Swiss Army knife for deer?

[coss]

Has anyone used a 2.75" blade from a Swiss Army knife to field dress a deer? If so, how did it work? Good and bad features?

[48vintage]

Not me, but if it was sharp enough I'd imagine one could do the job with it . . clean-up of the nooks and crannies would be a chore in itself . . . I'd rather have a fixed blade or a single blade folder myself.

[Carolina River Rat]

It can be done, though I also prefer a fixed blade knife for the job. A trapper pattern pocket knife isn't much bigger than a SAK, and tons of deer have been field dressed with one of those over the years.

[MyDogsHunt]

I'd rather have a fixed blade or a single blade folder myself.

Agreed
Possible, but not practicle.

[Thren68]

Using the Swiss.
Advantages. Incredibly sharp. Long lasting sharpness.
Disadvantages. Lots of nooks and crannies for crud to get into. Blade is hard enough to be brittle. Small and smooth overall grip size would get awful slippery really quick.

Love my swiss, but for skinning you'd be better served with a single blade folder or fixed. Large handles and smaller blade, depending what you're going after. Maybe even an Ulu.

[MyDogsHunt]

Love my swiss, but for skinning you'd be better served with a single blade folder or fixed. Large handles and smaller blade, depending what you're going after. Maybe even an Ulu.

An Ulu?
For skinning yea, but I can't imagine "field dressing" with one.
Opening the stomach cavity without puncturing a gut would definitely be tricky, but I guess any thing's possible.
Heck, you can use turpentine for after-shave, but I wouldn't recommend that either. ;>)

[Pat/Rick]

Turpentine!? Hoppe's #9 smells much better

I have used a small lock back before with about the same blade length. It works, but I sure wouldn't try splitting the pelvis with it. The time I do use a small knife is when I'm working inside the rib cage, I've nicked myself with a sheath knife in there before. I usually use my Schrade lock back, or sharp finger, they are both good sizes for deer. Mora knives are sized well for deer also. I would not be intimidated if all I had was a SAK though, it would do the job. Again, I wouldn't try to split a pelvis with it.

[T-Roy]

Turpentine!? Hoppe's #9 smells much better

I have used a small lock back before with about the same blade length. It works, but I sure wouldn't try splitting the pelvis with it. The time I do use a small knife is when I'm working inside the rib cage, I've nicked myself with a sheath knife in there before. I usually use my Schrade lock back, or sharp finger, they are both good sizes for deer. Mora knives are sized well for deer also. I would not be intimidated if all I had was a SAK though, it would do the job. Again, I wouldn't try to split a pelvis with it.

I've gotten into the habbit of carrying a small hatchet just for splitting the pelvis. It works so much better than any knife. I don't know how many knive blades I've screwed up over the years chopping deer pelvis's.

As far as using the swiss army knife for gutting/skinning, I agree with everyone else here. Buy yourself a small fixed blade knife with a gut hook on it for that chore. It's much easier to clean the blood off of, just a couple swipes across your pants or a rag and your done.

[MontanaMan]

I agree, the SAK would do the job but there are many other choices that would be better, a small fixed blade being at the top of my list. I always have a SAK in my pocket but a 3 inch drop point is perfect for field dressing. Jesse

[MyDogsHunt]

Turpentine!? Hoppe's #9 smells much better

True, but it's hard to appreciate either unless you start with a really dull razor.