After the Shot - How Can I Make the Whole Process as Easy as Possible?

After many years of dear stalking I have come across many innovative and ingenious pieces of equipment that have made my life a lot easier. This is how and why Coolgame (UK) Ltd was born.

I will admit I do like gadgets but they must always be of the highest quality and utility. I only sell products I believe in and use myself, this is and always will be the motto of Coolgame.

So let me start from the beginning, from when the beast has been shot and I will take you through what I use to get the job done.

The Gralloch
The problem with hunting knives is that most are designed to do everything including: bleeding the carcass, gralloching and skinning. Unfortunately this means that they don't usually do any one thing very well. Knives with gutting hooks are a gimmick and get stuck in the carcass if you use them to bleed out the chest cavity.

For the gralloch I use a special knife I call the gutting knife, with a bullet shape tip which will not puncture the gut when the gralloch is performed.

First you pinch the skin between thumb and for finger, make a cut, then insert the gutting knife and cut forward towards the chest cavity. You can also use the same knife to expose the wind pipe and throat.

To open the chest cavity in the field I use the bone saw found in the Hunters Mate or my larger bone saw when back at base.

Getting the Carcass Home
The Hunters Mate is a unique device that allows you to attach a handle to the beast. It is inserted into the V of the jaw bone, and if inserted properly, will not fall out.

This handle will not twist your wrist will dragging, as it incorporates a swivel joint. For larger species like fallow or red I use the nylon strap provided and also a strong friend if present. There is NO other device as good as this for dragging deer out of awkward places. The Hunters Mate only weighs 140 grams, it fits in your pocket, is dishwasher proof and will last you a life-time.

Chilling & Hanging the Carcass
Now you have got your beast home and the temperature outside is 20 degrees !!!
Before I purchased my game fridge my life was miserable. I love my stalking, but returning home at 11pm with a Roe deer that needed butchering down straight away because the temperature outside was still to warm, coupled with those pesky flies and work the next day just caused me too much stress.

So I invested in a LANDIG game fridge, the best decision I ever made and now I can enjoy my stalking again.

I hang my beast from a stainless steel gambrel and wash out the carcass with clean tap water if necessary, I then like to let the carcass cool out naturally, but with flies about I place the deer inside the game fridge using either stainless steel swivel hooks or mini gambrels and set the temperature to about 8 degrees and leave overnight.

The next morning I reduce the temperature to 4/5 degrees for the rest of the hanging process. Please read my article on hanging game for in-depth details.

Skinning the Carcass
I have managed to devise a simple, fast and effective way of skinning deer. Please follow the link to Skinning Deer.

Butchering the Carcass
One thing I have learnt is that if you have the right tools the job is easier, quicker, and more pleasurable to do.

In the beginning I used any tools I could get my hands on, domestic knives, wood saws and so on. Now I carry a full range of Professional butchering equipment. The four piece knife set with board and steel is what I use along with bone saw, rib stripper cleaver and mallet. All the professional tools you need to do the job.

The four piece knives set is top quality and are sharp as razors. The set incorporate two boning knives, steak knife and general purpose knife along with sharpening steel and large cutting board. The meat cleaver makes light work of bones and is nicely weighted.

The bone saw, a very important tool, cuts through bones like butter, a must for everyone. The mallet is used to beat out flat steaks and the rip stripper removes the rib meat for use in mincing. Nothing goes to waste.

For those of you who want the best I have a special range of three knives of the highest quality. A 13cm and 15cm curved boning knife with soft grip handle and of course the gutting knife with bullet shape tip. All these tested high quality goods you can purchase from www.coolgameuk.com the home of stalking associated goods, selected by a stalker and not by a pen pusher.

Andrew