What are the Best Turkey Knives for Hunting?

Spring is regarded as a very splendid season since it is the season that comes right after winter. After all that freezing and cold, suddenly the weather is warmer, the flowers are blooming, and even better, it is turkey hunting season.

Hunting, and particularly turkey hunting, is an activity that is widely practiced since it is an intriguing exercise and really good for recreation. However, just like so many other activities, when it comes to turkey hunting, preparation is key.

The first fundamental question you should ask yourself before going turkey hunting is whether or not you have the best and most suitable turkey hunting knife. There are numerous types of hunting knives that have been developed to make turkey hunting easier. 

In this article, I will be discussing the various hunting knives, carefully analyzing each with the aim of helping you choose the best turkey hunting knife.

1. Havalon Piranta Folding Knives.

Hunting knives can be categorized as either fixed blade knives or folding knives. The previous refers to the common knives that are used by a majority of people, which are efficient but cannot be folded or rather closed.

The latter, however, refers to the knives that are capable of being folded. The Havalon Piranta knife falls in this category. Apart from being a folding knife, the Havalon Piranta is also a skinning knife, which, as the name suggests, is suitable for skinning game.

It has a blade that is extremely sharp and made of stainless steel. The knife comes with twelve extra blades for a replacement that is equally as sharp, which gives you the advantage of being able to easily replace the original blade once it gets blunt.

Pros

  • It is a cheap knife hence very affordable to many.
  • It is light in weight making it easy to carry around during hunting.

Cons

  • The replacement blades, even though really sharp, tend to get blunt really quickly.


2. Spyderco Resilience.

For fifty-eight dollars, the Spyderco company promises to give you a knife that lives up to its name in as far as resilience is concerned. It is a folding knife, that has a very sharp blade which is made of stainless steel.

The Spyderco Resilience knife is very huge and therefore suitable for people with wide palms. Despite being a huge knife, it is really light, making it easy to handle and move around with hence making it really convenient.

The knife contains a G-10 handle that offers a very firm and steady grip, as well as ensuring the knife’s durability. The blade is not only sharp but also smooth hence making it easy to cut through things.

Pros

  • Has a sharp blade making it convenient for hunting.
  • Is light hence easy to carry around.

Cons

  • The knife is really expensive hence not pocket friendly.
  • The knife is huge hence unsuitable for hunting.


3. Benchmade Bugout.

If you are an adventurous character, then the Benchmade Bugout is the perfect knife for you. The knife is designed to suit the needs of the adventurous; those who take part in activities such as camping and hiking.

It is a drop point type of knife, meaning it has a strong and steady grip with a thick strong blade that can be very useful for hunting. The knife is slim and light, making it really easy to handle and carry around.

At face value, it is easy for you to dismiss this knife thinking that because it is really light, then it is impossible for it to cut through things such as game during hunting. However, do not be fooled, the knife is light but with a really tough blade that can cut through almost anything.

Pros

  • It is light and slim, making it really convenient to move around with.
  • The knife has a really nice quality.

Cons

  • It is very expensive.
  • Not suitable for people who have large palms since it is really small.


4. Gerber Strong Arm.

Unlike the knives mentioned above, the Gerber Strong Arm is a fixed blade knife, meaning that it cannot be folded. It comes in a coyote brown handle, which is really sturdy and strong. 

The knife is lauded for its versatility since it comes with a sheath that is really flexible and convenient which enables you to either carry the knife vertically or horizontally. Gerber Strong Arm is also very sharp highly advantageous for cutting things.

Pros

  • The knife has a nice sturdy handle that is convenient when hunting.
  • It is sharp necessity for hunting knives.
  • It is of good quality and offers versatility.

Cons

  • The knife has a really rough edge.
  • It is a knife mostly designed for soldiers and combat.


5. ESEE knife.

The ESEE knife, like the Gerber Strong Arm, is a fixed blade knife. If you are big on colors and color blending, then this is the knife for you, since it comes in various colors that are beautifully blended.

For example, the knife offers a blade that is desert tan in color, with a handle that is grey and a sheath that is Olive. Apart from the colors, the knife is of a really good quality and it is designed in a way that ensures its durability.

The ESEE knife fits well on the palm, and it is light, hence easy to carry around and handle. It has a really sharp blade making it convenient when it comes to cutting things and is also really appealing to the eye, as it is decorated with wonderful craftsmanship.

Pros

  • It has a sturdy handle hence ensuring a steady grip.
  • It is durable.
  • The knife is of good quality and durable.

Cons

  • The sheath is really stiff, making it a cumbersome task when you try retrieving the knife.


Factors to consider when buying a turkey hunting knife.

When you are shopping for a hunting knife, there are various factors that you have to consider before settling on the best hunting knife. How do you know that the knife you have chosen is the best turkey hunting knife?

Is it comfortable?

Hunting is a very engaging and sometimes even tumultuous task and honestly, the last thing you need is a hunting knife that makes you feel uncomfortable. By comfort, we simply mean how the knife feels in your hand.

In order to ensure that you are comfortable carrying your knife, the key factor that must be considered is size. The size of the knife you choose has to be consistent with the size of your palm. If you have a large palm, then a huge knife will best suit you and vice versa.

This is fundamental so as to avoid situations where you may find yourself struggling with a knife that seems too small in your palm or on the flip side, a knife that seems too large for your small palm.

Size is therefore a very key factor to be considered when looking for the best turkey hunting knife.

The blade.

Would it really make sense to go turkey hunting with a knife that has a blunt blade? I think we can both agree that it would not. One of the obvious processes that are carried out during hunting is skinning.

Skinning, like the name suggests, basically entails removing the animal’s skin and it, therefore, goes without saying that in order to do this, your knife has to have a sharp blade. It would be a really difficult task to try and skin an animal with a blunt knife.

Apart from the sharpness of the blade, you also have to ensure that it is centered and steady so as to make the skinning an easy and not so tiresome task.

Ensuring that the hunting knife you choose has a sharp and centered blade is therefore really fundamental. Apart from the blade, another really important factor to be considered especially in as far as skinning is concerned is;

The handle.

It would be a nightmare to try skinning a turkey that you have successfully hunted with a knife that has an unstable handle. This would really expose you to risk since it increases the chances of you injuring yourself during the process.

Therefore, apart from ensuring that the blade of the knife you choose is sharp, make sure you hold the knife in your palm and ensure that it has a sturdy handle that provides a steady grip.

In as far as the handle is concerned, you also have to ensure that you pick a knife whose handle is so steady that even in circumstances where it is either wet or bloody, which is likely to happen when skinning, your grip on the handle is still steady and does not slide.

Price.

Just like price is an important factor to consider before buying anything else, a hunting knife is no exception. When shopping for a hunting knife, you have to ensure that you go for a knife that is pocket friendly or in other words, a knife that is well within your budget.

It is fundamental to ensure that you get value for your money, therefore avoiding situations where you feel like you paid so much for something so poor in value. Affordability is therefore a key factor when looking for the best turkey hunting knife.

Is it a folding knife or a fixed blade knife?

As I had explained earlier, a fixed blade knife is the type of knife whose blade cannot be folded whereas a folding knife is that whose blade can be folded. This may seem very basic and not important, but it is a very fundamental factor to be considered.

By virtue of going out with a sharp knife, you automatically expose yourself to great risk of injury, hence it is fundamental to ensure that you choose a hunting knife that best ensures your safety.

A folding knife is therefore the best choice when choosing a hunting knife. This is because the fact that it can be folded ensures that the blade is only out when you choose it to be therefore reducing the chances of you injuring yourself.

Weight.

How much the hunting knife weighs is also something that you should consider when looking for the perfect turkey hunting knife. Choosing a knife that is heavy and bulky would not be suitable in as far as hunting is concerned.

Hunting involves stealthily moving around in search of your prey, and if you are going to move around, would you really want to do that with a knife that is heavy and bulky?

The ideal hunting knife is therefore that which is light in weight since this ensures that you are able to move around swiftly without having to worry about the weight in your pocket or your sheath.

The sheath.

The sheath is also another factor that you should consider when shopping for the ideal hunting knife. You want to ensure that your knife comes with a sheath that is of good quality.

The movement of your knife from and into the sheath should be seamless. This is fundamental so as to avoid situations whereby the sheath is too tight, therefore making it an uphill task when trying to remove your knife.

This can pose a real danger especially because there are chances of the knife abruptly yanking off which may result in you accidentally cutting yourself. You should therefore ensure that you choose a knife with a perfectly fitting sheath.

Conclusion.

It is really important to carefully consider all the above factors that I have discussed, before choosing the best turkey hunting knife. According to me, the most suitable and best turkey hunting knife is the Havalon Piranta.

This is because it not only adequately satisfies all the above factors, but it is also very pocket friendly hence accessible to all. The fact that it has twelve replaceable blades that are really sharp is a huge upside since this ensures durability.

It is a folding knife, meaning that your safety, which is paramount, will be guaranteed since the chances of you injuring yourself with the very sharp blades are greatly reduced. 

Furthermore, the very sharp blades and sturdy handle will make the process of skinning a very simple task. It is therefore advisable not to waste any time. If you are shopping for the best turkey skinning knife, go get yourself a Havalon Piranta today!