When ESEE finally decided to make knives specifically for hunters, they sought advice and opinions from some of the best in the industry, and the Ashley Game Knife (AGK) was designed by Ashley Emerson. As a guide and hunter from Alaska to Africa, Ashley has had opportunities to deal with hundreds of deer, many more wild hogs, and other animals from squirrels to buffalo. As he has with guns, he’s used many different knives and modified them to fit what works, and the AGK was born from his vast experience handling game in the field. The lengths of both the blade and the handle have been optimized for leverage for jobs like splitting a sternum. The handle incorporates a guard, a full tang, a proven grip shape, and a radiused lanyard hole large enough for a loop of 550 cord. The scales are Canvas Micarta (orange G10 also available), which is a solid handle material that doesn’t slip when wet. Ashley has used a wide variety of scale materials, and he prefers Micarta for working knives, as the grip and feel is way more important when working game than the scales being impervious to sweat, blood, and other fluids. Like the blade, the scales develop a great “worn-in” look with use. The blade width allows for working inside the pelvic cavity of the average whitetail, and the subtle sweep of the blade places the point in line with the handle. This still allows an optimal drop point and an edge that is continually curved. With no sharpening notch at the choil, you won’t have to worry about the knife catching on hides.
