Heavy Opinel Use

[Vivi]

I've seen a lot of people calling Opinels excessively weak and unreliable tools more fit for the kitchen than anything else. They do have many weaknesses, such as low resistance to water and low tourqing strength, but I think their capabilities are greatly understated here in these forums. I'm going to use this thread to post photos of some harder use moments of me and my Opinels.

*The Opinel is a size #10 and the lock is kept disengaged while batoning.



The initial cut. Not a thick branch by any means, but it will work for an example of how things are done.



Some splitting visible.



Opinel batons through a section of wood.



Initial cut finished. These were broken in half then split a few more times, with some one of the pieces being used for shavings.



Dug a small pit, rolled up a dead log and placed the splits above the shavings.



One of the most serene moments I've ever captured on photo.



Still shaves, after having gone through for about 15 fires worth since the last strop or sharpen. Some nice, plain old carbon steel seems to get the job done just fine.

This is by far not the most optimal tool to split open wood for a fire, but it is readily capable. What I did was excessive, in a normal situation I would baton it through for half a foot to ten inches, then use a round piece of wood (Usually the baton itself) to press into the split and finish the work. This is quicker than carving a wedge. This is just to demonstrate that a 12$ Opinel can easily stand up to being hammered through pieces of wood. Hard, soft, dead, alive, knotty or true, I've blazed through it all with no problems so far.

I'm not a fixed blade kind of guy. They have a clear advantadge in many areas, such as strength and reliability, but if I can get by using a large opinel to baton and a SAK Saw to section off wood, then I much prefer that lightweight combo to an axe or fixed blade. I carry small, light loads because I enjoy exploring and I value mobility.

Here are some additional photos from this outing of local wildlife and fungii.

http://i9.tinypic.com/30hrc04.jpg
http://i9.tinypic.com/33z42lf.jpg
http://i9.tinypic.com/47x5c14.jpg
http://i9.tinypic.com/2a91xl3.jpg
http://i10.tinypic.com/2qnxq93.jpg
http://i10.tinypic.com/2hgbij8.jpg
http://i9.tinypic.com/2qmg4fs.jpg
http://i9.tinypic.com/2iuteoh.jpg
http://i9.tinypic.com/2l8ey4o.jpg
http://i9.tinypic.com/2rfsioh.jpg
http://i10.tinypic.com/4ck56gx.jpg
http://i10.tinypic.com/315zf36.jpg

[alephlex]

Hi Vivi,

Great photos and thread -- impressive how the opinel holds up.

Can you tell me about your batonning technique. In the first photo, the opinel is unlocked but it appears locked in the rest. How do you have it when you baton -- locked? unlocked? Do you tap the end of the spine near the tip?

Thanks -- excuse the questions. I've never battoned with a folder before adn am curious.

[Cliff Stamp]

Nice work, what is the edge angle/finish on your opinel.

-Cliff

[Vivi]

Thanks for the words Alephax.

When I baton with the Opinel, I keep it unlocked at all times. From reading Cliff's work I learned that when batoning with a folder, keeping it unlocked will take the stress off the lock. Keeping the folders lock could cause the lock to fail and possibly damage the knife.

I keep the Opinel unlocked and with as much blade exposed as possible. I bang on the tip end on top of the blade. When the tip dip down, I pull up on the handle and re-position, then swing some more. I keep some downward pressure on the handle while doing this, the amount of pressure depending on the branch thickness. For smaller ones you can really press down and have the knife move from your force alone after the baton strike.

Most companies tell customers not to baton with folders, so I guess it can be problematic. I've had good success with this and my larger SAK (Which I'll do photos of in the future). Also, I've seen some posts about hitting on the handle side with short knives like these, so if I come across one of those threads again maybe I'll try out those techniques.

Cliff: I don't know how to measure edge angle, was actually meaning to ask you about that. I got the Opinel new and put an edge on it with a medium stone, no idea what grit. The edge has gotten a bit smoother and sharper since being used with all my woodworking. It's just one bevel held at a fairly low angle on the stone, you can kind of see it in the armhair photo.

[alephlex]

Thanks Vivi, for a detailed account of how you baton with the opinel. I'll have to try it one day. It's certainly good to know that it can be done.

[Cliff Stamp]

You can calculate the bevel angle directly from measuring the edge geometry but unless the bevel is fairly wide and you have calipers this is difficult. It is however pretty easy to estimate from your honing :

(distance from center of spine to stone) / (blade width) * 58

This formula is an approximation to arcsin but the difference is insignificant for cutlery angles. For example, an opinel which is held 1/4" off the stone is 19.3 (approx) vs 19.5 (exact).

-Cliff

[Vivi]

From eyeballing it and using that formula I got 30 degrees. I can't be certain it's accurate because I'm having a hard time determining the angle I held it at.

[hardheart]

whoa, always getting new tidbits from these threads. Seems I'm sharpening my RD6 at about 15 per side. Perfect for when my sharpmaker comes in, I can check my consistency throughout the length of the edge with it.

Crazy versatile work with the Opinel, Vivi, hope the 8 serves you just as well.

[jackknife]

The Opinel has long been very underestimated by many on these forums. While they may not be as strong as a sebanza or one of those tactical strider jobs, they are by no means fragile. Opinels are a sturdy built knife for farmers and tradesmen with roots in the 1880's. I don't think a farmer in rural France in the 1890's would buy a fragile knife for his work.

I've been playing with Opinels since about 1982, and I've yet to have one let me down. The wealness around water can be fixed a great deal by finishing the handle inside and out including the blade pivot area, with Helmsman spar urathane. On a new opi leave the blade out just 90 degrees and use a pipe cleaner to get the urathne in the blade slot around the pivot. Let dry and give a light sanding with 500 grit paper and put on a second coat. I've taken opys I've done this with and put them in a glass of water submerged for 10-15 minutes and had them still funtion. After 20 minutes there is some stiffness, but they still funtion. You can even fold up the sandpaper to thicken it and sand the inside of the blade slot to give you more room for expansion if the wood swells before you do anything.

Or you can sand it down and use Minwax stain-sealer to get any color finish you want and then use the spar urathane.

The problem is the varnish Opinel uses is crap stuff and is not waterproof.

Vivi- its good to see some else really use an opi like it was made to be used. These are great knives. Backed up with a sak with a saw and you have a pretty decent survival combo.

[Wali]

Vivi,
Thanks for a great review and some really nice pictures.

[sodak]

Nice post, and nice woods too!

[Snoopy73]

I know many people that use them for their job. My grandfather had one and used it for practically everything, cutting an apple or work in the vineyard or carving wood. He always told me he had that thing since young, and this make it pre-WWII its now in the hands of the only one of my uncles that didnt deserve it, but the last time ive seen it it was still in great condition.
One way to stop the swelling and stabilize the wood once and forever its dip the handle in PEG (polyethylene glycol) or a little worse antifreeze (glycol). It displaces any moisture in the wood taking its place and cristallizes stopping swelling or shrinking. Coat the handle with epoxy to avoid the contact with the treated wood if youre sensitive to it.
The only complaint people that have them usually has is that they lose it somewhere.

[Vivi]

Originally Posted by sodak

Nice post, and nice woods too!

Thanks. It's just an undeveloped section of woods at the end of my neighborhood, bordering a golf course, another neighborhood and a real busy road. It's a pretty good sized place for where it is. There are even some whitetails back there. I had a photo of it from Google Earth I was going to show you, but I can't seem to find it.

Snoop: It would be nice if you had the knife, I'd love to see photos of one that old. I think that would make it old enough so that it only locked open, not closed as well. On the issue of losing them, the thick handle makes a nice imprint in the pocket. Helps you know when the knife is there, because otherwise they are pretty lightweight folders.

Jackknife: Informative post. I might play around with one of those sealants. The water issue hasn't been a problem for me yet. I haven't gotten caught in rain enough times without my coat yet I suppose.

I feel pretty confident with a #10 (Would like a 12) and my Victorinox Farmer.

[jackknife]

Hey Vivi-

The Minwax and helmsman urathane works well enough that when I dumped my kayak and swam ashore with my number 7 in my pocket, to emty out the water, that later that afternoon I opened it to cut some bread and cheese for a snack to feed the old lady and myself. My number 7 has taken alot of vey hard use in the past several years, as has my number 9 and 12. The 12 has been reshaped to give it a spanish Navaja look to it.

Little by little I've gotten to a streamlined Nessmuck kind of minimalisim- a couple good folders and a small hatchet or 12 inch machete. My folders, both Opinels and sak's seem to do for 99% of what I need, and for the other times I have my chopper blade. My favorite is a 10 inch golok shaped job I made out of a ground down 12 inch Ontario machete. I try to make well practiced techniques using the tools I always have around in my pockets work instead of lugging around many pounds of expencive gear.

[Vivi]

Seems we have similar philosophy concerning knives. Over in the wilderness forum I've mentioned how I think skills and techniques are far more important than gear. Gear can be lost, stolen, broken and so forth. Skills can be applied to multiple items of different size and material. If you have a Busse and can baton all day long with it, that's good and well, but what if you drop it down a cliff while exploring and have nothing but a 4 inch mora or a 3 inch folder? Can you still baton, or manage your firewood needs then?

I just got a nice Brusletto in a trade, so who knows, I might get a little more friendly with the idea of carrying a fixed blade. I'd hate to not use such a fine knife. But like you, I can carry my SAK Farmer and nothing else and feel prepared when trekking out.

[jackknife]

Originally Posted by Vivi

Seems we have similar philosophy concerning knives. Over in the wilderness forum I've mentioned how I think skills and techniques are far more important than gear. Gear can be lost, stolen, broken and so forth. Skills can be applied to multiple items of different size and material. If you have a Busse and can baton all day long with it, that's good and well, but what if you drop it down a cliff while exploring and have nothing but a 4 inch mora or a 3 inch folder? Can you still baton, or manage your firewood needs then?

I just got a nice Brusletto in a trade, so who knows, I might get a little more friendly with the idea of carrying a fixed blade. I'd hate to not use such a fine knife. But like you, I can carry my SAK Farmer and nothing else and feel prepared when trekking out.

Yeah, I think we may.

In my much younger day I used to feel the need for my Randall model 14 for just about anything off pavement. As I got older and wanting to cut my weight load, I gave some hard thought to the years of hking and backpacking I'd done, and I could'nt think of one time I had really needed it. The one time I did need an emergency tool, it was at home because I did not think it was needed on a close to home hike. Then my friends wife broke her ankle and he and I took our pocket knives and cut down a couple saplings by notching them all around and breaking them off. We made a servicable litter to carry Lura out of the woods to the car with my sak,(soldier model, no saw) and his buck stockman. They got the job done just fine, if a bit longer. I sold of the Randall soon after that.

These days I tend to just go with what in my pockets. My sak, an Opinel, my key ring that my wife calls my bat ring. I only have three keys on it, ( my truck key, cap tailgate lock key, and house key) but theres a Photon 2, a sak classic, and a aluminum Bison capsule (with some Ibuprophen for my arthritus,) and a small fire steel that thows good sparks with the back edge of the Opinel blade. I figure I can put together a debres hut and build a fire with my pockets contents.

If you use your head you can get pretty far with fire and a pocket knife.

[dantzk8]

Vivi,

Congrats, you really can use the Opinel. If you like frugal french knives have a look at this:

dantzk.

[dantzk8]

Sorry, something was wrong. here is the link:www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Set/2292/doukdoukrev.htm

dantzk.

[ivan51]

Great review and good pic's!

[Snoopy73]

Vivi, id like to have that knife too, as for the locking im sorry but i dont remeber if it locked when closed, i do remeber my grandpa just opening it so its possible it didnt lock when closed. On the other hand i dont rember him ever fiddling with it when closing it so its possible that he used it unlocked, lots of people born around farms had folders that dindnt lock.
My friends work in construction so their knives are more out than in the pocket, i know one contractor that lost 3 in the concrete while pouring, he simply goes " Ah $..t" and buys another.