Looking at buying a good skinning knife. Was watching Modern Marvels on the History channel, and they had a show on"Worlds Shaperst". Well, beings how I seen no ties to Cutco Cutlery, I figured it was an unbiased pice. They claim they have the worlds shapest knives, which brings me to this:
I very well may buy a couple of paring knives at the least..
They claim they can cut more then double a regular non Cutco Cutlery knife.

Looking at there website, it seems they have a darn good return policy:
[b] All CUTCO products are covered with the Forever Guarantee. If at any time you are not satisfied with the performance of your CUTCO product, we will correct the problem or replace the product with the same item in the current style.[/b]

Seems to me like it may very well be a good knife to own. Anybody got any experince with them? Either skinning wise or not?

BTW, I have always skinned with a paring knife, just what I am use to.

I can't speak from personal experience, but a friend of mine has a set and thinks they are great.

I have used them, not for skinning though, I wasnt impressed with them at all, weird shaped handle that just wasnt comfortable to use, their kitchen shears seemed a joke too,the dollar store pair we got cut through chicken breast easier

Very overpriced for what you get!!!! JMHO

I use some Cutco knives and the old wooden handle pairing knives. The Cutco is by far the best skinning knife you can buy.
I also have a whole kitchen set for the house and they are fantastic..would not own anything else.

We purchased a set of the Cutco knives for our kitchen. hey are very sharp and stay that way. But, for the price you pay for them you could purchase twenty quality knives and discard after they loose an edge and just grab a new one for the same price. Just a thought.

The fillet knife that I recieved free, the only way I was going to buy the rest of them, was crap.

I sold them when I was in college and I use them all the time. Yes they are expensive but, the warranty is pretty good and if you want them sharpened you just send them to the factory and you basically get a new knife. If you need kitchen knives also and are willing to pay the price you can work some pretty good deals(ie free knives from sales man).

My folks have had the same set for Forty years or more so I grew up using them.Their set's still holding up good.Also just recently had a friend of a friend do a demonstration at my house I was IMPRESSED to say the least.I currently own mostly Chicago Cutlery and I've got a Scuba Pro fillet knife that I've had for nearly thirty years...never saw a knife that would hold an edge for half as long as the ScubaPro until I saw that demo. As much as I hate to say it, we did a comparrison and the cutco outperformed my ScubaPro.I also own a Gerber,several Normarks,a Schrade & a couple of other oddball fillet knives,(sort of a collection mostly gifts)but I allways reach for the ScubaPro. When my funds will allow I'll be looking to buy some Cutco

My kitchen has had a full 22 peice set of Cutco in it for 17 years now. Same set, never sharpened, never needed it.
When they do eventually need it I just ship them in and they resharpen and repolish them... FREE. I just pay return shipping. I wouldn't own any other knife for the kitchen.

I hammered the sales-kid for a free hunting knife, a free trapper knife, and a free fillet knife, or I wouldn't buy.

Cutco's 'Hunting Knife' is an OK blade for dressing and skinning large game, but its WAY too big for furbearers. Their two bladed 'trapper' does not impress me, mostly because it is too small-handled (about 3&1/2") and it is smooth, and therefore would get very slippery. The fillet knife is a ho-hum blade with a bunch of window dressing included in the handle and sheath that is completely useless, and makes it too big for the tackle box.

For skinning, I carry an Old Henry 'Mustang'.
In about the mid nineties, Old Henry was bought by a Chinese company that changed absolutely EVERYTHING about the knives except the name, and changed for the worse by far.

Buy Cutco for the kitchen, and never be sorry...never.


DONT buy Cutco for serious outdoorsmen/women. Cutco outdoors blades are designed to appeal to the wife of an outdoorsman at the point of sale, not to be actually usefull.


EDIT::
In the interest of full disclosure, I sold Cutco in college, toured the factory in Olean NY, hired and trained other college kids who worked for me, and I think I know the real deal on these knives.

440a steel - great comprimise for the kitchen... stainless enough for the dishwasher, but a tiny bit too soft for the fur shed or the field.

Double D (not serrated) toothed blades are stoopidy sharp and stay that way forever because they dont have curved teeth.

Handles on the kitchen knives are AWESOME once you get you hand used to them.

Highest quality materials from the resin to the rivets... they cost more but you get what you pay for.



The kitchen knives smoke the competition including Hienkles, Chicago etal.
The outdoor knives are mediocre at best compared to the competition.

I have used a Cutco hunting knife for years(about 15)as well as kitchen knives.
They are all great.
The hunting knife I have used on several deer and moose and I can cut right through the brisket or hip bone on a deer and has never been sharpened yet although I will likely send it in this winter.
I used the hunting knife on coon and coyote this fall for the first time and it worked great for cutting around legs and finishing off around head. The blade does not dull when cutting the hair or knicking bone around the head.
Not to long ago Cutco had them on sale and I believe their survival knife with the orange or green handle has a shorter blade then mine and I would like to try one of them.

Greg H

Whatever happened to Case knives? I had one that I loved for alot of years,then I got a new one a couple of yrs ago and it is WORTHLESS! Allmost wish I didn't give my old one to my stepson.

I have used my partners with the Double D edge skinning moose and had to get one myself. Goes through that 1/2" hide and then the hair like butter and didn't get dull at all. Best knife I have used skinning Moose and I will never go back. Will do 5-6 moose without sharpening or losing an edge.

-TJ

I think the kitchen shears are great. Salesman cut a penny into with the pair I purchased. Still tight and sharp after 10 years.

I sharpen my smoothe Cutco knives on a steel about twice per month.

WELL... I cut a grade 8 1" bolt in half with mine..THEN saw'd thru a piece of 1/2" titanium sheeting with the knife.. and they're SHARPER now than they were then...

Yes, they are very good, I got one for a gift, would never have spent that much for a knife. I don't know if you would like that toothed blade for skinning, I don't know if they make a blade shaped for skinning either, might be ok for beaver. Biggest problem I see is you can't sharpen them yourself, you have to send them in to the factory to get them sharpened. Costs 5 bucks or so, and then you don't have your knife for a while. I use mine for cutting up suckers for mink bait every year, best tool I've found for that job.

Why can't you sharpen them? Does it void the warranty? Seems ridiculous to me that you would have to send them back to get them sharpened.

You wanted opinions so here is mine...over-priced junk. Even if you buy them at a garage sale for a buck a piece, still not worth it. My wife and I have a set and I hate them. They don't stay sharp and don't sharpen well. That's been my experience.

Teal

Overpriced and not worth it IMO. I have a couple of them.

My personal preference is CARBON steel, laminated carbon steel or damascus.

I have 2 of the hunting knives with the double d edge and one with the straight edge.
this fall I cleaned 3 caribou, start to finish and half a moose and it was still sharp.. I sent it in for resharpening for a whole $5..
it is by far the most durable hunting knifeI have ever used, and at $70 it is the same price asa buck or gerber, yet 100X's the knife..

Currently, I am on 1 black bear, 1 brown bear and a moose since the last sharpening....and still kicking...

I DO NOT endorse or recommend products,that I do not believe 100% in.....I would not post this if I didn't think that the cutco hunting knife is the best knife I have ever used

http://www.cutco.com/products/product.jsp?itemGroup=5719
this knife is $69..

http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_detail.html?s=BU119 this knife is retail $77????

that is an overprice junk