Fillet Knives & Cutting Boards

Looking to put a fillet knife and cutting board on the Christmas list and wondering if anybody has any input.  My experience with fillet knives is minimal as I've used one about a half dozen times.

I've pretty much just been a trout fisherman and all I've done was gut 'em but I have expanded into bass fishing and next year will be trying my luck with some rock fish.

My plan is for the knife and cutting board to accompany me to the fishing grounds so that I don't wreck the kitchen when I get home - WAF builder.  A knife that comes with a sheath is preferable.

Any preference of wood over vinyl for cutting boards or vice versa?  Why?

Thanks for any and all help!

Michael

I'm sure you will get as many different opinions as there are knives available but heres my two cents. Buy the biggest blade you can find or you will allways find ourself saying "I should have bought one size up" as you are struggling to fillet a large fish. I have stopped buying expensive knives as I can never get them "factory sharp" after trying several different methods. I buy inexpensive (15-20 dollars) knives and just replace them more offten. I like wood boards, I think they are not as slippery as plastic. There is no faster way of ruining your catch then using a dull knife.

GOOD LUCK

Matt

Buy the biggest blade you can find

Yep - that's what I was gonna say.

There is no faster way of ruining your catch then using a dull knife.

Yep again.   

As for a cutting board, go big there too.  Something built in to a cooler top would be really cool.

   I got a very long flexible carbon steel knife with a wooden handle from Bayside Marine at the SC harbor, and it works well and sharpens nicely, but you have to be careful to dry it right away and then smear some olive/peanut/ veg oil on it or it will rust.
   I don't have a cutting board- I almost always clean my fish at the SC Harbor close to home, and they recycle the mess and sometimes someone stands by to snatch all the leavings except the guts, which gives me a smile that nothing is wasted.
    Ever since I spent part of a Thanksgiving in the E/R, I've worn a glove when cleaning fish - there are some good kevlar ones, and they help you get a grip on the fish as well as protect you some against sticks by rockfish spines.
   

Michael ditto on the glove it's worth it just for the grip,and it allows you to relax a little.
I have a lot of knifes but the one I use is an older Chicago Cutlery made in USA, they are made overseas now and they are crap. If you don't enjoy sharpening your knife don't buy a costly knife. Although not as good as they used to be Russell makes a good inexpensive )knife. There is a Co. called Mondial (made in Brazil) they have a commercial series that are a great value I work for a Co. that sells both and we hardly sell Russells anymore. While a long knife is great if you know how to use it, a smaller blade is easier to control. Size also depends on what you are using it for small fish small knife, big fish bigger knife. I would go with a 7" or 8" my Chicago is 8" and it's fine. Flexibility  is also something to look at if you fillet from the top you will want a stiffer blade than if you just lay the fish down and rip from the gill to the tail. I think more important than the knife is to get a good steel and a diamond steel and keep them with the knife. If you sharpen your blade before every use it will last forever. I just back steel it,then hone it with the diamond, and then steel it. It will stay factory sharp without having to ever do a real sharpening. Most of those fancy sharpeners are fine with kitchen knifes they reek havoc with a fillet knife. Oh yea don't use it to steak your fish or anything else.

I have two fillet knives that I like... and each has it's strong points.  One is a Dexter Russel Sani-safe 9" narrow fillet knife and the other is a Forschner 8 or 9" narrow fillet knife.  

The Dexter Russell holds an edge better than the Forschner and is good for larger fish.  The Forschner doesn't hold an edge quite as well but is way more flexible and good for situations where flexibility is important.

I use the backside of my boogie board as a fish cutting board.  It is big enough for most anything I catch and makes for a nice fillet surface on the tailgate of my truck.

As for a knife sharpner... I would highly recommend a Hunter Honer.  www.hunterhoner.com  ChuckE and I each bought one a the Fred Hall show last year. They may look like a gimmick, but after using mine many times over the past year, I can say that they work very very well.  I've tried all kinds of knife sharpeners and in terms of having an easy way to put a good edge on a knife, this is about the best solutin that I've found.  They are also 100% made in USA.  I just bought two of them for my Dad and Bro for Christmas gifts.  

From my comercial filleting days the D&R wood handles are the best for an edge. We would use an oil stone for the big edge and a fine steel for the hone. They are high maintenace but a must for a guy who makes a living with a knife. As of late I have gone to the D&R sani-safe stainless steel knives. They are a good knife with a so so edge but easier to maintain but not as easy to sharpen.  I use a more agressive steel for one step sharpening.  When I use a stone I use one of the diamond wet stones now.

As for the cutting board I use Seaboard. It was a spendy deal ($70 for 24"x30") but my table is outside in direct sunlight. I had to replace the old stuff every year and the seaboard has been on the table for three years now.

The glove is always a good idea. The fancy ones are the best. Go to some of the meat processing websites to get the best. If you dont have one use what ever you have . Any thing is better than nothing.



 


Sherm

For the cutting board - I mostly use a piece of plywood, burn it when used up. I prefer to cut on wood or composite as stainless dulls blades.

Knife wise - for larger fish - check out this Forschner - http://www.pro-cure.com/misc.html - for smaller fish I use this Kershaw
http://www.kershawknives.com/productdetails.php?id=150

John

WOW, tons of great info guys!  Thanks a bunch.  I will have to digest and synthesize all info before making a decision, but this will definitely help.

I almost deleted the thread because I found KzReelRods post back in 05 about Dexter Russell knives but glad I didn't remove it.

Thanks again!

Michael

Hi Yaker:


      I like the Rapella 9" and, I picked up a Santi-Safe Plastic Board at Costco.
                                                                         Ernie

http://www.rapala.com/products/filletknivesdetail.cfm?name=Soft%20Grip%20Fillet%20Knives

  I use the very same sharpner!   I got to say it's the best, easiest, no brainer sharpener I've had for a while now.  I think it did a beter job putting  edge's on all my knifes (kitchen, camping, fishing) than what a "knife sharpener guy we tried once was able to do.

Troy

Michael -

Here is what I use.

http://www.kendelcutlery.com/fillet-knives-804.html

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0030684119261a&type=product&cmCat=Search_Results_NYR&returnPage=search-results1.jsp&QueryText=board&N=4887&Ntk=Products&Ntx=mode+matchall&Nty=1&Ntt=board&noImage=0

The board I use is 16X32"

Scott

I like the plastic cutting boards as they can go into the dishwasher.  I have an inexpensive 6" fillet knife for smaller stuff and a rocking Buck for the bigger stuff.  The Buck is older but holds an edge well.  Here's the newer version http://www.buckknives.com/catalog/detail/237/225 .  For sharpening, the Buck can take more effort but holds the edge well once done.  I have a 3-sided stone and use oil on the medium & fine sides, then finish it oon an old piece of glove leather.

As for putting oil on the blades to stop rust, I use cooking spray (like Pam) on my high-carbon sashimi knife.