blade play on opinel

D

davide

Joined
Apr 5, 2009
Messages
267
Didn't think I'd have to write a post like this so quickly after getting my first knife of this sort, but here goes:

I dropped my opinel with the blade open and locked and now the bolter ring seems to have loosened ever so slightly. When the blade is open and the bolster is slid so as to lock the blade there is an ever so slgiht amount of play. I can hear the blade click as I rock it back and forth. Is there anyway to tigthen the bolster back up? Or should I just live with it? It's not as though I planned to use this knife for anything outside of cutting food, boxes and rope, but there's something satisfying in having the blade lock tight.
 
Are you talking about the locking collar, or the steel pivot area under it? If its the collar, simply tighten it more.
 
Hi,

I meant the locking collar. How would I go about tightening it? Even when it is slid as far to the side as possible, I can still rock the blade back and forth a tiny bit with moderate force. Like I said before, I don't think it'll impede the functionality of the knife at all, it's just disheartening.

Edit: Roger, you posted while I was writing my original reply. Thanks for the tip.
 
If the wood shrinks, there is only so much the locking collar can do, as it is working off the inner collar, and can't press against the wood to take up slack. Try soaking the entire collar assembly in linseed oil, or kitchen-safe mineral oil. This should swell the wood which will press against the blade. On the down side, you may need to do the "Opinel Tap" to get it to open.

If this doesn't work, you will--as has been suggested--need to disassemble the collars.
 
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