Fillet Set Ups/Electric Knives...

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Dungee

Keeper of San Juan Secrets
Just picked this fillet board from Cabelas yesterday and I think its going to work great!
https://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-Tailgate-Fillet-Board/2377902.uts?slotId=0

I know this has been discussed at length on the old board but since that is caput I wanted to bring it up again. What is everyones verdict on electric knives? We've never used one, but the older I get the more one sounds appealing, especially for boil season. I think the last sentiment on the old board was that its a bit of a crap shoot? Some last forever but the same brand and knife lasted an hour? Anyone use the battery powered Rapala one?

Currently we have a couple sizes of the rapala fillet knives and a great Buck fillet knife. We get by fine but just wanted to get some more great info out of everyone ha. Thanks!

Preston
 
I have a couple of rapala electric. One that comes in the kit and the other is a more durable (can't remember what it's called) model that is faster / stronger running. I haven't had a problem with either of them and would NEVER go back to non electric. It literally cuts fillet time down 75% for me. With me and the boys, sometimes we end up with a bunch of fish to fillet.
 
Just picked this fillet board from Cabelas yesterday and I think its going to work great!
https://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-Tailgate-Fillet-Board/2377902.uts?slotId=0

I know this has been discussed at length on the old board but since that is caput I wanted to bring it up again. What is everyones verdict on electric knives? We've never used one, but the older I get the more one sounds appealing, especially for boil season. I think the last sentiment on the old board was that its a bit of a crap shoot? Some last forever but the same brand and knife lasted an hour? Anyone use the battery powered Rapala one?

Currently we have a couple sizes of the rapala fillet knives and a great Buck fillet knife. We get by fine but just wanted to get some more great info out of everyone ha. Thanks!

Preston
I have that same board, it fits in my sky locker and it works great. It's big enough to to filet without worrying about anything spilling over on the deck.
 
Have been using electric/12 volt I believe a rapala for many years now. Have fried one but other than that no issues and way easy! And like your tailgate cleaning board I still use a wooden plank off side of boat, and have discovered both manual and electric knives sink fairly quickly!😂😢
 
This is an excellent knife, much better than the 12 volt version. I have both and this is the one I use. I keep an extra battery on board and a 300 watt inverter. I average forty fish an hour. Been practicing for my trip to Powell with crappie on some local waters.
 
This is an excellent knife, much better than the 12 volt version. I have both and this is the one I use. I keep an extra battery on board and a 300 watt inverter. I average forty fish an hour. Been practicing for my trip to Powell with crappie on some local waters.

I have had an electric filet knife for over 20 years. I have a 12 volt knife on the boat. I plug it in and filet on a board that fits in my pole holder receptacle out on the water. I can stay ahead of the small live well and get the filets iced quickly. We bag them for portions at camp. The filet speed is really nice when doing 50 or 60 fish at a time. I never had a problem with battery drain or electrical issues. I'm all in for electric knives.
 
This is an excellent knife, much better than the 12 volt version. I have both and this is the one I use. I keep an extra battery on board and a 300 watt inverter. I average forty fish an hour. Been practicing for my trip to Powell with crappie on some local waters.
Correction a 400 watt inverter. replace2.pngI set the board on top of a beach towel on the back deck to catch any debris. I am considering lengthening the legs about 6 in. So I can get my leg underneath it, to aid in fatigue and to ease the use of the knife. I am also thinking about adding to some floatation on the board, I would hate to drop it overboard while rinsing it off. I bled my fish for the first time last week and it helps with the clean up. replace1.png
 
I use an old 120 volt turkey/ham carving knife with the two blades that hook together and it is the bomb for stripers. but you have to have an ac power source like the 400 watt inverter that meatwagon uses. The striper numbers that can be caught at Powell will quickly turn anyone into a 30 second (or less) fillet machine. That is when the fish cleaning stations can turn into a fish processing center that any commercial fishing vessel would envy.
 
I guess I'm still old school when it comes to filleting a fish. I can fillet them just fine with my Schrade Old Timer fillet knife. There have been times when I've watched some of the other boats who come with us work with electric fillet knives, my fish were filleted and in the cooler much quicker the old fashioned way. Maybe some day I'll use the electric but for now I will keep 2-3 sharp knives on my boat when I go to Powell. Sometimes the stripers can dull a knife quickly, especially if they're skinny.
As far as boards go I have a friend who is a caterer. In his business they go through lots of large sized cutting boards. I have asked him on occasion if I could have a board or two when he changes his old ones out. They work great for me. I keep a couple of large sponges (the type used for tile installation) on my boat. After the fillet work is done, I'll use the sponge to quickly clean off and store the board under a boat cushion.
I hope we all get many more years at Powell and many more stripers to fillet. I have never had anyone complain about a nice striper fillet!
 

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Just picked this fillet board from Cabelas yesterday and I think its going to work great!
https://www.cabelas.com/product/Cabelas-Tailgate-Fillet-Board/2377902.uts?slotId=0

I know this has been discussed at length on the old board but since that is caput I wanted to bring it up again. What is everyones verdict on electric knives? We've never used one, but the older I get the more one sounds appealing, especially for boil season. I think the last sentiment on the old board was that its a bit of a crap shoot? Some last forever but the same brand and knife lasted an hour? Anyone use the battery powered Rapala one?

Currently we have a couple sizes of the rapala fillet knives and a great Buck fillet knife. We get by fine but just wanted to get some more great info out of everyone ha. Thanks!

Preston
I have worn out several electric fillet knives and wouldn't be without one. I camp and fish the same areas you do and always have my generator with me to charge the boat at night so a power source for the fillet knife is no problem. The last 2 Rapala's that I've had one was the 12 volt with an adapter for 115. I DO NOT recommend this one as the straight 115v model works much better and lasts longer. American Angler used to be a good brand as well but I haven't bought one in a long time.
 
I fished at Devils Lake ND last August for a couple of days. It’s great walleye water. The limit is five per day. At the fish cleaning station near our camp I saw fishermen bring in several limits. If there were two guys they’re would use an electric knife to take the sides off, ribs included, and the second guy would trim them with a knife. My son is in college back there and has several friends from Minnesota. He said they always use an electric knife and the kids his age didn’t even know how to filet with a knife. I’m shopping for an electric knife now. Thanks for the information.
 
I used 12 volt for years, then I bought a " cutco " knife. don't need the old electric anymore. $ 125.00 well spent.
cuts like a hot knife through butter. send em back as many times as you need for free sharpening.
 
I used 12 volt for years, then I bought a " cutco " knife. don't need the old electric anymore. $ 125.00 well spent.
cuts like a hot knife through butter. send em back as many times as you need for free sharpening.
10-4 on that - have had one for 5 yrs - My SIL can out filet me using my Rapala electric 2:1!!(y) Just had mine sharpened in Grand Junction last week. Like the single blade that extends to 7", and the finger grip handle. But check - I saw a new model w/out the grip handle - would be tiring after a while.
 
The fish cleaning setup Mary and I use is shown below. We typically clean fish 2 or 3 times per day and vacuum seal dinner portions at the end of each day. While I am setting up the cutting board and starting the generator Mary stuns the fish with a club and cuts a gill before putting them back in the live well to bleed out. The polyethylene board (custom sized, sold by the square inch) is from The Cutting Board Company.com and is ¾ x 16 x 36. We ordered it with a juice groove on one side and I cut the hand holds in each end. I’d probably order ½ inch to save weight if doing it again. The groove helps and the size was the largest that fit my transom and that would stow well behind a side locker -- good stowage is essential on an always crowded boat.
I use an electric fillet knife on bass because of the hard rib bones but on kokanee salmon I use a regular knife. On the first day of our last Powell trip last fall I stripped the plastic gears on a Mr Twister electric knife and won’t buy another of those. Fortunately I found this American Angler at my Walmart as a half price closeout and used it for the first time last week, when I cleaned 20 or so SMB at Powell. It is significantly sharper and more powerful than the Mr Twister. I remove all the slabs first, kill the generator, and then remove the ribs and skin from all the fillets using a fork and sharp fillet knife. I buy forks with good steel at a thrift shop and sharpen them by grinding the ends of the tines to equal length and square the ends (they hold the fish more securely when sharpened). Rather than squish the fish with my fat fingers, I hold the fish in place with a fork while removing the ribs. Then I hold the end of the fillet with a fork and slice under the fillet to remove the skin.
I clean the board with water, a scrubber and 2 drops of camp soap after each use. The board floats (barely), unlike knives and forks which experience proves are instantly sucked to the bottom of the lake. After each trip I clean the board with bleach. Every year or two I use a cabinet scraper to remove the small ridges of plastic created when I cut too deep. This reduces the depth of the cut marks and makes it easier to clean the board.Fish Cleaning Setup.JPG
 
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