I'm pretty sure I want an Opinel... But which?

Comeuppance

Comeuppance

Fixed Blade EDC Emisssary
Joined
Jan 12, 2013
Messages
4,765
I've eschewed traditional folders in the past - really, any folder without a pocket clip - but since carrying my Cold Steel Eland, I've found that a pocket clip isn't absolutely necessary as long as there's some way to keep it oriented correctly in the pocket.

So, I kinda want to try out this Opinel business. People wiser and deeper into the knife game than I consistently say that they will give you new perspective on knives, etc etc etc. They're certainly cheap enough, so I should give them a shot while I'm doing this budget-carry kick.

Problem is, there's, like, fifteen billion varieties, conservatively speaking. Different handles, sizes, and blade steels - all $10-$20, so I can easily get more than one without hurting.

Things to consider / questions:

  • I live in OK and it can get humid and sweaty, which makes me worry about warping wood and corroding carbon steel. I'm not sure how valid of a concern this is, though, as I have Marine Tuf-Glide which allowed my Gayle Bradley to be used in salt water without corrosion.

  • I saw the "DIY" version and that has me interested - as well as the "garden" knife which has a more sheepsfoot blade profile. Opinions / experiences?

  • The "slims" have me interested as well, but I would worry about in-hand feel. Do they allow for a comfortable grip with such small handles?

  • Are there any other knives I should be looking at if I'm looking at these? Special limited varieties I may not have heard about?

  • Ways to keep them conveniently accessible in the pocket?

  • How reasonably easy are they to operate with one hand? I've become a fan of qwik-studs since affixing them to my Eland and Kudu, but opinels are pretty much 100% blade-concealed when closed, right? There wouldn't be nearly enough exposed blade for an aftermarket thumbstud, methinks.

  • I want at least 3" of blade, and part of me just wants to get the biggest one available (or at least a 10), but I don't know if... I don't know! This is a wholly alien and unfamiliar territory for me (WHERE IS THE FRAMELOCK WHAT IS GOING ON I DON'T UNDERSTAND THIS THING) and I could clearly use some input.

(Re-reading this, I realize I used a lot of "quotation marks" and hyphenated composite-words in this post. It's been a weird day.)
 
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If you want to add a thumbstud, the handle is wood and easy enough to carve to your liking to use one, personally I just carved half an easy open relief on mine to make ot easier to get to the nail nick. I only have a carbone #8 so cant comment on any of the others, but with a patina mine sufered no rust on a week long camping trip to Nebraska. As for carrying it, I keep it in the leather slip in the coin pocket of my jeans or the slot in the thigh of painters shorts. One hand opening isnt really the way to go with an Opie IMHO if you keep it on your person cuz you should lock it closed.
 
WuGod said:
If you want to add a thumbstud, the handle is wood and easy enough to carve to your liking to use one, personally I just carved half an easy open relief on mine to make ot easier to get to the nail nick. I only have a carbone #8 so cant comment on any of the others, but with a patina mine sufered no rust on a week long camping trip to Nebraska. As for carrying it, I keep it in the leather slip in the coin pocket of my jeans or the slot in the thigh of painters shorts. One hand opening isnt really the way to go with an Opie IMHO if you keep it on your person cuz you should lock it closed.
Click to expand...

Can you not operate the lock with one hand? Say, grip with your palm and pinkie-ring-middle finger and then turn the lock with the index and thumb?

Edit: Youtube to save the day.

[video=youtube;OMMyQz6avLo]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMMyQz6avLo[/video]
 
Way quicker for me to use two, but yes you can.
Edit- Carrying in my coin pocket I carry handle up in the slip, I grab the handle and wedge it against the pocket and pull, leaving the slip in the pocket. Twist the lock with that hand and grab the blade with the other to open. And my pivot is waaaay too tight to flick like that.
 
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There isn't a huge difference in performance between the two steels, so go with the inox if you want lower maintenance or pick the carbone for some patina. The major advantage the stainless has IMO is the nicer handle selection.

Here's my #8 with olivewood handle.
d08cd192-c13b-40a4-aa24-fd3bb92fca1a_zps13ab4065.jpg

cd2d7732-bd3e-490d-84a5-e3d081e7feb9_zps4ce5a538.jpg


The #8 is the right balance between blade length and bulk for me. One thing for people new to Opinels to be aware of is that the diameter of the handle and width of the blade increases along with the length as you go up in size.

They can be opened with one hand if needed, but I find it much easier and faster to use both. It just takes a bit of time to get used to.

I don't have any personal experience with them, but MAM knives from Portugal make some friction folders and liner locks that might be worth a look as an alternative.
 
The SS is very well done. Don't assume the carbonne is a better blade.
The tip on the clip point is very fine, it is easy to deform, even in a kitchen sink. The drop point version may be a little more robust.
 
I got one for my wife...the one with the fancy wood and her name engraved on the blade. She likes it: it's kept "locked open" all of the time.
I don't have much use for it, but I realize that they can be had for very little money.
 
I have not seen any of these Opinel knives in our stores here in Western Montana unless this has recently changed.

I would like to see them in person and hold one. That goes for some other brand names and styles too!

Best wishes to you.

Cate
 
I got the Garden and an 8 in inox, and threw them in the tool box. Actually picked up the 8 in France. They are nice enough, but will not replace my regular carries. Just get an 8 in either steel and see if you like it.
 
Yes, just get a #8 in either steel. Both come sharp, & stay sharp easily.
I have the garden version on my list to get also....
I mainly use my #8 for food prep on vacation, and for cutting steak.
Got all my kids a #7, in different colors!
Enjoy it.
 
Comeuppance,

I will try to address your questions....

First, as you know, there are some cars and motorcycles that OK when stock but with a bit of tinkering and tuning become insanely good.

The Opinel is like this. Stock, they are merely OK. They are crude out of the box and are designed for temperate environments, not super humid places.

But, if you are willing to invest in a bit of tuning and maintenance, then you'll be rewarded and will understand why some of us rave about them. But if you are the kind of person who doesn't like to tinker and tune, I expect you'll be underwhelmed by the knife. It's crude and frankly a bit finicky, and I say that as a fan.

STEEL - The Carbone is hardened to 56RC and makes sense if you're working in HVAC and regularly plunge cutting vent work, as one guy from the Trad sub-forum used to use his for. The slightly softer hardening allows the blade to dent and take hard abuse, but requires a fatter edge angle. The Inox is 12C27 hardened to 58RC. It can take a thinner edge and is very tough and holds an edge longer. I find it impossible to distinguish from 1095 hardened at the same level. I very much prefer the Inox for EDC use and unless you are working in the trades, would recommend it to you. Actually, even if you do work in the trades, given your summers, just get the Inox.

HANDLES - I would recommend the standard #8 as your first Opinel. It's the most popular. It's still a pocket knife and will give you a 4 finger grip if you have L sized hands. I prefer big knives and have XL hands, so I find the #9 more comfortable. But realistically, more people will like the #8. The stock #10 is bigger than a Buck 110 and bulky to carry in my front pocket, unless you modify and thin the handle. It's also a lot of blade. At that length, I just prefer to move to a fixed blade. The #9 still carries well and for me, is perfect. I grew up with the Buck 110 and find the blade on the #9 to be just perfect. But again, start with the #8.

Here is an Opinel #9 (drop point, handle rounded off a bit) next to a Buck 110 and Buck 500 (and Schrade 51OT).
Big folders by Pinnah, on Flickr

JOINT - For use in humid environments, you will need to lubricate the joint. Slather the inner part with Vaseline and melt with a hair dryer or soak the joint end in mineral oil occasionally.

LOCK - The lock is not designed to keep the blade from closing on your fingers. It's more like a slip joint spring that you turn on and off. The knife is insanely tough in terms of dealing with hard cutting forces though and you won't damage the lock or joint in hard use. It will also deal with sand and dirt better than nearly any other design. But again, don't pry with it in a way that puts closing force on the lock. It's not made for that.

ONE HAND OPENING & CLOSING - They are very, very, very safe for one hand opening and closing. Lacking a spring makes them safer than any other knife to close one handed. No snap. They don't open one handed FAST. And they require practice. Pinch the blade (possibly after tapping the butt end on your hip) and force the knife open a bit. Then hook the butt end against your leg and open the knife by the blade. This is safe because the blade has no spring. Then engage lock. Practice while driving or watching TV. Becomes 2nd nature and very easy to do in the shop when working.

EASY POCKET EXTRACTION - You can, if you want, add a lanyard to the butt end. Use a drill and be careful. Carry the knife in pocket with the lock ring in the bottom of the pocket. The lanyard fob will sit just inside of your pocket and will make for easy extraction. Here are a 10, 9 and 8 (all modified to drop point):
Opinel by Pinnah, on Flickr

MODIFYING - My thoughts here: https://dl.dropbox.com/u/28597626/tuning-opinels.txt
 
Another vote for the number 8 as your first. I only have the standard handle with carbone blade, no problems yet with the wood swelling. I live in Florida, between Miami and Key West, so it is a wee bit humid most days.
 
buy the set, its like $120 and you get 10 knives of different sizes. gives you an idea of what size youd want, then you can pick the woods
 
I love Opinels and have quite a few. The ones which see the most use are a no.8 carbone and a (no.8) garden knife in 12c27. I would recommend getting both of these, because between them you will experience different steels, blade profiles, handle shapes and ergos. Bear in mind that the Opinel is absolutely designed for performance and is credited with being one of the best designed objects of all time. That probably won't be apparent until you sharpen it and sit the end in mineral water, but with a little work should become apparent.

As pinnah suggested they can be opened and closed one handed. One handed closing is really pretty instinctive and more to the point unlikely to result in injury threads here ;) So it's worth it in the savings in superglue alone.
 
pinnah said:
Here are a 10, 9 and 8 (all modified to drop point):
Opinel by Pinnah, on Flickr

MODIFYING - My thoughts here: https://dl.dropbox.com/u/28597626/tuning-opinels.txt
Click to expand...

And that pic inspired me to mod my first Opinel. I've had a small and an 8 for years but once I saw he drop point and modified back stop I pulled them out amd went for it.

Carbon is easier to modify because yes, it is softer. Takes a lovely edge though.

Currently working on a Bubinga 8 with stainless polished blade and hardware.
 
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There are two to add to those, I recently got a #9 and #10.

One of the reasons that I like them is they are so good to modify, the blade is thin enough to be easily shaped and the handle of the beech models is easy enough to re-shape, if you really want to carve or shape the handles then the "Opinel Ébauche" or "Raw" as it is called in the U.S.A. is the one to go for.

opinelcarboncherrryraw_zpscv63fcxg.jpg


Plenty to choose from.

opinel_sizes_zpsubdi0pzo.jpg


For using I prefer the beechwood #9 carbone, fits my hand and is enough knife for most tasks. For camping the #12 and #12 saw take a lot of beating, lightweight and a lot of blade.
 
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