What is the best knife for you?  That is like asking what man or woman is right for you as a mate, or type of car is best for you. It all depends on your knowledge, experience and what you expect to get.  But bear one thing in mind, there is no such thing as an all-around knife, even though some utility knives come close,  Any knife you choose must be a compromise of sorts, despite claims to the contrary and no one knife can do it all.  Just as there is no all-purpose rifle or shotgun, though some calibers come close enough to suit most requirements, there is no all-purpose knife.
    A knife is a basically a working tool, despite the beauty of many specimens, and depending on the functions you wish to perform, you may find it easy or hard to select the best style of knife or blade length for the job.  Fortunately, the rules for selecting a knife are less complicated than picking a mate.  And luckily a good knife may make a modest dent in your cash flow, but it won’t bust you completely if you make an error in judgment
    Few men experienced or not, ever agree on just what does constitute the best knife, blade style or length.  For the question pops up, the best knife for what?  Fishing is a prime example.  Most fishermen prefer a fairly slim, flexible blade, but the fillet knife (Cold Steel, Boning Knife, Kraton Handle), while admirable for its intended use, is not much good for anything else.  The man who shoots upland game is luckier.  If he sticks with birds he won’t need a knife longer than 3 or four inches, and if he is good with a knife, he may use the same one on deer or larger game.  Too often a man going to buy a knife buys his money where his eye is, and ends up with a blade that gleams like a diamond in the showcase of the sporting goods store (Cold Steel - Natchez Bowie , but can’t cut the mustard in the field.
    Most sportsmen want a good, practical knife for field use.  It should have a handle that is comfortable to hold and doesn’t cramp the hand, and the blade should maintain its cutting edge.
    Many different tasks are required for a knife. Simply gutting, skinning, quartering, boning and capping the average trophy would ideally require a half dozen different blade shapes. Obviously this is a impractical, since no sportsman is expected to tote a cutlery department in his hip pocket. But you can’t skin a mouse and a moose equally as well with the same blade; you may try, but it can’t be done efficiently.
    If we were to analyze the thing a knife is most generally used for, skinning a deer for example, you’ll appreciate the problems a knife designer sets for himself.  The blade must be narrow enough to ream the butt, and then have enough curve for skinning after you have opened the hide.  The point must be sharp or tight enough to get under the belly skin without piercing the intestines. Each function would easily require a different size and shape blade.  Yet the knife maker has to come with a design that will do everything at least pretty well.
    Any knife you buy should be carefully selected for its intended use, even beyond strictly for gaming use. Still, the variety of design, shape and blade length available is staggering to contemplate and confusing to behold.  The problem is that everyone who picks up a knife and examines it for a few moments fancies himself as a knife designer and knows instantly how it may be improved.  But designing a knife isn’t all that simple, and many or the weird and wonderful shapes you find among knives prove impractical in the field.