Electric Knives for Filleting

[Cider]

this is a highly debatable topic. i posted a question when this went around on iceshanty and i dont mean to offend anyone who likes the electric. how many professional guides use electric??? i would put my filet knife up against any electric all day long.....and....it an old rapala that i keep razor sharp. grump

I think I have to agree with you on this one Grump.  I am a traditionalist and I believe that a fine filet knife in the proper hands will out produce quality and quantity.  I really haven't seen anything to convince me otherwise here.

[bussman]

I would recommened the American Angler.  Its been very dependable and it was cheap.

[Jigwiggler]

     Guys, I used to be old school about my knives too.  There is an art to using the electric kife, with practice.  Two winters ago we decided to reduce the panfish population in my families large (26 acre) pond to see if the abundance of small fish would grow larger with less competion for food ( which they did ).  After filleting hundreds upon hundreds of panfish I decided to give the electric a shot.  I filleted 1800+ panfish that winter and without the electric knife I would still be at it .  Now I use it almost exclusivly, unless I'm only doing 2 or 3 fish.  Panfish, walleyes or big old cats I fillet them with ease and don't miss a piece of meat.  With the electric you have to learn not to bear down on the knife and let the motor do its magic.  Just my 2 cents, everyone has there preferences.  Mordern technology does have its advantages though!

[Dark Cloud]

To each his own. Whatever works for you is best. I have alot of experience behind a knive ~~ worked in a meat market/butcher shop and alot of experience in restaurant kitchens. I can do a quick clean job with the old stand by standard fillet knife but still prefer the electric for panfish and eyes. No waste or butcher jobs at all....

[seaweed01]

I agree with Jigwiggle and Dark Cloud - No waste or butcher jobs if
you learn to use it properly.

[Chumster]

Fellas, using an electric knife properly takes some practice and patience. While learning the feel of the knife you will waste some meat but practice makes you a lot better. No panfish guide that i know still uses a fillet knife to clean their days catch. An electric saves them time and money. Me and a buddy can clean a couple limits in less than an hour. I take the fillets off, he cuts the rib cage out.  Smooth teamwork.

[reubenpa]

It used to take me about 5 minutes a fish to fillet a gill, now it is fast, and my fillets look a lot neater and better, and everything is cleaner!! I love my electric knife.  I have a rapala that my DAd in law gave me and I love it.  I have only gotten my limit of panfish once.. 50 in PA and I used my wifes electric meat carver. I stil took me about and hour and a half, but if I would have been using a regular knife???  I would have been taking my fish to work the next day to finish!!  I think that for a rookie the electric is the way to go as the rgular knife takes a while to learn!! I don't have that kind of patience when there is electric knives!!

[Sandman]

I use a mix. Electric, assorted fillet, and grew up in a family of guides who used and taught me with a staight edge barber razor.  They are all useful tools and serve their purpose in various situations. I think the bottom line is to use what you are more comfortable using. Besides, I once used a chainsaw to cut up a deer. But I won't go into that one.

[grumpymoe]

yeah!!! i dont want you to drop this without telling the story.. chainsaw deer...cool... have you tried it on perch, or any other panfish??? should be pre-sharpened so you dont waste any filets...   now for the finale....gas or electric?

[Cider]

now for the finale....gas or electric?

Aw com'on Grump!  I thought we already agreed that electric won't do the proper job!  It has to be a gas powered Stihl or Husqvarna with a minimum 20" bar length.  And none of that sissy reduced kick-back chain stuff either.  What would be the fun in that!?!  I just want to meet the fella that's going to hold that panfish for ya while you try to filet it!    

[Sandman]

In my younger, foolish years, not my older foolish ones, a couple friends were cutting wood with me. One guy took a walk to hunt. The idiot shot and killed a doe.  When he told me and my other friend about it I went back where it was. he asked me if I would cut it up for hime. i said sure...... I told him gut and skin it and I walked back to my truck. I returned in 30 minutes with a chainsaw and buzzed up the deer. Told him he had to take it out to his truck himself and clean up the cuts later. I was a mess, I wasn't happy and went  home to clean my saw. But he got my point.

[JackMagnum]

this is a highly debatable topic. i posted a question when this went around on iceshanty and i dont mean to offend anyone who likes the electric. how many professional guides use electric??? i would put my filet knife up against any electric all day long.....and....it an old rapala that i keep razor sharp. grump

I think I have to agree with you on this one Grump.  I am a traditionalist and I believe that a fine filet knife in the proper hands will out produce quality and quantity.  I really haven't seen anything to convince me otherwise here.

I can't agree more fellas.  My brother and I are old school knife guys too.  I started  filleting fish at about 7 years old with an old rapala and still now at 33 years old do the same.  No I guess I'm no  old timer but have caught a few fish and filleted a couple more.  My fillets I feel are a work of art much like a surgeon.  No fish is wasted where to me the guys I have seen using electrics butcher the fish.  It's not pretty and much fish is wasted and yes some are probably good at it but for the most part I feel a regular knife in the hands of a skilled fisherman will waste far less fish and give you some beautiful symmetric fillets that truly are a work of art.  I guess if you keep 50 or more fish and grind them up or don't care about appearence an electric is the way to go so you are not cleaning fish for 2 or 3 hours after you get home.  I impose a 30 fish max on myself now to avoid that problem and quit fishing when I hit that number.  I don't believe in freezing fish at all because they taste lousy when frozen I tried it many times fresh is the way to go.  Keep enough to last the week in the fridge and wrap them in paper towels and change the towels everyday to keep moisture off of the fillets and they last up to 6 days no problem in a ziploc.  Just make sure you fish at least once  a week to keep the supply steady.

SlipBob,I used to use a Rapala and then switched to a electric.My neighbor thought they were useless until I gave him a demo on a 3" blue gill.He couldn't beleive it.Gee,zip thru 1/2 dozen and you got the hang of it without the waste that you suggest.I have nothing against hand knives but I can clean more and without touching up the blade with the electric.Just like alot of other tools,might not need them but if it helps save time I am all for it.

[howey1176]

I prefer my Husqvarna.

I got a Mister Twister a couple of years ago. Don't really like using it. It's got the round ended blades. I might like it more if I had the sharp pointed ones. I'll use it when I get a bunch of larger fish and the rib bones are thicker. Still do almost all filleting with the hand knife.

[TUSH]

I've had three Mister Twisters. Bought the first one, won the second one, and had the third one given to me. They work great while they are working but I could only get about 2 yrs out of each. My buddy has had an American Angler for 4 or 5 years. He is very hard on it. I think he thinks it a wood saw. Everytime I see him it is still working. I recently bought me one. I also bought him a new set of blades. So far I am happy with it. I bought it at Wal-Mart. They also carry both size of blades.

[FishDaddy09]

I just saw the Blakmore Electro-Carve in the new Bass Pro sale catalog. It runs off 12v or ac and has both the batt clips and the cig lighter adapter.  $20