Hats off................to Opinel

OK. So I got this #7 adjusted to suit me, and I've been using it for the last few days. I loosened the pivot so the blade is pinchable, and the lock ring so I can lock/unlock it with my right thumb while holding it. I've become a fan of a $16 knife! :)

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Ironbut said:
OK. So I got this #7 adjusted to suit me, and I've been using it for the last few days. I loosened the pivot so the blade is pinchable, and the lock ring so I can lock/unlock it with my right thumb while holding it. I've become a fan of a $16 knife! :)

View attachment 2173492
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Good to hear!! 👏
John 🥾🥾
 
Its only day 5 for this opinel #7. The blade now opens perfectly and even though I just use the lock to keep it closed (just in case) it is nice and smooth. Initially it was very grindy. I think these things just need broken in with use.

The size and weight make it disappear in the pocket, but it is large enough to do anything. The added lanyard makes it convenient to rip right out when needed.
20230503_112903~2.jpg

It tore up some ceiling tile from a leak this morning and got soaked (Not to mention I cleaned it off in the sink). I guess the mineral oil and beeswax protected it just fine. No difference in action.

The steel is softer than I'm used to. Bent the tip yesterday and bent it right back no problem. Leather brings the edge right back but I did have to make a couple swipes on a fine stone last night. No chips at all on the edge. I like it.
 
RickHuf said:
Its only day 5 for this opinel #7. The blade now opens perfectly and even though I just use the lock to keep it closed (just in case) it is nice and smooth. Initially it was very grindy. I think these things just need broken in with use.

The size and weight make it disappear in the pocket, but it is large enough to do anything. The added lanyard makes it convenient to rip right out when needed.
View attachment 2173593

It tore up some ceiling tile from a leak this morning and got soaked (Not to mention I cleaned it off in the sink). I guess the mineral oil and beeswax protected it just fine. No difference in action.

The steel is softer than I'm used to. Bent the tip yesterday and bent it right back no problem. Leather brings the edge right back but I did have to make a couple swipes on a fine stone last night. No chips at all on the edge. I like it.
Click to expand...

The tips are extremely fine and will definitely bend pretty easily with lateral force.

Glad it bent back, mine did too :)
 
Tried to post this earlier, but the software got balky and I gave up. Now I don’t remember where I was going to post it. Without that context, I can’t remember what I was going to say about it, but here is my most-carried No.6, together with the rest of my pocket load. I don’t carry the Okapi much any more, sometimes add a different third choice, but usually hew to just the Opi and the SAK.

My earlier difficulty in posting was probably as much due to the post-surgical pain killers as to any fault in the software.
1F6B0EF0-15BF-4E10-9905-F59568D83C2D.jpeg
 
RickHuf said:
Its only day 5 for this opinel #7.
...
It tore up some ceiling tile from a leak this morning and got soaked (Not to mention I cleaned it off in the sink). I guess the mineral oil and beeswax protected it just fine. No difference in action.
...
Click to expand...
My first Opinel (it was a #6) originally gave me fits with handle swelling. Didn't help that within days of its arrival I took it on vacation to a cottage on the shore of Lake Huron in August - heat and humidity very high.
But then someone (may have been J jackknife ) suggested treating the wood around the pivot with Vaseline or beeswax to "waterproof" it. When I got home from vacation, I melted some Sno-Seal beeswax waterproofing for boots into the pivot, and it has worked like a charm ever since. I've picked up several other Opinels since then, treated the pivot with Sno-Seal, and have had little, if any, swelling problems with any of the knives.

Here's what my #6 looks like now. I wanted to sand the handle down to sort of a cigar shape, but failed to plan ahead and ended up with the blade tip sticking out of my modified handle:
opi#6.proudtip.jpg

So I had to do an "emergency" blade mod that I hadn't planned on. Used a file to try to get a spearpoint blade by taking off the metal marked in red:
opi#6.blademod.plan.plain.jpg

Turned out much better than I'd hoped, given my lack of relevant skills:
opi#6.finishedmod.open.jpg
(Now, almost 6 years later as I look at that first photo, I suddenly realized that I may have been able to keep the original blade intact by just lengthening and deepening the "blade well" in the handle until the exposed tip dropped into it. I think there might have been enough room in the handle for that.)

- GT
 
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The number 6 in olive wood is in my pocket as I type.
The siren call of buying another Opinel is strong.
 
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