Skinning a Deer with a Stone Knife

This is an educational processing of a deer with stone age tools and techniques. We show how effective and efficient properly sharpened stone tools are in the real world application of breaking down a deer.
The full Bison Breakdown with stone tools video can be found here. • Skinning and Butcherin...
Stone Knives can be ordered (and custom made) at gillsprimitive...

[@docv73]

I do 90% of my deer processing by hand. Skinning can easily be done by making a starter cut, then peeling the skin off, just using your finger tips as a wedge. That works better in the cold, but still works on warm deer. A warm deer might just need a few more rakes with the blade across stubborn areas near joints. Then to debone, after a starter cut on a muscle or joint, you can just pull the muscle or muscle group and it peels off the bone, or peel it apart from the other muscles. The silver skin makes a great landmark for where muscles will simply pull apart if you make a starter cut running parallel with the lines of silver skin - which makes a sack around the individual muscle. The tougher the cut of meat is, the thicker that silver skin is, and the easier it will separate after making the starter cut. In your video, you even talk about it while working the hips. The backstrap, is a perfect, easy example, that pulls completely clean from the bone after just running a cut down the spine to the ribs, and across the hip. The only reason I mention it is because you talk about saving the blade edge, and you can minimize how much you have to use it by pulling instead of cutting. You also talk about how it's getting warm and you want to get the deer processed and cooled off, and using a starter cut, then pulling is A LOT faster than feathering cuts with a knife.

[@barriereid9244]

I lived in the Sahara for over a decade and took a kukri and Opinel No 8. I found many stone age tools there and is literally littered with flint tools, mortar and pestles, hand axes. I found a curved piece of flint, about the length of my forefinger. Prior to this find I used my Opinel to cut the carotid artery of goats and skin them. Then the curved flint arrived and was perfect for skinning.

[@bracoop2]

It’s crazy to think that the Saharan desert was a rainforest.

[@calebchristian404]

Just in case anybody didn’t know but native peoples didn’t use every part of the animal. They had uses for about every part but to use every part every time is so impractical. They also didn’t have a concept waste. If humans didn’t eat or use it something else will.

[@chrisgriffith9252]

Which makes it a bait trap for killing or capturing future animals.

[@garrettmillsap]

Always cool to see how effective primitive tools actually are. Enjoy your videos!

[@stihl888]

Thanks Ryan, this video was a treat to watch! Can't wait for the following videos of you processing the valuable resources for materials.

[@samhouston6536]

You make everything look soooooo easy.Keep it up. You are educating the non hunters plus inspiring us as well.

[@beowulfshaeffer8444]

Now, this is the kind of video we should've been shown back in hunters' ed class :)

[@drivethelightning]

Excellent camera and knife work. I've only cleaned 3-4 deer but had no idea they didn't have shoulder sockets. I want that book

[@Wheelinhunter1776]

Love seeing road kill not go to waste! I wish it was more commonly utilized. My little sister shot a forkie that was a little smaller than that one 😂

[@jzoer392]

That little part you mentioned with all the sinew make it into osso buco

[@JBoone319]

Your videos are amazing, thank you for what you do🙏! Much obliged!🤙

[@NORTH02]

I think I am going to try stone tools on my next deer!

[@linechaay6430]

I love your work! You're a major inspiration for me!

[@Afro408]

Good job Ryan. You say it's the hair that blunts the knife. I think it's more the fine dust on the hair that is the culprit. Also, as we say down here, 'He who eats the most hair, eats the most goat!' :D

[@LUCKYB.]

You cn peal a deer him once major cuts are made , with a wooden stick with a chisel end on it and your hand and your elbo Deer hide is so easy to peal Kinda like a rabbit .did You cut the anas loose already ? Thats silver skin that is that second skin around the meat and muscle .

[@wk9953]

Silver skin is another name for sinew, and not a skin at all just a membrane

[@simonlindholm5732]

Would you be able to skin an animal with quartz or maybe some other things except knappable rocks?

[@veteranironoutdoors8320]

At least she got hit on the front quarter where theres only like 5lb of meat. Would have been a major let down if one of them hams was bruised up like that. EDIT: thanks for showing all them sinew locations! That needs to be its own dedicated and detailed video!

[@theyoungoutdoorsman5814]

Absolutely amazing love it ryan 👍🏻

[@headhunter7049]

I kept getting a whiff of deer meat as I watched you strip off it's britches and shirt. Made me hungry!

[@ChopinIsMyBestFriend]

Would be cool to see a video of you sinew backing a bow.

[@janrobertbos]

.......and again...........what a video!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

[@bonesstones6584]

Excellent video Ryan! I've processed so many deer on the tailgate of my truck that when I tried hanging a deer I was somewhat lost. I can skin and quarter a deer in about 20 minutes using two knives, all while laying on my tailgate. Will you be posting a pottery video?

[@baileybrunson42]

Excellent tutorial on game processing.. I have to ask though.. where do you source your flint..?

[@magiczero4]

i wonder if quartz could be used. it's vary hard but i have no clue if it would be sharp enough to cut skin.

[@cretudavid8622]

Can't really sharpen and knap quartz. Been there seen it.

[@christopherfisher128]

Don't take this as gospel but I would 100% bet that you made the correct assumption & that deer was hit but not killed & had to be put down, or made it into someone's yard before surrendering to the internal damage. The marks on the hide & flesh of your deer, look a lot like the one that hit my Taurus, back a few years ago. Yep, you read that correctly, a very large Buck had tried to jump the road, and landed on my windshield out of nowhere! I 'bout peed myself, and had to take a few to recover my composure after keeping my car from the ditch, lol. The impact was not enough to kill the animal outright, but broke his hips, and the Sheriff had to put him down. That deer had the same bruising, and capillary/vessel damage to the inside of the animal. As a side note, I got 108lbs of usable meat out of Half of a Corn fed Indiana Buck! Took the precaution of avoiding the back half, from the ribs on, due to the massive damage done by my car and the rupture of some of the internals causing some potential contamination. Always enjoy the reality, and honesty of your content. Keep doing the things :)

[@dawninarizonanow9252]

Can you make a video of you hunting an animal with an actual sphere not in atlatl

[@dawninarizonanow9252]

I meant spear

[@linechaay6430]

I'd love to see him do this!

[@oliversliveonyt1232]

spears are for stabbing and it's hard to get close

[@chomejsky11]

Will you do an episode about sewing leather clothes?

[@LUCKYB.]

Use what you dont use for gator bait gator love deer.

[@timurtimak6372]

I heard people did brain surgery in the Stone Age. No KZbin videos of that process...

[@dawninarizonanow9252]

I meant to say spear

[@singingdada2710]

Engagement.