Fillet knife recommendation

I'm a big fan of this cheap and functional Dexter Russel fillet knife, apparently on sale and I guess i'm buying another:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0001MRYDI?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1

It's small and curved blade just seems to work better to me when filleting than a longer knife.  On rockfish and trout/kokanee I don't see a need for a longer knife anyway.  Even with lings and halibut I still find it works well the way I process fish. 

For a sharpener I buy these, and 10 swipes makes it all sharp again:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00032S02K?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1

This is a lot like the F Dick boning knife I like to use alongside a rapala classic fillet knife, both cheap and working fine for me. Even though the boning knife isn’t designed for filleting, it works fine and I often never even touch the rapala fillet knife.

Thank you.

Thanh

Victorinox Cutlery 8-Inch Curved Breaking Knife

https://www.amazon.com/Victorinox-Cutlery-Fibrox-Curved-Breaking/dp/B0019WXEO2/?th=1

-Allen

Second recommendations for a Victorinox! Will seriously look into it.

Thanh

For bigger fish I have a longer curved blade that was given to me by an old merchant marine friend who worked the galley on ships

Back when you could still fish salmon i usually called him to cut the fish

I can cut up a fish as good as the next person but was worth it to hear the sea stories and get tips on how to cut fish according to how it would be used

This is the knife he gave me

Close up of knife info

It’s a great knife given to me by a pro who worked galley for decades cutting up the fish they caught off the side of the ship Which reminds me I need to go see him he’s approaching 100 years old

Close up of knife info

It’s a great knife given to me by a pro who worked galley for decades cutting up the fish they caught off the side of the ship Which reminds me I need to go see him he’s approaching 100 years old

Man! What a gift! I think I’m sold on the Victorinox to add to my knife set. I might keep my eyes out on a deal with Dexter as a back up. You should definitely go see your friend. Please don’t wait.

Thanh

All that said with smaller fish I tend to pull out a smaller knife

The curved blade gets close to the bone but my friend actually steered me away from doing that with salmon and now I leave a lot of meat on the bones either to roast in a hot oven or scrape with a big spoon to make salmon patties

All that said with smaller fish I tend to pull out a smaller knife

The curved blade gets close to the bone but my friend actually steered me away from doing that with salmon and now I leave a lot of meat on the bones either to roast in a hot oven or scrape with a big spoon to make salmon patties

Salmon is still on my list of species to catch. Hopefully in a few years I’ll get a shot at catching one. Thank you again.

Thanh

Irrelevant if it’s staying in the kitchen but if youre taking the knife on the water the first dexter that sailfish recommends looks like you could attach a lanyard

My cheap old rapala doubled as self defense against a mammal that wanted the salmon between my legs that it took from me and then by a miracle I got back He was probably 3x my weight class and had big scary teeth

I’m a big fan of having a pointy knife handy in a sheath if youre going to use this on the water

This one is cheap and does good enough job fileting or gutting



And yeah I need to get to see my friend but don’t want to give him a nasty cold I’m nursing

Salmon is still on my list of species to catch. Hopefully in a few years I’ll get a shot at catching one. Thank you again.

Thanh

Maybe you get a shot at it in June. I gave up fishing everything else a long time ago and only fished rockfish halibut etc occasionally mostly on demand from friends on my fish list. The price of fish now has me reconsidering

The short salmon season coming up is tempting for sure

Irrelevant if it’s staying in the kitchen but if youre taking the knife on the water the first dexter that sailfish recommends looks like you could attach a lanyard

My cheap old rapala doubled as self defense against a mammal that wanted the salmon between my legs that it took from me and then by a miracle I got back He was probably 3x my weight class and had big scary teeth

I’m a big fan of having a pointy knife handy in a sheath if youre going to use this on the water

This one is cheap and does good enough job fileting or gutting



And yeah I need to get to see my friend but don’t want to give him a nasty cold I’m nursing

Thanks for the heads-up on the hungry thief. When I was getting into the sport, I mainly researched rescue gear, not gear for defense. I got an NRS river knife, blunt point, attached to my PFD. With two years under my belt and having been lucky not to encounter any aggressive animals, I can now see the need for and value of a pointed knife. I hope I never have to use it to defend myself.

I don’t see myself joining the madness of the limited salmon days offered this year. I just don’t want to get run over by a speeding powerboat rushing to their fishing grounds. I had two close encounters at HMB leaving the harbor mouth—and that was on a normal morning. Good luck to you, and I wish you all the best on the salmon hunt.

I have the regular blue fillet knife that every bait shop has at the register.  It works well enough, and if I lose it, I'm only out about $15. 

For defense from furry mammals, I wouldn't hesitate to swing the gaff.  Not trying to hook one, but just as a club.  Also, I carry a bait knife on the kayak - the blue sibling of my fillet knife.

I have the regular blue fillet knife that every bait shop has at the register.  It works well enough, and if I lose it, I'm only out about $15. 

For defense from furry mammals, I wouldn't hesitate to swing the gaff.  Not trying to hook one, but just as a club.  Also, I carry a bait knife on the kayak - the blue sibling of my fillet knife.

I do have a pretty big metal gaff on board and wouldn’t think twice about Barry Bonds-ing one that tries me. I haven’t encountered a hungry seal before, only had one tail me for couple minutes. I’ve read on here about people who know others who’ve lost a finger or two to an aggressive seal.

Thanh

I don’t see myself joining the madness of the limited salmon days offered this year. I just don’t want to get run over by a speeding powerboat rushing to their fishing grounds. I had two close encounters at HMB leaving the harbor mouth—and that was on a normal morning. Good luck to you, and I wish you all the best on the salmon hunt.

An advantage of being a kayaker is that you could do a beach launch, and thereby avoid getting run over in a harbor.

For defense from furry mammals, I wouldn't hesitate to swing the gaff.  Not trying to hook one, but just as a club.  Also, I carry a bait knife on the kayak - the blue sibling of my fillet knife.

+1 for gaff-swinging at furballs.

I do carry a knife, attached to the front of my PFD and instantly accessible. However, it is not a pointy variety. The pointy kind would certainly be hazardous to a sea lion, but I'd be concerned that it would be equally hazardous (if not more so) to me.

Anything is better than nothing

Likelihood of that kind of encounter is probably low, for me two scary ones in almost 50 years and another maybe I should’ve been scared but was too naive to know it

Same as being attacked by a dog only a lot bigger. Lots of adrenaline involved

This is way off the original filet knife recommendation question eh? But if you’re taking it on the water it’s worth some thought