Hand Forged Skinning Knife, Walnut Handle

A short deep blade with a belly curving the whole way to a rounded tip. That curve keeps the edge working through a long pull instead of running out halfway. There are 4 inches of it in 1095 high carbon steel, on a walnut handle, with nothing else going on. It is the cheapest skinner we make, not because the work is thinner but because the steel costs less.

Specification

The blade

1095 is a plain high carbon steel with no cleverness in it. That is the selling point. It gives up an edge sooner than a tool steel and takes one back on a stone faster than anything else we sell. The spine is left dark from the forge, the bevel ground wide and bright, so you can read the line where the two meet. The belly runs out in one sweep to a rounded tip, deep enough that most of the edge is curve. Carbon steel greys off as it works, and it spots if stored wet.

The handle

Walnut has gone on knife handles for a very long time because it behaves. It stays put, takes a finish, and the brown grain carries darker streaks that show more once oil is on it. The tang runs full length between the scales with three brass pins through it, and there is a lanyard hole at the butt end. The handle is 4.5 inches, enough to grip properly with wet cold fingers, and walnut warms in the hand quicker than horn or steel.

The leather sheath

Vegetable tanned leather with a stamped basket weave face, worked into damp hide one square at a time. It is hand stitched, and a leather welt sits between the panels so the edge rides against that instead of the thread. The pocket is cut to this blade's own outline, since a deep belly needs more room at the front than a straight blade does. The belt loop takes an ordinary belt.

Who it suits

For the buyer who would rather sharpen often and easily than rarely and slowly.

• People who touch up an edge as they go
• First knife buyers not wanting to gamble much money
• Anyone who owns a stone and uses it
• Owners after a working knife, not a display piece

What comes in the box

• The 1095 skinner on walnut
• The stamped basket weave belt sheath
• A care leaflet
• Free resharpening whenever you want it

Every piece is different

The forged spine takes its own colour in the fire, so one blade is darker than the next and the line against the bevel wanders. Walnut is cut from a board, and no two pieces off the same board carry the same grain. Neither is a fault and we do not sand them into agreement.

Looking after it

1095 rewards attention and punishes neglect. Get it dry after use and give it a wipe of oil before it goes away. Long term storage in the sheath is asking for spots, since leather stays damp after the steel has dried. The walnut takes a rub of oil once a year. When the edge goes, a medium stone brings it back in a couple of minutes and a strop finishes it. Read our care and sharpening page.

Put a name on it

Engraving runs 20 dollars per blade and is cut with a laser. Roughly 30 characters fits. The plain flat here takes lettering better than a busy etch. You get a proof image to approve before anything is cut, and that step adds 3 to 5 business days. Buy ten or more and we do not bill you. Details live on the engraving page.

Questions buyers ask

Why is this one cheaper? The steel costs less and finishes in less time. The forging, the fitting and the sheath are the same as on the rest.

Is 1095 a good steel? It is a straight high carbon steel with no pattern welding in it. It holds an edge less time than a tool steel and comes back quicker.

How often will I be sharpening it? More often than a D2 blade, and each time takes less effort. If you like a stone, that trade suits you.

Will it rust? Left wet, yes. Dried and oiled it settles into a grey patina that helps it.

Why the rounded tip? A skinner works on the curve, so a needle point would only find things to catch on.

How fast does it ship? Most US orders arrive in 5 to 7 business days.

The same blade with a glossier handle is the water buffalo horn skinning knife, and for steel with a past life there is the rasp steel skinner on rosewood. The curved blades sit in skinner knives, the plain forged ones in 1095 high carbon steel, and the outdoor range in hunting knives.