlike the fixed blade, and therefore are much more convenient to use on the trail. At most, they get up to five inches long, although most of them are even shorter than this.
In addition, unlike fixed blade knives and custom knives, they have more uses, such as the fact that you can use them to cut tree branches, ropes, and other things, and basically you can use them however you want. In fact, folding hunting knives are very popular among hunters and non hunters alike, whereas fixed blade knives are essentially only used by hunters.
Another advantage folding knives have over their fixed blade counterparts is that they usually cost quite a bit less. Generally, you can find them anywhere from one to twenty dollars, depending on the quality, but you will certainly not have to spend any more than this.
With a fixed blade, you can expect to pay over one hundred dollars in many instances, so folding is much easier to carry around, as well as much easier on the wallet as well.
With all that said, why on earth would anybody custom knives?
Quite simply, while folding knives are very useful for a lot of things, one thing they are not very effective at is skinning larger animals, because they are so short.You can use one for opening boxes, cutting rope and string or cutting just about anything you may come across at work or in the field. For emergencies, you can cut a seatbelt to free someone from a vehicle among other things.
Your choice for a tactical folding knife could depend on your preference for manufacturer or how the knife feels in your hand. You should be checking out some reviews of knives to see which is dependable under stressful conditions, you don't want your knife to fail at a critical time.
Many people state they carry a tactical folding knife for self defense purposes. This is fine but you need to practice retrieving your knife and opening it quickly so it becomes second nature to you. You don't want to be fumbling around with it when someone is assaulting you and your life is in danger.
It would be important to check the laws in your area to make sure you can indeed carry a knife and if you can, what are the size limitations. Even though you may only carry a knife as a tool and nothing more, the law does not care.
If you attempt to skin that moose you just caught, for example, you will lose out on a lot of the meat available because the knife simply isn't long enough to get it all. In this case, a fixed blade knife is imperative. If you are only hunting small game, of course, you don't have to worry about this, and folding hunting knives will be all you need.