Winchester Knife (WN-1339)

[kykevin]

I purchased a Winchester brand knife model WN-1339 for my deer gutting chores this year. It seemed like a nice knife and I was pleased with the purchase until I actually used it. I was using it for the first time to gut my daughters buck she killed this year. While I was cutting through the rib cage the whole blade snapped in half about 2" from the handle. I have always been pleased with anything with the Winchester name on it so this was very disappointing. I just wanted to let everyone know because this could be dangerous. I tried to contact Winchester about the problem but if you examine their website you will notice there is no where to email anyone. I left a feedback comment since that was my only option but never heard anything from them.

[buckfarmdude]

How much did you pay for it? A cheap knife usually ends up being, well, a cheap knife.
I would try to send it back to winchester and see if they will replace it for you. In my experience, knife companies are usually pretty good about this.

Otherwise, I would invest in a Buck or a Kabar or something like that.

[buckfarmdude]

buck knife steel is a little softer and it sharpens easier. Kabar is hard so it holds an edge real good. It's all about personal preference. I can keep a razor edge on my knives, so hard or soft doesn't matter to me. If you don't sharpen your own knives, than a harder blade would probably be your best bet. They should come with a razor edge anyway, and it will hold good if you're careful not to hit bone with it.

[kykevin]

I have a Buck knife I have had for years and usually use it for all my gutting chores. The Winchester knife was a knife on the cheaper side (20 or so bucks), but It was a gift from my daughter so I thought it would be appropiate to use it to gut her buck for her. Im not asking for much, but I think it should have at least lasted through one gutting job. I didnt even get to the pelvic bone, broke when I started cutting the chest cavity. Just a little disappointed. Never had any issues in the past with anything with the Winchester Logo on it.