This one has been a long time coming, and my apologies to the folks at Wild Steer.  I actually received this knife shortly after the 2008 SHOT Show (in February), and haven’t really had a good opportunity to put it to its paces, much less write a decent review. 

The knife itself was a standout from the moment I saw it at the show.  It’s a nicely done piece of metal work, with a keen edge and good, hard metal (maybe too hard, depending on who you ask).  It’s a thick, sturdy knife, and with the modified tanto point, it should stand up to the roughest use you can imagine, from splitting a pelvis or breast bone, to gouging a broadhead or field point out of a tree. 

The knife’s hilt is wrapped in leather, which gives both a nice feel and a good grip, as well as enhancing the knife’s overall good looks.  I was a little concerned about how the leather would hold up to the rough use I put my gear through, but so far it’s age well and still holds together well.  It’s been out now in rain, snow, and blazing, dusty heat.  I suppose a little extra TLC would keep it looking new, but I like the way good leather ages. 

The knife also comes with some pretty unique accessories.  One of my favorites is a threaded attachment that fits the threads on an arrow insert.  Screw it onto the end of your stuck broadhead, and use the built-in hook on the knife blade to create a lever.  If that won’t pull it out, you may just be ut of luck.

In addition to the extractor, you can also order the knife with a “fire steel”, which can be used with the blade of the knife as a fire starter.  All of the attachments fit into a pouch built right into the leather sheath. 

So that’s all the looks and such.  How’s it perform?

Well, to be honest, I haven’t used it as much as I could have.  It seems that whenever I have an animal down, I immediately reach for one of my stand-by knives, either the Buck 110 or the Old Timer.  The Wild Steer is usually there, but it just doesn’t come to hand as automatically.  When I have started out to use it, I have always switched knives after a few minutes. 

For skinning, the sharp blade works pretty well.  I usually start the first cut by puncturing the skin over the belly, and the tanto point didn’t work a well for that as I’d like.  Likewise, the lack of a point made cutting around the anus a little trickier too.  I’m sure a big part of that is nothing other than personal choice.  I’m used to bellied blades with sharp points for skinning, so the straight blade and tanto point of the Wild Steer just don’t feel “right” to me. 

For an all-around camp knife, though, this thing is the stuff!  Did I mention it’s tough?  I mean, really tough!  I didn’t have any hesitation using it for rough chores that might do in the edge or point of most of my skinners.  I think this is where this knife really shines.

Besides the fact that it feels a little strange for skinning, the only other negative I can think of is the unfortunate choice of a name… the Wild Steer.  I can see what they’re going for.  They’re looking for a good, tough, western-sounding name, but since a steer is really a castrated bull, it just sits kinda funny for me.  Maybe that’s just me. 

The basic Wild Steer knife retails for about 235 Euros, which equates to roughly $314 USD.  That’s not cheap, but the Wild Steer really isn’t a cheap knife.  The knives are made in France, and currently must be ordered directly from Wild Steer (www.wildsteer.com). 

 

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