Need a knife...

[FunClucks]

How do you sharpen your knives? Can you recommend a sharpener or stone?

Yeah, I can look online, but personal recommendations are much more helpful!

I use the pull through sharpener that came with my game processing kit. Don't LOVE it, but it gets them sharper quickly. Not super sharp though. I need to learn more about what the options are and how to do it for knife sharpening...

 

[Kentucky Fan]

I worked in restaurants for a long time. In my experience Dexter Mercer and victorinox are the big three for commercial use. All will be nsf certified and designed to not hold bacteria with handles and texture to prevent slipping.

 

[Forestfarm]

I use an Outdoor Edge Razor hunting knife. It has replaceable blades so you can swap them out as soon as they begin to feel dull.

 

[RogueTek]

I've been processing chickens for four or five years using a cheap Uncle Henry's gutting knife. It's mild steel and I can put a really nice edge on it but it dulls very quickly. On top of that it doesn't feel good in my hand, having a handle that feels clunky and square, and it gets fairly slick when things get wet.

I usually put a .22 into the brain and immediately slit the neck arteries. Once drained, they get de-feathered. I separate the gullet and trachea from the neck then use a set of Gerber bone shears to take the neck. After that, I use the crappy Uncle Henry to trim off the tail/oil gland and cut around the cloacal opening but it's getting burdensome to keep struggling with a disagreeable blade. From the bloodletting to the gutting work to the separation of joints, breasts, etc., I need a new and better blade.

Points for lower cost, ease of acquisition and quality of the edge. What's your go-to knife for processing chickens- manufacturer, model, blade profile, etc.?

I have tried quite a few blades and have settled on the: Victorinox 6 inch Boning, Curved, Semi-Stiff Stainless Blade with the Fibrox Pro Handle (47515). Victorinox, makes The Swiss Army Knife. It is a relatively inexpensive tool (~ $35), that comes very highly used and recommended by professional butchers. It holds it's edge very well through a day (I typically do between 25-50 at a time...). My process is the one taught and used by Polyface Farm. I use a holding cone and do a Carotid artery/Jugular vein cut method (which provides a very quick and humane feint. I can and have then used the same model on the evisceration station, and sever the head, oil gland and finish the evisceration. I break mine down by either just spatch-cocking them or all the way into parts, and all with this knife. I have the stations separated with separate knives to avoid cross contamination but all the exact same model. I've been using this now for nearly two years and I have yet to find a better processing tool. From quail all the way up to deer.

I hone as I go with a honing steel. Sharpening is usually with a Lansky stone kit. but that is relatively new. I have a set of stones I think I got from Harbor Freight and used them for 20~ years.
Hope that helps!

 

[Coops Dad]

I just got the Dexter Russel 6" boning knife and it's amazing. It's thin, light, flexible, stainless and has a really nice edge. Its held its sharpness through six chickens today with no loss of amazingness. The first cut was as good as the last. I am very happy.

 

[Kentucky Fan]

I just got the Dexter Russel 6" boning knife and it's amazing. It's thin, light, flexible, stainless and has a really nice edge. Its held its sharpness through six chickens today with no loss of amazingness. The first cut was as good as the last. I am very happy.

Dexter is a fantastic value for the money. In my opinion out of the three brands I told you about Dexter has the best steel for getting a great edge and holding it. The other two are great as well but the meat cutters almost always used Dexter.

 

[Coops Dad]

Dexter is a fantastic value for the money. In my opinion out of the three brands I told you about Dexter has the best steel for getting a great edge and holding it. The other two are great as well but the meat cutters almost always used Dexter.

It was only $12 on Amazon, free delivery, and came in three days.

 

[Kentucky Fan]

It was only $12 on Amazon, free delivery, and came in three days.

It will literally last a lifetime. One thing I have learned in my lifetime is to see what people who do it everyday use and you will be fine for home use.