Sgian Dubh actual hunting knife.

[Tiny]

I'm hoping this doesn't breach the rules too much in regards to weapons...


I was wondering if anyone has or has commissioned a custom sgian dubh with an actual skinning knife blade complete with gut hook. A knife a modern day hunter would carry and in the event of a succesful hunt would use to field dress an animal?

I know this sounds silly to many as who in their right mind would hunt wearing a kilt. well that would be me I ordered a duck cloth kilt just for hunting season. never did find a blaze orange fabric I liked enough to get made into a hunting kilt. The sgian dubh is utility knife and keeping with that tradition I was thinking since I need a new kife for hunting this year and a stag horn sgian dubh would be a nice addition to the collection why not combine the 2?

I brace myself for the next few comments of "your crazy" and then eventually the "I know a guy who has them/can make one."

[svc40bt]

Not crazy at all. The only concern I would have is the blade being too wide for comfortable wear. A quick check of my Jantz Supply catalog shows a couple of stick tang blades that might work, Wapiti Guthook page 22 or Veidermann page 24. There are several bladesmiths on the forum who might be able to help.

You could even try your own hand at it. I made this sgian from a Rab Gordon supplied blade and an antler I got from my brother-in-law.



Since this picture, I added a brass cap to the antler crown.

[artificer]

The only thing you might want to check is the laws of your local state/city regarding concealed carrying of knives.

I know locally we're restricted to a straight blade of 3.5" or less

[Micric]

Hi Tiny,

Never had any use for a gut hook myself, but a normal sgian with a bit more belly and a bit less point would do fine, so long as it's good steel. old buggy springs are a very good source!!

svc40bt,

You say you got an antler from your brother-in law............mixed marriage?
(Sorry! I couldnae' resist!!)

[Dale Seago]

Hi Tiny,

Never had any use for a gut hook myself, but a normal sgian with a bit more belly and a bit less point would do fine, so long as it's good steel. old buggy springs are a very good source!!

I'd agree with that.

svc40bt,

You say you got an antler from your brother-in law............mixed marriage?
(Sorry! I couldnae' resist!!)

Gets me thinking of breakups in absentia via "Deer John" letters.

I like the idea of a kilted hunt, depending on the nature of the terrain and underbrush. I had planned on a kilted wild-boar hunt in Northern California, with dogs and a boar spear, to celebrate my 50th birthday, having trained with spears and halberds enough years to want to really test my skill. A friend of mine had the connections for pig-infested ranch land the owner would let us use but, alas, we were never able to line up the dogs.

[Tartan Hiker]

Well, I carry all kinds of cutlery when in the woods and on hunting trips. You can't have too many blades.

I'd say that the only real consideration would be the mass of the knife...if it isn't too heavy to stay put in your sock, then just stick it in there and go!

[Tobus]

I was wondering if anyone has or has commissioned a custom sgian dubh with an actual skinning knife blade complete with gut hook. A knife a modern day hunter would carry and in the event of a succesful hunt would use to field dress an animal?

Like Micric said, I've never found any need for a gut hook. I've field-dressed many a deer and wild boar with just a plain blade, and most hunters I know around here refuse to use a gut hook. It just takes the right technique. So you may find that the traditional sgian dubh is actually pretty functional as-is, without any need for 'modernization'. It's already the perfect size for getting inside there and cutting away the connecting tissue. As long as it's got a sharp edge, it will work fine. All you'd really have to do is control your angle so you don't cut with the sharpened tip unless you mean to.

That said, if there were anything I would do to make it more functional for field-dressing an animal, it would be something similar to the picture that svc40bt posted, where the handle has a protrusion to help grip it better (although I think I'd want the brow tine pointed back the other way, away from the blade). I'm sure I'm not the only one who has sliced his hand while gutting an animal, due to using a smooth/straight handled knife that's already all slippery with blood. When you're working inside the body cavity, checkering or other surface-roughening techniques don't count for much. I like something that helps grip the handle better and prevent my hand from slipping down onto the blade.

[Micric]

Tobus,

Yes, something so you know by feel where the handle ends and the sharp bit starts is a good idea.
I made mine with the blade somewhat wider than the hilt, so the finger has something to run up to. It still looks like an antler-handled sgian, and stays in the hose with no bother, in fact I have to feel or look now and then to see'f it's still there.

[Lallans]

I just can't buy the traditional dagger-bladed sgian dubh as a hunting utility knife but obviously a custom blade would work, leaving aside the carry concerns aready identified. I don't hunt with hose on, well, unless my boots of the day are as high as the hose.

Me, I have a couple of beautiful, well-designed Randall outdoor knives and I use one or both of those.

[Mark E.]

[QUOTE=Tobus;914653]Like Micric said, I've never found any need for a gut hook. I've field-dressed many a deer and wild boar with just a plain blade, and most hunters I know around here refuse to use a gut hook. It just takes the right technique. So you may find that the traditional sgian dubh is actually pretty functional as-is, without any need for 'modernization'. It's already the perfect size for getting inside there and cutting away the connecting tissue. As long as it's got a sharp edge, it will work fine. All you'd really have to do is control your angle so you don't cut with the sharpened tip unless you mean to.QUOTE]

I would second this. As far as gut hooks go, I have never found one that works properly-hair balls up and makes things hard going. To have one made with a wide enough point would really make it hard to stash in your stocking. That, and it's completely useless for everything but what it was designed for...

On the sgian dubh standpoint...one could say whatever your knife is doing is what it is-If my sgian is stuck in my stocking, drawn to cut a biscuit, it is a bread knife. Fruit, a fruit knife...and so on.