Why does the "Nessmuk" or "simi skinner" blade pattern exist?

N

Naphtali

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May 20, 2002
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I have handled what Loveless identified as "simi skinner" from Loveless, Morseth (original laminated blade), and Cold Steel. I'm nearly certain that many custom makers also make a version of this knife pattern. The owner of the Morseth knife said its pattern is based on a turn-of-the-twentieth-century knife by "Nessmuk" (spelling??), a well-known outdoor writer.

What is this unusual yet interesting looking blade shape supposed to do better than more conventional patterns? Does the pattern, in fact, do that job better?

My instinctive reaction to the blade shape was that - like fishing lures - it is intended to lure buyers.
 
The "Nessmuk" pattern of knife was basically just a commercial lamb skinner with a fancy stag handle on it. Any butcher back in the day would have recognized it immediately as such. They're an excellent do-all skinning and processing knife for small to medium game.

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nessmuk-knife.jpg
 
I can understand the long sweeping belly for skinning, but I've always wondered why the big hump on the back? That part doesn't make a lot of sense, it's the exact opposite feature you would want if you ever intended to extend a finger along the spine for extra control.
 
I could be wrong but I thought they were originally used for processing small game, with the hump being a modified "spoon" of sorts if necessary. I have also heard somewhere they were really good for skinning hide, although I have not done it myself. I have used mine extensively for other tasks, large and small, and the hump is actually quite comfortable for choking up and extending your index finger for precision.
 
So when you choke up you can grasp the hump with your finger and thumb? I just tried that with the closest thing I could find, and it does feel like a handle of sorts. So thanks, that's the best explanation of the hump I've seen so far. :thumbsup: Not sure about the spoon idea, but maybe as a scraper for cleaning up (defleshing?) a hide after skinning? Total guess there...
 
It allows you to more readily cut from the flesh side without pricking the meat with the tip. Ride the hump along the meat and it gives excellent control over the elevation/presentation of the point, which is usually very slightly rounded rather than acute.
 
Yep, that's basically it. Find that sweet spot and it's actually relatively comfortable. I believe FortyTwoBlades also hit the nail on the head.
 
The dates are off for its development. The Nessmuk is one of the earliest real hunting/outdoor patterns offered. It predates almost all smaller hunting patterns and probably the smaller skinning patterns listed above. When you look at what was available back before the knife was made, you basically had two or three knives offered for use by sportsmen - 1) Bowies and Bowie Style Hunting knives, 2) Fancy butcher patterns that were dressed up for outdoorsmen, and perhaps for the really well healed, something from the private cutlers like Price or Will and Finck.

Also it set a different size standard for what was considered an outdoor knife back then. It is extremely rare to find any small hunters offered before the 20th century with a blade 5" or smaller which the Nessmuk is. Outdoor knives up till that point were generally at their smallest a 6" blade to about 10" at its largest.

At it's heart it is really just a small skinner, and it's debatable whether it is better than other small skinners. But it also represented a new way to look at both outdoor knives and outdoorsmanship to the late 19th century audience.
 
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tltt said:
The dates are off for its development. The Nessmuk is one of the earliest real hunting/outdoor patterns offered. It predates almost all smaller hunting patterns and probably the smaller skinning patterns listed above. When you look at what was available back before the knife was made, you basically had two or three knives offered for use by sportsmen - 1) Bowies and Bowie Style Hunting knives, 2) Fancy butcher patterns that were dressed up for outdoorsmen, and perhaps for the really well healed, something from the private cutlers like Price or Will and Finck.

Also it set a different size standard for what was considered an outdoor knife back then. It is extremely rare to find any small hunters offered before the 20th century with a blade 5" or smaller which the Nessmuk is. Outdoor knives up till that point were generally at their smallest a 6" blade to about 10" at its largest.

At it's heart it is really just a small skinner, and it's debatable whether it is better than other small skinners. But it also represented a new way to look at both outdoor knives and outdoorsmanship to the late 19th century audience.
Click to expand...

Lamb skinners have been popular for a loooooooong time and were contemporary to George Sears.
 
Proof? I honestly have never seen one dated to 1884 or earlier, which it would have to be to predate Nessmuk. I mean like a catalog page, etc.... Not pushing the issue to be a dick, but lamb skinners, sheep skinners, etc.... haven't been shown to be in production that early.
 
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There were some commercial hunting knives sold in the very early 20th century that looked a lot like lamb skinners but I have yet to see the pattern in 19th century butcher knife lines. Russell didn't catalog it until the 1920-30 period.
 
Blue Sky said:
I can understand the long sweeping belly for skinning, but I've always wondered why the big hump on the back? That part doesn't make a lot of sense, it's the exact opposite feature you would want if you ever intended to extend a finger along the spine for extra control.
Click to expand...
The hump is because it was probably a longer sheep skinner's
blade that snapped and was reprofiled.
 
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I have wondered about the hump, I wonder if it was also used for scraping without having to damage the main edge. Sharp spine, of course just an idea, would be useful, would using the spine to shave hide be an older idea or modern idea? I also wonder if shaving bark off the tree for tinder was an idea for such a hump. Would a butcher of meat cutter have any thoughts on the hump's use?
 
The explanation that its to scrape hide makes sense to me, since you don't always need a sharpish edge, at least as far as I understand, It could also make for a stronger blade at a given thickness, and it gives more blade sweep, while maintaining the balance along that axis. Since one tends to hold a knife edge sidewards during skinning, or rather, can, balance in that direction would help keep from having torsion and tireing the hand?

At the end of the day, its probably a lot like a lot of patterns "totally planned" but sometimes that just works out.
 
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