Blame Carl...

LKJW

LKJW

Joined
Nov 21, 2010
Messages
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Well, after the discussion of a peanut sized opinel, I couldn't help myself. And I am very surprised to say that it has been in my pocket every day since I got it. I haven't been as tickled with a knife in ages. Thanks, Carl. And I heartily suggest you guys try it. A ten dollar experiment that turned out VERY well in my case. It's so light it is absurd.

This may very well be a game changer...
 
The #2? I might have to pick it up, i have yet to get an Opinel so maybe I'll toss one in as im ordering a full size one.
 
I bought a couple of #2s whilst in England for gifts and a #10 for myself.Choice.
 
Opinels cause cognitive dissonance. I have way "nicer" knives but I still want to carry and use my #6 for everything. Crazy.
 
I have a few opinels from tiny to #8 I believe. I use the smallest one to hold the key to my pad lock. It hangs nicely on wall. :)
 
LKJW said:
Well, after the discussion of a peanut sized opinel, I couldn't help myself. And I am very surprised to say that it has been in my pocket every day since I got it. I haven't been as tickled with a knife in ages. Thanks, Carl. And I heartily suggest you guys try it. A ten dollar experiment that turned out VERY well in my case. It's so light it is absurd.

This may very well be a game changer...
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How snug do you have the pivot on it? Is it a number 4 or 5?

I'm finding friction folders beguiling. I like the no spring design and the simplicity of it. And like you said, with no springs or liners, it's insanely light weight. This may be a game changer for me as well.

Carl.
 
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LKJW said:
Well, after the discussion of a peanut sized opinel, I couldn't help myself. And I am very surprised to say that it has been in my pocket every day since I got it. I haven't been as tickled with a knife in ages. Thanks, Carl. And I heartily suggest you guys try it. A ten dollar experiment that turned out VERY well in my case. It's so light it is absurd.

This may very well be a game changer...
Click to expand...

Well, you and everyone on this thread prompted me to go see if it was available on (non BF dealer reference removed) for a low price. Budget is tight this month and I can't be buying all sorts of toys, no matter how sharp or fun they are.

Nevertheless I saw that that the No 8 was slightly larger, over all, then I would want to carry around in my pocket and the Number 6 was a little bit too small. Might pick up the Number 6 in the future as it may prove to be a great whittling knife or a great knife for smaller precision intricate cuts.

So I took the Goldilocks deal and put in an order for the Opinel No 7 and it has a blade length of, I believe, 3.2" which is perfect for a non-clip-on, keep it in your pocket type of pocket-knife. I ordered as traditional as possible so I'm expecting a beechwood handle carbon steel knife.

I actually use to have an Opinel many years ago when I was a kid and I proceeded to lose it as is to be expected from a 12 year old.

So here's the kicker, the Opinel with the Beechwood handle and carbon steel blade cost me a whopping ELEVEN dollars and some cents and that includes shipping. Though to get the free shipping you have to be an (non BF dealer reference removed).

I hadn't thought about Opinel in a long long time so thanks for posting this thread and making me think of them as it resulted in an astonishingly good deal on a very good knife.

Edit: BTW, it should be here in 2 days but since it's early Friday morning I would suspect it won't get to my house till around Monday. When it arrives and after I've had a few minutes to get reacquainted I'll post pictures.
 
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Haha. To me opinels are like the classic Ontario machetes. Awesome, even better when modded, affordable to a comical extent and they can make you wonder why you ever want more.
 
I have to admit that even as a kid I found the Opinel to be actually beautiful in form due to the ultra simple design. My understanding is that the Classic Opinel pocket knife has been praised greatly by various factions of the art world in the last 30 years of the 20th century.
 
I went with the #4. Ideal size. And another benefit of the lightweight besides just common sense...it never tries to slip out of the pocket. I hate to admit it, but I think the opinel is just about perfect.

Carl, the pivot is as snug as it came. Pretty tight, but not hard to open by any means. Just the way I'd want it. The ONLY flaw in the knife is that it needs and EO notch in this small a size if you got big hands like me. But you can solve that problem in less than five minutes. I liked my #8, but day to day - #4 is tough to beat. I will carry this knife for many years to come.
 
LKJW said:
I went with the #4. Ideal size. And another benefit of the lightweight besides just common sense...it never tries to slip out of the pocket. I hate to admit it, but I think the opinel is just about perfect.

Carl, the pivot is as snug as it came. Pretty tight, but not hard to open by any means. Just the way I'd want it. The ONLY flaw in the knife is that it needs and EO notch in this small a size if you got big hands like me. But you can solve that problem in less than five minutes. I liked my #8, but day to day - #4 is tough to beat. I will carry this knife for many years to come.
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I've never had an Opinel that small. I love my number 8, but it is just too big to carry around in Washington D.C. or NYC. Let alone on a flight. Is the number 4 a good size match for a peanut? We're flying to Medford Oregon next july for a vacation on the Rogue river, and I was thinking of carrying something small for the trip, but still reluctant to risk my damascus peanut. I'm thinking of a number 4 or 5 Opinel for the trip. No doubt about it, they have some very thin blades!

I figure a little work with some sandpaper and a dowel rod, and I can have a nice easy open little knife that weights nothing in my pocket. Leaves more room for that RONCO pocket defibrillator.

Carl.
 
First, let me apologize for mentioning by name where I bought the knife, I was just excited and wasn't thinking along those terms.

As for size, I find in general a 3 inch blade is ideal for 99% of the things I need a pocket knife for. The Opinel 7 has a 3.2 inch blade and it's full length isn't too much though it hasn't arrived yet so I my thoughts are basically conjecture. If the No 7 turns out to be a little large to carry comfortably in my pocket I'll just drop down in size one or two numbers. I mean it's not like these things are expensive.

The elegance of this knife is also a major plus in it's favor. If you are out and about among people who don't carry pocket knives and you pull out a Spyderco Endura it might frighten a few folks. Them not knowing any better they could easily believe that it's a weapon and that I (or you) am a dangerous person.

Interestingly, the elegance of the Opinel, even one with a blade that's the same length as the one on the Endura, seems to keep people from freaking out. I've actually had this experience with other "elegant" knives.

The one thing I'm absolutely convinced of is that for $10-$15 per knife it's really hard to go wrong even if you just throw it in the glove compartment and forget about it.
 
I've been gifting Victorinox classics and other SAKs for years now. This thread has gotten me thinking about giving Opinels as gifts. People tend to frown on patinas, many have told me to clean up my knives with patina :confused: . However, I think that there are a few codgers and general miscreants out there that would appreciate a natural patina occurring on an Opinel.

I don't take anything else when I am out in the garden. I'm hoping I'll be able to work in the garden this year, after the accident. I've gotten the blade on my no 8 sharper than some high end productions and customs!
 
I never considered the non locking versions until this thread popped up. Well I am now waiting for my #4 to be delivered!
 
Ogien said:
The elegance of this knife is also a major plus in it's favor. If you are out and about among people who don't carry pocket knives and you pull out a Spyderco Endura it might frighten a few folks. Them not knowing any better they could easily believe that it's a weapon and that I (or you) am a dangerous person.

Interestingly, the elegance of the Opinel, even one with a blade that's the same length as the one on the Endura, seems to keep people from freaking out. I've actually had this experience with other "elegant" knives.

The one thing I'm absolutely convinced of is that for $10-$15 per knife it's really hard to go wrong even if you just throw it in the glove compartment and forget about it.
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Ogien, you have touched on just one of the neat things about Opinel's. They are as people friendly as Peanuts. I've carried various size Opinel's over the 31 years I've played with them, and I've yet to have anyone say anything negative. Okay, once, but it was a number 12 that I reshaped the handle to a sort of Navaja look. But it did slice the limes very well!

But number 6's through number 8's, all seem to have a benevolent look to them, and as they have been displayed in museums of art, people must like something about them. But I think if more people would try to use them, they most certainly would buy them. I've owned a heck of a lot of knives in my life, to include high end customs. But I can honestly say that none of them were actually a better cutter than an Opinel. Oh sure, some of them would hold an edge better, being forged 5160 by a master smith of the A.B.S., but as for actually cutting a piece of rope, opening a box, slicing stuff on the cutting board in the kitchen, not really better. Plus, the Opinel can replaced for the price of a couple for beers down at the corner pub. Unlike the hand forged blade. After having Karen loose one of my knives over board in deep water, I kept that in mind.

I've never had one under the number 6, but I could have a number 4 in the near future and blame it on the author of this thread.:D

Carl.
 
Go for it, Carl! I agree about the aesthetics of Opinels...my wife's favorite knife design. I think the #4 is about perfect for how I use a knife on a day to day basis (cutting up snacks, whittling, fishing - I'm a writer, so I don't need a big blade often). I'll get you a size comparison pic. Hold up....

....and here it is folks. The mighty tiny opinel: With a #6, SBJ, and an 12OT - 12OT is 25 grams, opinel #4 is 8.5. Not the best pic, but you get the idea. ;)

knifelineup_zpsfef0b5f8.jpg
 
Great Idea LKJW, thanks for the tip. I was just reading that the OP-3, OP-4, and OP-5 don't lock:thumbup:
 
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jackknife said:
Ogien, you have touched on just one of the neat things about Opinel's. They are as people friendly as Peanuts. I've carried various size Opinel's over the 31 years I've played with them, and I've yet to have anyone say anything negative. Okay, once, but it was a number 12 that I reshaped the handle to a sort of Navaja look. But it did slice the limes very well!

But number 6's through number 8's, all seem to have a benevolent look to them, and as they have been displayed in museums of art, people must like something about them. But I think if more people would try to use them, they most certainly would buy them. I've owned a heck of a lot of knives in my life, to include high end customs. But I can honestly say that none of them were actually a better cutter than an Opinel. Oh sure, some of them would hold an edge better, being forged 5160 by a master smith of the A.B.S., but as for actually cutting a piece of rope, opening a box, slicing stuff on the cutting board in the kitchen, not really better. Plus, the Opinel can replaced for the price of a couple for beers down at the corner pub. Unlike the hand forged blade. After having Karen loose one of my knives over board in deep water, I kept that in mind.

I've never had one under the number 6, but I could have a number 4 in the near future and blame it on the author of this thread.:D

Carl.
Click to expand...

Yeah they really look so benign and yet they are no more and no less dangerous than my Spyderco Para2 or Endura 4 but these two knives look like something "Tactical" so they are scary. Funny thing is that, if the Spyderco or the Opinel, were to be in the wrong hands I can pretty much guarantee that I wouldn't want to be stabbed by either one as they would likely cause similar damage to me.

As for ending up with a Number 4? I might be in that boat with you my friend.
 
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