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I can't filet for the life of me, not enough experience doing it I guess. But, also cause I donb't have a decent filet knife on the boat. What should I get and why?
I watched a guy filet some Stripers in Montawk last year and it took him about 15 seconds per side. It takes me a 1/2 a day!!! When I asked the guys what's the trick, he said "it's the knife, you have to have a rounded edge blade on it." So where do I get a "rounded edge blade"....??
Forschner or Dexter Russell (Sani Safe ) no question. Go to www.bladez.com (no affiliation) they have em all for good prices. I have sharpened about 15 Forshners to dust, they are "da kind" all the commercial guys (loke me) use
Ditto on the Forschner or Dexter Russell- I've also had good luck w/ the Cutco fillet knife. Adjustable blade works well. Most important is practice and a SHARP edge.
Wife just got me a new one for fathers day. A Henckels 7" fillet knife from "cooking.com", used it last weekend on a few flukes and it was a pleasure. Have a regular cheapo fillet knife for bait and will only use this one to cut up the catch of the day.
Up here in the Great Lakes, Forschenrs are pretty much the rave. I have a 8" and 12". I use the 12" almost exculsivly. 5 - 25lb salmon are a 2 minute job start to finish, filleted, skined, boned, and portioned...
With any of them you need to put flat pressure down on the flat of the blade to keep it down close to the spine as it cuts the center line of the back, bone and the belly. So a 5/8"-1" tall blade that is not to thick will flaten out easy, and might be a good starter knife. Take your wet stone and keep as sharp as possible while filleting so that you do not have to saw down the fish, getting you off track.
I stop just before the knife breaks free at the tail, so that I can flip the fillet out, skin side down, and remove the skin while it is still attached at one end of the tail, continuing to use your grab on the gills to keep pulling the fish head, leaving the knife still and flat with down pressure, to remove the skin on the other side.
As deckhands we had to do as many as 300 fish each in about an hour, twice a day on the 1/2 day boats, so practice makes perfect.
If you still struggle, take your wife's rechargeable carving knife, or buy one at basspro, and this will simplify your life at first, when you are just getting the hang of it.
Big bull dorados or billfish with a real tall girth are about the only fish that requres a cut down the back and a cut up the belly to make sure you get all the meat. Tuna, grouper, red snapper, wahoo and others are single cutters, but when you have the fllet, I like to cut out and discard the dark red meat stringer that runs the length of their lateral line to improve their overall taste.
I've got a cheap Gerber w/ the sharpener on the sheath that works great, holds a nice sharp edge. I've also got a Dexter Russel that's a little nicer, but not as flexible. The posts above are correct, practice and a sharp blade make all the difference.
Tom
Dexter or Chicago Cutlery. Carbon steel is softer than stainless so it will take a sharper edge and it is what most professionals will use when they are 'not on camera'. It will dull faster too so learn how to sharpen. I have learned how to use a stone, tried crock sticks etc. The easiest way to get the edge is something like the Accusharp where you just pull the blade across the device's preset sharpeners. Then practice. Of course in order to practice you have to catch the fish.
A few folks have told me to try an electric knife. I can't see how that would make it easier or better??? Seems liek that would hack the hell out of a fish?? How the heck does that help? I never have a "cutting" problem, just cutting the right places....!!
I use an electric fillet knife to separate the fillet from the spine, and a fillet knife to skin the fillet. The electric knife has worked better for me for speed and maximizing the meat on the fillet. However, I'm just not good enough to skin the fillet with the electric knife. I find that a regular fillet knife that is not too sharp or too dull works best for skinning.
Birdman, take a short one to start with, it's better to learn first, and the steering with a long knife is much harder.
I must have fillet a million chicken in my life, but still dislike cleaning fish
Birdman, I have to tell you about this fillet knife. Oh, first, I agree, the Dexter Russle or whatever their called, the ones with the white handels. Cheap and great.
Anyway, a few years ago I got it in my head that I had to have a custom fillet knife made up, and then I'd be the best fish cleaner on earth or something. So I went to the Knife Maker's Guild and start checking on Knife Makers. I finally settel on a guy in Charlottesville, VA and contact him. We got through a long discussion about materials and shapes and lengths and finally come up with exactly what I want in the knife. He gives me a price, with is a lot less than I expected, and I send him a deposit. A few months later he sends me a template for the handel and blade size and shape and I make a couple of changes to it and send it back. I think I added to the deposit at that time too, but he didn't ask for it. Then, about 14 months after the order was placed my knife was done (this guy was good, long waiting list) and I had it in hand. This knife is a work of the Blademaker's art and is so very pretty that I have never been able to bring myself to use it. I'm not kidding, and its razor sharp too. It fits my hand like a fingerprint and the balance is superb. It is not a particularly long knife, I think the blade is something just short of 5 inches, but it is perfect in its thinness and flexibility. It came with its own custom leather sheath too.
Anyway if you like a nice knife you might want to think about going to a custom maker. Its not all that much more money than buying a high quality kitchen knive, a old Sabatier or something like that.
Of all the knifes I have and use , there is always one I go to for the real work. Its a Kershaw Clearwater I bought off a Snap On truck years ago. Very flexible and easy to manipulate, it makes me look like a pro every time. Its very stainless so the edge doesn't last too long, but the finesse of the blade makes that a non issue. I hack with my Henckels, I fillet with my Kershaw.
It kills me to see all these Dexter lovers. I bought mine on this kind of advice and I don't like it. I think the cheap rapalas at wally world are easier to keep sharp, stay sharp longer, and are more flexible. I only use the dexter now for steaking.
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3 out of 4 cannibals prefer vegetarians
2004 Grady 228/Yam 225F
It depends on the fish. Fluke, those little flexiable blades are fine. For them big turner I like to work on we use big 12'-14" very stiff Dexter knives. I also use a saw. Looks like a big stainless hacksaw. Make collering those big turners easy. Also works great on swords. Stripers, I use my butterfish chunking knife. It is one of those Dexters; but the handle is offset and the blade is serrated. That sucker saws right through the Stripers ribcage. If you fish a lot you just can't have enough knives. You also have to learn on how to keep them sharp!!!
Birdman,
I actually do a decent job at filleting. It's one of the few things boating and fishing related that I can do well. The trick is to follow the bones. I make a cut along the spine and then work my way to the outsides useing the bones as a guide. Works great with flounder. (Sorry if I'm stating the obvious.) A sharp knife is key. I suck at sharping; just can't do it. I usually buy a new cheap $10.00 knife like Rapela or Gerber each season that I use to fillet. I sharpen it with the ceramic cross sticks, and use the knife from the season before for my bait knife. I've tried useing stones, but just can't get the hang of it. I had I nice Buck knife. I got so frustrated trying to sharpen it, I tried to get an edge with a circular grinding stone wheel I have mounted on my work bench. Surprise, it didn't work. Made me feel better though. I've never used an electric knife. I need to be able to feel the bones so that I can cut along them with cutting into them. Good luck.
Filet knife?? Which one? 
