Many years ago when I hunted a variety of big game in the US and Alaska I would read about a custom knife that would gut, and skin multiple big game animals without sharpening and still shave the hairs on your arm. I bought knives that claimed that and some factory knives that the writers touted, but never found a knife that would do as claimed.
Finally after spending a fair amount money, for the 60’s and 70’s I decided that the best course of action for me was to get knives that would hold an edge about as well as the rest, and carry a small 6 inch steel in my back pack to touch it up. Accordingly, I settled on a two bladed Camillus M 26 folding hunter.
After field dressing and skinning many deer, antelope, a couple of moose, and elk, sheep, goats and a couple of bears, I never looked back. It is on my shelf with a lot of other knives, but if I were to go on a big game hunt anywhere for anything that is the knife I would be carrying.
I have a good friend who used to make knives. He made them from commercial saw blades. He would not charge for them, and did not finish the blades, but left them black like the saw blades. He had letters for friends for whom he had made some who reported several big game animals processed in the field and that the knives would still shave. He made me several, and I would not part with them. If I mentioned a type of knife I wanted, just in passing, he showed up in time with such a knife and beautiful sheaths. I like sheaths that cover almost the complete knife, and snap. BUT, I did not find that they did not need touching up in the field, although they held their edges as well as any other knife.
So if one likes knives, and I do, then go for what suits you, but I will only believe the “don’t need sharpening” hype when I see it.
Several years ago, when the Sanrenmu knives began to be imported I bought a couple of their 710’s. One of the knife forums had mods and members who thought it was blasphemy to buy them since they were a copy of Chris Reeve’s knives. It mattered not that I was not going to buy a several hundred dollar knife in any case, they just almost banned me from the forum. None of that bothered me, and I like some of the Sanrenmu knives. I have also found the Rough Rider pocket knives to be fine for me. I carry a small canoe knife along with my AAA edc light in my pocket and find it useful.
Jerry