# Big game cleaning



## outdoorser (Jan 14, 2013)

Okay now nobody make fun of me, but I have a hard time enjoying cleaning big game. I can clean upland game and ducks etc. and I can clean the heck out if fish. But something about big game, maybe just the size if the animal. Mainly it's the smell. eeek! the smell is so bad!! Well to get to the point, I need to know a good easy way to clean big game...deer, elk etc. Oh and whats a good easy-on-the-wallet knife?


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## utahtim (Aug 29, 2012)

I've heard good things about this method http://elk101.com/videos/gutless-video/


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## johnnycake (Jul 19, 2011)

look up the gutless method on youtube. It is fast, clean, fantastic, and cuts way back on the smell.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Clean do you mean gut?

I never gut them. Do a search on the gutless method. This will keep gut juice, pee and poopage lol out of your meat.

Also avoid touching tarsal glands.

As for knife ive used all sorts of knives over the years. The new disposable razor blades are too sharp for my liking. I seem to fall back on a non folding 3-4 inch blade with a good handle. I actually like a knife that had a softer steel. I might have to sharpen it more but with those simple pull through knife sharpers i can sharpen them in a few pulls and they get just about right as far as sharpness goes for me.


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## Yahtahay (Jul 3, 2008)

utahtim said:


> I've heard good things about this method http://elk101.com/videos/gutless-video/


+1. Best method period!


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## twinkielk15 (Jan 17, 2011)

Look up Fred Eichler's gutless method on Youtube. That's my favorite.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

I put up a picture guide almost 15 years ago... I still get requests from Hunters Safety instructors to use in their class. Here's the traditional method:

http://www.huntingnut.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=4

Gutless:

http://www.huntingnut.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=27

-DallanC


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## Yahtahay (Jul 3, 2008)

DallanC said:


> I put up a picture guide almost 15 years ago... I still get requests from Hunters Safety instructors to use in their class. Here's the traditional method:
> 
> http://www.huntingnut.com/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=4
> 
> ...


And thanks to you I was able to take those instructions in the field 7-8 years ago! Little do you know how many you have reached with your instructions as your instructions were pretty much all there was online before Youtube was even known.  I sincerely thank you for putting that together years ago. Two or three years ago I found that elknut one and transformed it into a mp4 and took it into the field for a few buddies of mine that didn't have a clue and put it on their phones for them just in case.


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## polarbear (Aug 1, 2011)

+1 on the gutless method. I haven't gutted an animal in 4 years. I'm not sure why I ever did to begin with.


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## outdoorser (Jan 14, 2013)

Yahtahay said:


> +1. Best method period!


Well Yahtahay, if thats the best method, why does your signature read "No guts, No glory"?-_O- just kidding, that video is an awesome way to get 'r done. Thanks to everybody for these great suggestions! This makes me even more excited for fall when I know I don't have to dread wallowing in fecal matter and organs-O,- Thanks for the suggestion on knives, swbuckmaster. Any body else have some Knife suggestions? Last year I forgot to bring a fixed blade and ended up "gutting" a deer with my leatherman. Actually worked suprisingly well, but looking for something a bit more task specific.


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## Uni (Dec 5, 2010)

+1 on the gutless method. 

As far as knives I carry 2 Gerber Gators, and a Alaskan Knives fixed blade.


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## KineKilla (Jan 28, 2011)

I don't really mind gutting deer and dragging them out whole, but gutless would be great but I haven't had the chance to try it. I've found over the years to just "grin and bear it"...get in get out and clean my hands. 
Elk on the other hand...usually not in a location to allow for full body removal so gutless quartering is probably going to come in handy.

As for knives:

I started by using a way too long Old Timer fixed blade. I thought rambo knives were cool back then. ;-)

I have since switched to a 3-4" Gerber with a gut hook. It is a folding lock blade which is great for light and small packing on the hip...so far my favorite. The gut hook is absolutely awesome for gutting the animal (fish too) without puncturing the stomach...-O,-

I just received a Havalon Piranta for christmas that I plan to use this coming season. Small, light and the blades just snap off for quick blade changes. This thing is VERY sharp, surgical steel just like a surgeon scalpel...in fact it may be dangerously sharp, but we'll see.


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## swbuckmaster (Sep 14, 2007)

Those knives are too sharp to dink around with in the back country. One slip and you'll bleed to death.

Ill never use one again!


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## Doc (Sep 11, 2007)

swbuckmaster said:


> Those knives are too sharp to dink around with in the back country. One slip and you'll bleed to death.
> 
> Ill never use one again!


This is something to seriously consider. I have had one "knife accident" in over 45 years hunting and have seen two others. One to the leg near the femoral artery. I can only imagine how much worse they would/could have been using the Havalon scalpel system. A good sharp Buck/Old timer/Uncle Henry knife can cause plenty of damage but those scalpel blades are wicked sharp. Just changing the blade opens you up to severe hand wounds if hands are already wet/bloody.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

You guys would hate to use one of my knifes. While they are not quite as sharp as the Havalon they can shave a tomato and I keep them that way. The one and only time that I used a Havalon the blade came off of the handle for some reason. That ended the cleaning process until I found that blade. I actually prefer a sturdy hunting knife over them just for the reason that I can put some side pressure on the blade without having to worry about the blade breaking or coming off.


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## outdoorser (Jan 14, 2013)

Thanks everybody. I did think about getting one of those Havalon things, so thanks for the warnings. I think I'll pass on it:? any other specific knife suggestions/recommendations? I see that there's a SOG Aura with a 5" blade and a gut hook on camofire.com right now, (not for long tho) would a knife like this be satisfactory?


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## KineKilla (Jan 28, 2011)

outdoorser said:


> Thanks everybody. I did think about getting one of those Havalon things, so thanks for the warnings. I think I'll pass on it:? any other specific knife suggestions/recommendations? I see that there's a SOG Aura with a 5" blade and a gut hook on camofire.com right now, (not for long tho) would a knife like this be satisfactory?


Should be satisfactory. I've also learned to carry a small knife sharpener with me in my pack. You'll really like having a gut hook. Especially if you have done it without several times.


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## utahtim (Aug 29, 2012)

paring knives as a back up


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

Last 3 deer I've cleaned I did it with one of these:










/shrug never really seen the need for big knives. Tried a Wyoming Knife once... they should just include a suture kit in the packaging cuz its pretty near guarenteed you will split your thumb open with one.


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## Packout (Nov 20, 2007)

Another warning against using the razor knives. Too sharp, too fragile. I spend wayyyyy too much time skinning animals and would never use one again. Too dangerous and they make a mess of the hair when skinning/cape-ing. I use a small Knives of Alaska Jeager or a $5 pairing knife. Buy a small, packable sharpening steel and you are good to go.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

Yep, the Havalon's break too easily and the blades are tricky to change.


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## Uni (Dec 5, 2010)

wyogoob said:


> Yep, the Havalon's break too easily and the blades are tricky to change.


Glad I saw this. I was going to pick one up this week. Last thing I need when solo bowhunting is a broken scalpel in my hand.


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## Critter (Mar 20, 2010)

They are really not too tricky to change but a pair of needle nose pliers helps immensely but I have done it with my fingers alone without any damage to myself. 

They tell you in the instructions that they are to be used for cutting only and that you are not to pry or twist the blade. 

In my book a good fixed blade or a locking folder does the job a lot better without the possibility of loosing a blade.


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## xxxxxxBirdDogger (Mar 7, 2008)

Buck knives come with the Buck 4-Ever warranty. There's a lot to be said about a company that has been around for many years and guarantees its products forever. I would personally get a good fixed blade Buck knife if I were looking for a new hunting knife.


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

I'm not a gutless guy. I like guts; hearts, livers, lights (lungs), thymus, a kidney now and then. So I root around elbow-deep in the innards, not paying attention to what I'm doing while telling my hunting partner in vivid detail the story of how I killed the critter...uh...like he wasn't there or something. Not seeing what I'm doing I just go by memory.

I pull, and I push, I slice, and I saw, poking and twisting I stick and I stab; offal, blood, and poop all over the place. It's just delightful, reminds me of farming. :grin:

Is it against the "Gutless Method" rules to dig the tongue out? Let me tell ya that takes some knife-handling skills.


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## DallanC (Jan 13, 2009)

wyogoob said:


> Is it against the "Gutless Method" rules to dig the tongue out? Let me tell ya that takes some knife-handling skills.


Dig the tongue out? Its just two slices up the inside of the jawbone. Pretty easy.

-DallanC


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## wyogoob (Sep 7, 2007)

DallanC said:


> Dig the tongue out? Its just two slices up the inside of the jawbone. Pretty easy.
> 
> -DallanC


uh...thanks. It was a rhetorical question. I've been diggin' tongues out of cows, pigs, and wild game for over 50 years.

If you want to get the rear 1/3rd of an elk or deer tongue out you have to cut around two bones at the base of the tongue. To do that it helps if someone holds the jaws open.

Slaughterhouses use a tongue bone cutter for cows:

http://www.kentmaster.com/product.asp?CatID=1&CtgID=155&PrdID=M-2


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## Mtnbeer (Jul 15, 2012)

wyogoob said:


> I'm not a gutless guy. I like guts; hearts, livers, lights (lungs), thymus, a kidney now and then. So I root around elbow-deep in the innards, not paying attention to what I'm doing while telling my hunting partner in vivid detail the story of how I killed the critter...uh...like he wasn't there or something. Not seeing what I'm doing I just go by memory.
> 
> I pull, and I push, I slice, and I saw, poking and twisting I stick and I stab; offal, blood, and poop all over the place. It's just delightful, reminds me of farming. :grin:
> 
> Is it against the "Gutless Method" rules to dig the tongue out? Let me tell ya that takes some knife-handling skills.


I'm the same way. I like wallowing around in guts. Fish guts, deer guts, elk guts, it's all good. Like last year, when I had my WY antelope gutted and ready to pack out in five minutes all while talking to my buddy (thanks goob for the tips, BTW). Plus, I can carry a good amount of weight for being a scrawny fella. Any wonder why my friends call me when they got something down... 8)


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