French regional knives...

Will Power · Aug 13, 2020

@Corto_Malt That Rossignol is exceptional

Odd bird the Nightingale-she sings here in Finland so melodiously in May/June when it's light all night, then she's gone. But she is nothing to look at either.

Look forward to you contributing more :thumbsup:

Regards, Will

Prester John · Aug 22, 2020

Le Langres, par Stephane Thomachot.

Corto_Malt · Aug 25, 2020

The Tiré-Droit is a regional knife from central France. 1 piece in black horn

Rose and Thistle Custom · Aug 28, 2020

Corto_Malt said:
The Tiré-Droit is a regional knife from central France. 1 piece in black horn

You definitely have some cool ones.

Corto_Malt · Aug 29, 2020

Rose and Thistle Custom said:
You definitely have some cool ones.

Thank you very much

Corto_Malt · Aug 29, 2020

An other regional knife : the gouttiere. Rural knife made for the Burgundy region. It takes its name from its hollowed bolster reminiscent of the shape of a gutter. The blade is shaped like a sheep's foot. Forced detent spring.

Modoc ED · Aug 29, 2020

This Opinel No. 8 came in yesterday. I've never had an Opinel before so thought I'd give one a try.

Vince @Prester John keeps showing his Laguiole as do many of you so, if I like this Opinel I just might try one.

Modoc ED · Aug 30, 2020

I seem to remember a year or more ago that there was some talk here at BF about Opinel making a change to their twist lock.

Anybody else remember this or am I just nuts today?

JTB_5 · Aug 30, 2020

capuchadou

jackknife · Aug 30, 2020

Modoc ED said:
I seem to remember a year or more ago that there was some talk here at BF about Opinel making a change to their twist lock. Anybody else remember this or am I just nuts today?

No ED, you're not nuts. For some very odd reason, and I smell a lawyer, they made the twist lock to rotate in only one direction, and added a little stupid divot so the twist lock could not be modified easy to engage more securely by rotating further. They took a great design and screwed with it so its harder to tinker with.

Apparently the French never heard the saying; "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Modoc ED · Aug 30, 2020

jackknife said:
No ED, you're not nuts. For some very odd reason, and I smell a lawyer, they made the twist lock to rotate in only one direction, and added a little stupid divot so the twist lock could not be modified easy to engage more securely by rotating further. They took a great design and screwed with it so its harder to tinker with.

Apparently the French never heard the saying; "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

Thanks Carl. :thumbsup:

Will Power · Aug 30, 2020

Corto_Malt said:
An other regional knife : the gouttiere. Rural knife made for the Burgundy region. It takes its name from its hollowed bolster reminiscent of the shape of a gutter. The blade is shaped like a sheep's foot. Forced detent spring.

Certainly like that one, very rustic

Thanks for the info about the knife's naming and origins. I think, De Gaulle is alleged to have said (paraphrase) that ruling a country that has c.360 different cheeses is always going to be challenging

seems France is as rich with her varieties of knives as well

I remember when I was very young and learning about horticulture&getting interested in it, I chanced upon Opinels and they were a revelation to me. So simple yet very clever, easy to open - no finger nail ripping spring, safe impossible to shut on yourself when taking cuttings from whippy twigs that can 'grab' a spring knife unpleasantly and close it on you

no liners, no backspring to get fouled up with grit, comfortable in the hand yet light in the pocket. First rate food knife and very durable. Simple brilliance and iconic. Always had a few but the No.8 is the standard for most people but I much prefer the No.6 stainless in my pocket, remember visiting France years ago and seeing GIANT display Opinels in some knife shops, size of the Grim Reaper's scythe

Thanks, Will

Prester John · Aug 30, 2020

jackknife said:
No ED, you're not nuts. For some very odd reason, and I smell a lawyer, they made the twist lock to rotate in only one direction, and added a little stupid divot so the twist lock could not be modified easy to engage more securely by rotating further. They took a great design and screwed with it so its harder to tinker with.

Apparently the French never heard the saying; "if it ain't broke, don't fix it."

You're probably right, Carl--lawyers are to blame.
I don't think the Opinel had a lock till about 1955, and then it was modified again about 20 years ago. But I find the lock can just be ignored. I never use it to lock the knife closed, and rarely to lock it open. I don't use it for stabbing, and it works fine without a lock.

Modoc ED · Aug 30, 2020

Prester John said:
You're probably right, Carl--lawyers are to blame.
I don't think the Opinel had a lock till about 1955, and then it was modified again about 20 years ago. But I find the lock can just be ignored. I never use it to lock the knife closed, and rarely to lock it open. I don't use it for stabbing, and it works fine without a lock.

I don't think the smaller ones (starting with the No. 5) even have locks.

Prester John · Aug 30, 2020

Modoc ED said:
I don't think the smaller ones (starting with the No. 5) even have locks.

I believe you're right, Ed, but those are too small for me. I love the No. 8.

Corto_Malt · Aug 31, 2020

Will Power said:
Certainly like that one, very rustic Thanks for the info about the knife's naming and origins. I think, De Gaulle is alleged to have said (paraphrase) that ruling a country that has c.360 different cheeses is always going to be challenging seems France is as rich with her varieties of knives as well

I remember when I was very young and learning about horticulture&getting interested in it, I chanced upon Opinels and they were a revelation to me. So simple yet very clever, easy to open - no finger nail ripping spring, safe impossible to shut on yourself when taking cuttings from whippy twigs that can 'grab' a spring knife unpleasantly and close it on you no liners, no backspring to get fouled up with grit, comfortable in the hand yet light in the pocket. First rate food knife and very durable. Simple brilliance and iconic. Always had a few but the No.8 is the standard for most people but I much prefer the No.6 stainless in my pocket, remember visiting France years ago and seeing GIANT display Opinels in some knife shops, size of the Grim Reaper's scythe

Thanks, Will

Thank you for the comment and the anecdote, your experience is interesting.

NLB5000 · Aug 31, 2020

I have been perusing this thread and I absolutely love the look of many of these beautiful french knives!

I have a general question about french knife design in general. It seems that many of the slipjoint knives do not have a pronounced kick and very thin handles with a close fit. Is the blade hitting the backspring a common issue on these patterns if you let the blade close on its own? I am really interested in the "Le Capuchadou" style knife, but enjoy letting my knives fly shut too much to try and avoid it on anything I own.

Haegar · Aug 31, 2020

NLB5000 said:
I have been perusing this thread and I absolutely love the look of many of these beautiful french knives!

I have a general question about french knife design in general. It seems that many of the slipjoint knives do not have a pronounced kick and very thin handles with a close fit. Is the blade hitting the backspring a common issue on these patterns if you let the blade close on its own? I am really interested in the "Le Capuchadou" style knife, but enjoy letting my knives fly shut too much to try and avoid it on anything I own.

If you look at the website of Fontenille Pataud - the company that produces the ‚Le Capuchadou’ knives they clearly state that there is a blade stop on the spring. I can confirm that from personal experience that the blade is not hitting the spring on that one.

I just ordered a different version of that one in addition to my Capuchadou that ist called ‚Le Chamois‘ which is basically the same but with a spearpoint blade. Hopefully it will arrive tomorrow. I believe this blade to be a bit more universal than the Capuchadou blade but that‘s probably personal taste.

Great service from Fontenille Pataud (very friendly guys). They are even able to do some customizing (within reason) if you ask for it. For me it was a 10 cm version in Guilloche Range which was not available with Juniper scales (I love that wood and it smells so nice) and without the Inlay on the shamrock. All easily solved and with a comparable price to the Capuchadou version (basically no mark up for the customization).

It will be my 4th knife from that company - 5he other two are Laguiole in 12cm and the smaller Le Pocket version in 10,5 cm ß both in Guilloche Range Version as well.
Gerd

Prester John · Aug 31, 2020

Haegar said:
If you look at the website of Fontenille Pataud - the company that produces the ‚Le Capuchadou’ knives they clearly state that there is a blade stop on the spring. I can confirm that from personal experience that the blade is not hitting the spring on that one.

I just ordered a different version of that one in addition to my Capuchadou that ist called ‚Le Chamois‘ which is basically the same but with a spearpoint blade. Hopefully it will arrive tomorrow. I believe this blade to be a bit more universal than the Capuchadou blade but that‘s probably personal taste.

Great service from Fontenille Pataud (very friendly guys). They are even able to do some customizing (within reason) if you ask for it. For me it was a 10 cm version in Guilloche Range which was not available with Juniper scales (I love that wood and it smells so nice) and without the Inlay on the shamrock. All easily solved and with a comparable price to the Capuchadou version (basically no mark up for the customization).

It will be my 4th knife from that company - 5he other two are Laguiole in 12cm and the smaller Le Pocket version in 10,5 cm ß both in Guilloche Range Version as well.
Gerd

I am expecting my first from that company, but I admire their full range of knives. Really beautiful patterns. Looking forward to pictures.

NLB5000 · Aug 31, 2020

Haegar said:
If you look at the website of Fontenille Pataud - the company that produces the ‚Le Capuchadou’ knives they clearly state that there is a blade stop on the spring. I can confirm that from personal experience that the blade is not hitting the spring on that one.

I just ordered a different version of that one in addition to my Capuchadou that ist called ‚Le Chamois‘ which is basically the same but with a spearpoint blade. Hopefully it will arrive tomorrow. I believe this blade to be a bit more universal than the Capuchadou blade but that‘s probably personal taste.

Great service from Fontenille Pataud (very friendly guys). They are even able to do some customizing (within reason) if you ask for it. For me it was a 10 cm version in Guilloche Range which was not available with Juniper scales (I love that wood and it smells so nice) and without the Inlay on the shamrock. All easily solved and with a comparable price to the Capuchadou version (basically no mark up for the customization).

It will be my 4th knife from that company - 5he other two are Laguiole in 12cm and the smaller Le Pocket version in 10,5 cm ß both in Guilloche Range Version as well.
Gerd

Thanks for the information! I actually find a spearpoint more useful also for the little things I need a knife for, but I have such an affinity for the aesthetics of a clip point. All of the knives on Fontenille Pataud look amazing (I now have my eyes on the Le Saint Bernard). I am amazed how beautifully finished they are for the price, seems like a bargain really (for a piece of luxury cutlery as it is).

French regional knives...

Josh Mead