Butchers cleavers

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Samon

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Mar 24, 2011
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Britannia!
I think Amazon stock several victorinox kitchen and butchering knives, my brother bought a Vic boning knife last week and it's superb. I can imagine they'll stock cleavers too and again victorinox make superb knives at a fraction of the price fancy ones go for.

Failing that I have a vintage meat cleaver in storage, should you want another option.. :)
 
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Robson Valley

Full Member
Nov 24, 2014
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For bone or for meat? Look in the far back corners of Asian markets & grocery stores.
Simple 6" meat/veg slicing cleavers packed in grease are less than $10 here.
For the life of me, I can't find a bone cleaver (1/4" thick, 40* bevel) that's a reasonable price.
I want one to do bison ribs.
 

Samon

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Mar 24, 2011
3,970
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Britannia!
I think my old one is a splitting cleaver, the bone type you mentioned. It's stout and heavy. Not to be mistaken for army length hog splitters though, those are borderline war axes lol.

I'm guessing op wants a big kitchen cleaver rather than a thick beast.. but could be wrong. Imo there's no reason you can't use the thicker ones to chop veg and meat but the thinner ones may be more practical for normal stuff. And although the thought of Oriental markets selling awesome knives is great, it doesn't seem to happen here. I've been to every oriental market in Bristol, the largest city in the south west as I love their steam buns and curios foods. Never ever seen a knife..

(Seriously go to one anyway, steam buns are like hot pillows full of cuddles lol)
 

Robson Valley

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I've got nothing but thin ones which would crumple, trying to cut ribs.
Two long clumsy ones are 8"/20cm, they have been with me for 40-50 years.
The everyday one is a little 6"/15cm. I bought more of those for each of my kids.

I wonder what would make good metal to try to build a bone cleaver?
1/2 a blade from a junk gas-engine lawn mower?
Some cheap hardware store hatchet?
 

Samon

Bushcrafter (boy, I've got a lot to say!)
Mar 24, 2011
3,970
44
Britannia!
If you can't use a bone saw then yeah, a hatchet. But direct cross length cutting into bone with smash it and case fractured pieces to go in the meat.

Splitters are used down the length of the whole body to split a beast in two, I think through the spine or right next to it. Not a butcher so can't really help much there..

Or.. for bone work, grab a tramontina machete. I've used those for everything from normal weed whacking to sword fighting lol, edge on edge drunken foolishness. They are just about as tough as it gets.

Also cut a bicycle in half with a hatchet once, the axe was cheap and soft but a few minutes on a bench grinder and it was a bad as new lol. Although I didn't eat the bike, I can imagine any hatchet of reasonable quality will plot bone. But still a butchers saw is best, hands down. (Glorified hacksaw tbh)
 

Robson Valley

Full Member
Nov 24, 2014
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McBride, BC
When my neighbors hunt, they carry a DeWalt battery reciprocating saw.
Apparently, it makes very quick work of parting a moose.

Maybe a saw is a more peaceful way to go? Easier to aim the strike and all that.
 

Mesquite

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