5 Best Hog Hunting Knives for Hunting Wild Boar [2024]

Hog knife hunts, or “hogdogging“, is a serious hobby sport that can be enjoyable when done right, but dangerous if done wrong.

With that in mind, it is important to equip yourself with the correct hunting knives when doing so.

Careful consideration is important for the knife as using proper gear can make the hunt with your dogs quicker and cleaner. Below are 3 picks for reliable hog hunting knives. Let’s get started.

Choosing a hog hunting knife

At a glance:

• Best overall: Tops Knives Wild Pig Hunter
• Large budget knife: Schrade SCHF45 Leroy
• Solid lighter option: Ka-Bar Standard USMC
• Good value for money: Buck 656 Pursuit Large
• Classic design: Buck 119 Special

Criteria for a great hog hunting knife

Naturally, there are certain features & characteristics you’ll want to look for in a knife for hunting wild boar.

• Sturdy: fixed blade, not folding. Ideally full tang.
  
• Handle: you’ll need a shape & material that is still grippy when wet
  
• Handguard: to prevent slipping forward during a thrust
  
• Size: you’ll want a decent sized blade. Usually 6+ inches, some go as large as 10-12. I’ll include a couple of shorter blades to account for personal preference.
  
• Quality: Although we’ll look at a range of price points, you don’t want to risk anything that’s too cheap for a dangerous sport like this.
  

5 Best Hog Hunting Knives

1. Tops Knives Wild Pig Hunter: Best overall

To kick things off, we have a purpose-built hog hunting knife that checks all the boxes.

Features

• 1095 carbon steel
• 8-inch blade length & 14oz weight
• Handguard
• Micarta handle

This is an incredibly strong blade by Tops Knives, full tang, with a thickness of 0.24″.

It’s built for piercing / stabbing, and has a solid handguard to prevent slipping. The handle design also has nice finger grooves to maintain a solid grip, and the micarta material performs great with or without gloves, wet or dry.

The 1095 carbon steel is a solid 8-inch blade length, and has a hefty weight of 14oz. Exactly what you need to deliver a powerful blow.

This knife is made in the USA, and comes with a nice leather sheath (that includes a life-saving whistle), and the sheath is USA-made too.

The only real downside you could consider is the price. But still coming in comfortably under $200, this is an excellent purchase for anyone interesting in hunting wild boar. One of best hog hunting knives we’ve found, with consistently good reviews.

2. Buck 119 Special – Classic design

Features

• 420HC stainless steel
• 6-inch clip point blade
• Black phenolic handle
• Black leather sheath

Coming down in price, a worthy consideration by Buck Knives, who are known for their traditional designs.

Having more than 100 years of experience in the industry, they know that sometimes it’s the classic hunting knives you’ll want to have with you.

Their Buck 119 Special is a classic reissue of their standard 119 knife series. They use their heat-treated 420HC stainless steel alongside a classic 6-inch clip point blade, which gives the knife an overall length of roughly 10 inches.

Their blade is curved with a shallow clip-point to help with piercing and cutting and skinning, and other field-dressing tasks.

Boar hunting is a tricky sport, especially when dealing with a larger wild boar. The 119 Special’s mid-sized blade can help the knife’s maneuverability without sacrificing overall strength when piercing the hog.

The handle uses a composite phenolic resin, a strong moldable substance on heavy-duty tools. The handle also has a wide hand-guard to protect the hunter while straddling a wild boar.

As a hunter, the last thing you want while with your dogs is a slippery blade. After all, while you’re dogs are distracting the hog, a slippery knife may end up in losing your game.

The knife’s wide finger grooves accommodate hunting gloves so that any blood won’t slick your grip.

If a classic appeal is what you’re looking for, and you’re not particularly in the mood for spending, the Buck 119 Special could be the hunting knife for you.

Pros:

• Mid-size blade helps knife control
• Classic design

Cons:

• The handle can be slippery without gloves

3. Schrade SCHF45 Leroy – Large budget knife

Features

• 8Cr13MoV Titanium coated high carbon steel
• 10.4-inch clip point blade
• Thermoplastic elastomer handle
• Thermoplastic sheath

Coming way down even further in budget, we have another option for a large hunting knife, coming in around or under the $50 mark. A blade by Schrade, their SCHF Leroy.

The Leroy comes with a hardy 8Cr13MoV Titanium coated high carbon steel. Not only is it razor-sharp and long-lasting, but the additional coating adds corrosion resistance so it can last longer without maintenance.

The Leroy features a massive full tang blade length of 10.4 inches when compared to other knives.

Finishing with an overall length of 16.5 inches, knives like this can make bacon of a wild boar, ensuring that you hit the correct organs for a clean result.

The thermoplastic handle scales gives you a good grip so you can manage the hog with or without gloves, further complimented by the accompanying thermoplastic sheath.

Large and in-charge, among other knives, the Leroy ensures you’ll always have enough knife to deal with any hog that crosses you or your dogs.

Pros:

• Large tough full tang blade
• Handle makes grip easy and non-slip

Cons:

• Might be difficult for beginners to use

4. Ka-Bar Standard USMC Classic – Solid lighter option

Features

• 1095 Cro-van steel
• 7-inch clip point blade
• Leather molded grip
• Leather tough sheath

Knives don’t get more iconic than the Ka-Bar Standard USMC Classic. You’ve seen it in movies, tv shows, and even in history books. The Ka-bar, previously a standard-issue marine knife, is now a viable choice for the experienced hunter.

The Ka-bar uses a tough, high-quality 1095 high carbon steel or Cro-van steel. Almost synonymous with Ka-bar themselves, this 1095 steel stays sharp for a long time and is easy to sharpen for regular maintenance.

Ka-bar’s knife blade length comes at an impressive 7-inches, with an overall length of roughly 12 inches. It’s a striking knife, with the clip point and curved razor-edge able to pierce and cut a hog with ease.

Its handle is fairly traditional, composed of leather rings around a steel handle concealing the narrow full-length tang. The Ka-Bar also features a traditional brass hand-guard and pommel for hunter protection when wrangling your hog.

Ka-bar keeps things well-matched with a complimentary leather sheath, tough enough to carry your knife during a hunt with your dogs.

Simple, straightforward, and reliable, the Ka-bar makes our list as the most recommended hunting knife for the experienced boar hunter.

Pros:

• Sharp, high carbon blade
• Grippy leather handle
• Tough leather sheath

Cons:

• None

5. Buck 656 Pursuit Large – Good value for money

Features

• 420HC stainless steel
• 4 1/2-inch drop point blade
• Nylon Versaflex handle
• Polyester-nylon sheath

You may be a hunter who enjoys having more innovative and modern knives by your side when out in the field.

Buck Knives has its 656 Pursuit Large hunting knife that uses 420HC stainless steel that has been through their legendary heat-treatment processs.

This is guaranteed to pierce nearly any type of hog through their thick hide, such as Berkshire, Hampshire, and Duroc, to name a few.

One tradeoff here is great grip, but no handguard.

The 656 Pursuit Large has a 4 1/2 inch blade length that uses a drop point tip.

In contrast to the clip point, the drop point blade has a thicker edge and a smaller tip point. This helps precise piercing and lends to the toughness of the blade when piercing a hog.

The Buck 656 uses a composite of nylon and rubberized Versaflex. The handle takes inspiration from tactical designs to give the hunter more grip while handling the knife through different finger grooves.

The 656 Pursuit Large comes with a heavy-duty polyester-nylon sheath that comes with an integrated belt loop. You’ll also appreciate this lightweight knife in the field.

In terms of good value for the money, this is one of the best hog hunting knives we’ve come across.

Pros:

• Thick, durable drop point blade
• Modern handle

Cons:

• Sheath might be a bit softer than others

A Quick Hogdogging Overview

Boar hunting with a knife, or as some would call Hogdogging, is a very active type of recreational hunting usually accompanied by two dogs, known as bay dogs.

Start by having your two dogs tethered and sniffing out for the wild boar.

Once the dogs have found the hog, the dogs will chase and attempt to keep the boar stationary by capturing it either through the ears or one of the legs.

Once the dogs have either cornered the hog or rendered it immobile, you enter the last step in boar hunting.

As the boar hunter, it’s here you slip your hunting knife under the put of its front leg, hitting their heart and ending the hunt. Now it’s a matter of bringing the boar back to your transport to properly field dress and avoid any rotting.

Conclusion

We hope you found this article on the best hog hunting knives useful. Hogdogging can be an adrenaline-inducing experience. But to have more good hunts than bad ones, it is critical to have the right training and gear. Any of these 5 picks would make exceptional knives for your next outing.

You may also find our article about Buck knives useful. Are they worth purchasing? Find out more.