Let’s cut right to the chase. You serve the hunting community and every single hunter hitting the field this fall is sure to have (OR NEED) a good hunting knife. Hunting or not, I learned early in my childhood that knives were tools and one should always have a blade close at hand. As a hunter, a good hunting knife is a necessity. While veteran hunters usually know what they want in a knife, new hunters need your help. Check out this dirty-dozen roundup of the type of quality hunting knives you should be stocking and recommending to get a deeper cut of blade sales. 

Outdoor Edge RazorGuide Pak Combo Kit

Outdoor Edge, a leading producer of the gear we use to field-dress, skin and process game, has been in the knife business for quite a while, established in 1988. Founder David Bloch’s first offering was a skinning knife. Since then, Outdoor Edge has offered a wide array of hunting and fishing knives and saws. In 2021, Revo Brands acquired Outdoor Edge. Today, one of Outdoor Edge’s most robust offerings is the RazorGuide Pak Combo Kit. 

Perfect for all of your customers’ field-to-freezer tasks, the RazorGuide Pak Combo Kit boasts three folder-style cutting and sawing tools: a Razorbone Knife with 3.5-inch drop-point blades, a gutting blade and 5-inch boning and filleting blades; a RazorCape Knife with a 3-inch blade; and a Flip N Zip saw for cutting through thick bone or clearing your shooting lane. All three tools, and extra replaceable razorblade-style blades, store nicely in a compact, waxed-canvas roll pack that fits neatly in a pack, large pocket or on a belt. www.outdooredge.com

Outdoor Edge SwingBlade Pak

Perhaps the ultimate dual-tool processing kit, the Outdoor Edge SwingBlade Pak, available in black or orange finishes, manages to pack everything your customer needs for field-to-table cutting tasks in two compact tools — a multipurpose knife and a bone saw. The SwingBlade Knife boasts a 3.6-inch skinning blade on one end and a 3.2-inch gutting blade on the other end. While one end is used, the other end sits safely within a rubberized Kraton handle. The SwingBlade measures 8.3 inches overall. The included Kodi-Saw is a fixed-blade, T-handle design and is perfect for cutting through bone and small branches. The Kodi-Saw features a 6-inch blade and 3.2-inch rubberized Kraton handle — 9.2 inches overall. The kit stores perfectly in a leather, belt-worn sheath. 

Knives of Alaska Whitetail Combo

Through more than 30 years, Knives of Alaska President and owner Charles Allen has carved out quite a reputation among demanding backcountry guides throughout Alaska and the continental U.S. as a trusted, field-proven knife maker. In the outfitter world, where get-what-you-pay-for carries a ton of weight, Knives of Alaska value cannot be overstated: Your customers are sure to get what they pay for, and their knives are backed for life. 

A top pick among outfitters is the Knives of Alaska Whitetail Hunter/Cub Bear Combo. This dual-tool kit includes the Whitetail Hunter Knife and a Cub Bear Caping Knife. Designed for field-dressing and quartering, the Whitetail Hunter Knife includes a 3.25-inch drop-point, stainless-steel blade, guthook blade and an overall length of 8.45 inches. Perfect for caping, the Cub Bear Caping Knife features a 2.75-inch stainless-steel blade and 3.5-inch handle — 6.5 inches overall. Both knives feature D2 steel blades and Suregrip handles finished in black or orange.  A leather sheath also is included. www.knivesofalaska.com

Case Knives Hunter CT1

“Always carry a good knife.” I don’t recall ever seeing Pop without a knife. Losing him was tough, but finding his stash of knives, mostly Case with a few Buck 110 folders in the mix, was truly good for my soul. I recalled them all at one time or another, some more than others. The man was a sucker for heirloom quality knives — good thing, because I inherited many of them. Of course, most of his knives were of the compact utility variety. My most useful Case knives are designed for hunting. The Hunter CT1 is a great example of an heirloom-quality hunting knife. 

The Case Hunter CT1 is a fixed-blade knife boasting a 3.7-inch Nitro V Steel Clip blade with Stonewash finish, specifically designed to combat corrosion, provide a longer-lasting edge and deliver a lifetime of reliable field-to-table utility. The Hunter CT1 also includes a premium leather sheath. While I am a fan of the 4.4-inch OD Green Burlap Micarta handle, other available handle materials and finishes include textured orange G-10, as well as carbon fiber. www.caseknives.com

Case Leather Hunter Two-Knife Set

My greatest heirloom knife prize is my grandfather’s Case leather-handle hunting knife. Exceptionally popular among Case Knife fans and tradition-minded, discriminating hunters, similar models remain available today and are available in Case’s Leather Hunter Set. The Leather Hunter Set includes two hunting knives, one large and one small, boasting premium leather-wrapped handles and richly contrasting, mirrored stainless steel pommels and blades. The concave clip-point blades measure 5 inches and 3.13 inches. Overall knife lengths are 9.5 inches and 6.5 inches respectively. The set includes a leather sheath and Case Knives’ lifetime warranty. 

Buck 110 Folding Hunter Knife

If only Hoyt Buck knew his first Buck Knife, forged way back in 1902, would birth a company that eventually would become one of the most recognized and respected knife brands worldwide. His efforts, beginning with crafting blades from used files, were not without vision. After all, he moved in with his son Al and founded a knife company, H.H. Buck and Son, in 1945. Unfortunately, he wouldn’t live to see Buck Knives founded by Al in 1961. As early as the company’s founding, Al’s son Chuck was a fixture within the company and helped launch Buck’s most iconic knife, the folding Buck 110. From its initial unveiling in 1964 to today, the Buck 110 Folder is not only considered by many to be the perfect hunting knife, but it also remains a cornerstone product of Buck’s lineup. 

The Buck 110 Folding Hunter features a heat-treated, 3.75-inch, clip-point blade constructed of 420HC stainless steel and a 4.875-inch Crelicam ebony-scale handle with mirrored brass bolsters. Nearly identical to the original 1964 Buck 110 Folder, today’s offering is an heirloom-quality work of art perfectly suited for hunting and scores of other cutting tasks. Your hunting customers are sure to appreciate the Buck 110’s build quality, lifetime warranty and value-focused price point. www.buckknives.com

Buck 660 Large Folding Pursuit Guthook Knife

Buck’s less traditional 660 Large Folding Pursuit Guthook Knife may not give off those iconic 110 Folder heirloom vibes; however, it’s no less capable as a multipurpose cutting tool at home, at work or on the hunt. Some hunters might even argue the Pursuit Guthook Knife is even better suited for hunting than the iconic 110 Folder. The 660 Pursuit Guthook Knife includes a 3.5-inch, heat-treated stainless steel blade, razor-sharp guthook on the blade’s spine and glass-filled nylon handle, and it is available in green/black as well as orange/black. The 660 Pursuit in green/black includes a 420HC stainless steel while the orange/black model’s blade is constructed of S35VN stainless steel. Both models include a sheath. 

Browning Primal Kodiak

Founded in 1878 by brothers John Moses Browning and Matthew Sandefur Browning, Browning Arms Company, known worldwide as a firearm manufacturer for more than 145 years, has offered knives at least since early in the 20th Century and has been busy manufacturing hunting knives since 1969. For 55 years, Browning knives have been carried by diehard hunters who appreciate the company’s devotion to producing quality products designed to enhance outdoor adventures. A great example and a perfect choice for your hunting customers is the Browning Primal Kodiak Knife. 

One of my favorites, the Primal Kodiak is a compact folding multi-blade knife set nestled into a single, slip-resistant handle with Buckmark logo texturing; in fact, a similar, discontinued Browning folder was the first hunting knife my wife gifted me in the mid-90s, and I still have it today. The Primal Kodiak features three folding lock-back blades constructed of 8Cr13MoV stainless steel: a 3.75-inch drop-point blade, guthook blade and bone saw. Overall length is 8.75 inches, and a ballistic-nylon sheath is included. With the Primal Kodiak’s knife, guthook and saw contained in a single folding knife set, there isn’t any post-hunt task your hunter won’t be able to handle. www.browning.com

Browning Game Reaper T-Handle Saw

A saw I personally carried for decades of big-game hunting in California, Montana and Texas, the Browning Game Reaper T-Handle Saw is perfectly suited for tough cutting jobs. Whether clearing shooting lanes, brushing in hunting blinds, or processing game in the field, the Game Reaper T-Handle Saw is the one saw I carried in my pack. The Game Reaper Saw boasts a fully-serrated, 3.75-inch, 440C stainless-steel saw blade with a robust guthook machined into the spine, and a textured, non-slip, T-style, G-10 handle. For easy, compact carry, the Game Reaper includes a nylon sheath with hook-and-loop closure. Overall length is just 5.875 inches. 

Southern Grind Jackal

Founded in 2010 by legendary southern-rock musician Zac Brown, Southern Grind quickly became a respected multipurpose knife producer. Of course, with roots in Peachtree City, Georgia, Southern Grind knife designs and the brand’s southern-roots character resonated with hunters throughout the Southeast, and later, nationwide. Today, Southern Grind is owned by Diamondback Firearms. A great example of a multipurpose Southern Grind knife well suited for hunting is the Jackal — a knife I personally own, love and put to good field use. 

The Southern Grind Jackal Knife features a full tang; PVD-coated, 4.75-inch, 8670M stainless-steel drop-point blade and a 3D-milled, black-and-tan finished, 4.5-inch G10 handle. The Jackal doesn’t look like any other hunting knife in the roundup but it is just as capable of processing game from the field to the freezer, and the feel of the knife exudes quality and durability. Even the sheath is a bit different. The Kydex sheath is designed for horizontal or vertical belt-carry. www.southerngrind.com

Gerber Exo-Mod Saw

Oddly enough, Joe Gerber struck up a knife sale with Abercrombie and Fitch in 1939, and Gerber was born. Eight years later, in 1947, Gerber unveiled the company’s first hunting knife, The Shorty. More than 75 years later, Gerger remains hard at work, innovating and producing high-quality knives and saws designed to tackle the tough processing that comes soon after the trigger breaks or the arrow launches — the Exo-Mod Saw is a great example.

Whether your hunters need a quality saw to cut through bone, brush in a blind or clear shooting lanes, the Exo-Mod Saw’s full-tang design and 4.25-inch 7Cr17Mov stainless-steel blade with cross-cut teeth make multi-task cutting jobs quick and easy. For hunters on the go, packing light is important. The Exo-Mod Saw is compact and lightweight at just 7.55 inches and 2.6 ounces. The handle is skeletonized and designed for a comfortable, ergonomic grip and finished in blaze orange for visibility. The Exo-Mod Saw includes a sheath for safe stowage or carry on a belt. www.gerbergear.com

Montana Knife Company Blackfoot 2.0

Master bladesmith Josh Smith started making knives at age 11, guided by his little league baseball coach, Rick Dunkerly. Decades later, tired of seeing master-crafted knives selling for far more than blue-collared hunting Americans could afford, Smith launched Montana Knife Company (MKC) in the fall of 2020. Josh and his team, headquartered in Lincoln, Montana, are seasoned craftsmen and wise beyond their years. In just a few short years, MKC has risen to become a knife company catering to veteran outfitters and discriminating hunters. A great example of MKC’s experience and affordable master-craftsmanship can found in the Blackfoot 2.0 Hunting Knife. 

Available in an array of color finishes, the Blackfoot 2.0 features a 3.5-inch, cryogenically treated, 52100 ball-bearing steel blade in a black-parkerized finish, full tang and 4.25-inch G10 handle. 100%  American Made with American materials, the Blackfoot 2.0 is an heirloom-quality knife designed to provide a lifetime of cutting reliability, and it is backed by both a lifetime warranty and MKC’s Generation’s promise — MKC knife owners get lifetime blade sharpening, grip wrapping and maintenance. www.montanaknifecompany.com