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I only have one hand so cleaning fish can give me a little grief sometimes.
My entire life I have used a manual fillet knife and am pretty decent at producing a nice fillet.
My wife bought a Rapala electric knife for my Christmas present yesterday trying to make things easier on me. It is a Rapala that works on 12 volt or 110 volt power.
The reviews are not very good on it. I would like some opinions from you folks that have went electric. I will exchange it and pay an upgrade if needed. The battery knives are tempting but the reviews indicate a corded 110 volt model as the strongest.
I do 99% of my filleting at home anyway so having a plug-in knife is a do-able option.
I am mostly wanting to hear about longevity, strength, and blade quality.
Thanks all.
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[#0000FF]I have owned or used most of the electric fillet knives on the market. In my opinion, a good electric will definitely help you do a better job...if you have one of those clips to hold the head while you make the cuts. It is been my experience that I get better quality fillets, faster, and with less physical exertion or stress.
Sorry I can't give a glowing opinion of the Rapala. I have tried one a couple of times and am not pleased with it. The main issue (for me) is that the blades are designed with longer "points" on the serrations. They do not cut as cleanly and as easily as most other models.
The Mr. Twisters have been around a long time but they do not last a long time. Weak motors and faster burnout.
I have been a longtime fan of the American Angler knives. I still have one that I have had for almost 10 years...and it is still my main electric in my drawer at home. In my travel kit I have both a 110 v and a 12 v. They are essentially the same motor and I use both...but always use the 110 when I have power available. The AAs have upgraded their motors and have gotten spendier in recent years but they have good knives and the blades are about the best I have used.
Fillet knives are like any other item of tackle or gear. Everybody develops their own opinions and preferences. I know guys who have the Rapalas and like them fine. But they are usually guys who have only owned or used one electric...and it was usually given to them as a present.
I used "regular" fillet knives for years...both for sport fishing and on commercial fishing boats. I can still do a pretty fair job of filleting out a pile of fish with those knives, but I really do prefer the electrics. They take a little practice to develop the muscle memory and techniques but I think that you will quickly discover the benefits.
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Trade it for the American Angler if you can.
You will be happy that you did.
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Thanks Pat and DKS.
Been to two Walmarts already with the Walmart sku number I pulled off their internet site and received absolutely zero help in finding an American Angler knife to fondle.
It appears it is very difficult to hire good help nowadays.
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Sounds like you are leaning towards the American Angler option. I've used a couple of electric knives and I still own a Mister Twister. It is slowly dying and I still need to sharpen the blades to see if that will help things. I doubt it. Anyhow, I have been looking at the American Angler knives on amazon. i haven't found one locally. I told my Dad about these last year when I asked Pat what fillet knives he fancied. I still haven't laid down the silver for one yet but my Dad did and he has nothing bad to say about them. Just my two cents...
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[#0000FF]At one time they were available almost everywhere. Not so much these days. As suggested, the best option is Amazon.
You know where I live. I'd be glad to show you the ones I have and even fillet a couple of fish if you get lucky. Done that before.
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Shane - Give her a big smootch and say thank you! I've had a rapala electric for about 10 years and it's been used A LOT.
I don't use it on perch and gills - they're faster and easier with the regular rapala, but I've cleaned hundreds and hundreds of Stripers. SM, whities and walleye, and, as you know, bass species have hard bones. The rapala electric has never given me trouble. Not once. I've run it long, hard and pretty hot at the Powell cleaning station.
So, you can trade it in and there may be much better brands - but my 2 cents.
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Shane, I too have an American Angler that I've had for many years. It is a 12 volt, plugs into my boat. I have used it on hundreds of strippers and never had any problem other than wear out a couple sets of blades. It takes a lot of power to go through those heavy bones and it has never struggled.
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I've had a Rapala electric fillet knife for two years. It's the model that came with a hard case and it runs on 110AC and 12V DC. I've used it both ways and never have had a problem. I'm happy with the performance and it seems to do a good job. Sure makes quick work on the perch, walleye, striped bass and crappie. I've used it from my boat at Lake Powell when we filleted many fish caught during the gill net survey trips. Durability seems good so far.
Mike
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I started using electric fillet knives in 1988 when I was in grad school. We went through just about all the models, but back then, there really weren't that many. Mister Twisters just don't have a strong motor and don't do a good job. In fact my neighbor had a brand new Mister Twister and the motor was so weak that I was cleaning about 3 fish for every 1 of his. I use a Browning (but made by American Angler). I have had it about 10 years or so. I finally burned out the powersupply (plug in), but found one on Ebay and now its working once again. It can work on 110v or can hook to a 12v battery. I've used it in both circumstances and I usually clean fish at home so I use the 110v more. Both work great. It can clean 8" perch, big trout and even halibut! I'd buy one again in a heart beat! If you want to see if your Rapala motor is strong, plug it in and grip the TOP of the blades while they are in the handle and pull the trigger to turn it on. If you can easily pinch the top of the blades together and stop it from working, the motor is weak. If it is not possible to stop the blades by pinching the tops together, you should have a good knife.
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I like my American Angler. I started out with an Angler's Best cordless that my wife bought me and I cussed it every time I used it, and always ended up using my "manual" fillet knife. My American Angler is the 110v with 3 blade sizes, and I ordered it directly from the company several years ago. It was sort of pricey, but I've never regretted it. It has the power and quality to always do a good job, even on the bigguns.
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