New Opinel question

[The Zieg]

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[The Zieg]

What work did you do on your 9/10 to have them opening so easy,..

Thanks for all the replies guys

The swinging open blade is best on the 9, 10, and 12 because of the length of their blades. They're still light knives, but the 8 remains for me a two hander. But you can do this with an 8, too.

First, it helps to live in a drier climate. No doubt if I were back in the SE or the PNW, the wood would swell and limit their movement. But even if you live in a humid place, it's still possible and easy to accomplish.

1. You remove the locking ring by closing the knife and locking it shut, then slowly opening the blade which forces the ring off the end. Point it where you want it to go, as it can fly off with an M1-like ping. Or do it under a dish towel

2. With a center punch or a 10d nail, drive the pivot pin out one side of the ferrule. This will destroy the peening on the side you're striking, but no matter. The locking ring will keep the pin in place once you put it back on.

3. Remove the pivot pin. Slide the ferrule off. Don't lose them.

4. With a light to medium grit sandpaper, sand the inside of the slot where the blade tang rotates. Go slow. Remove some wood, then reassemble enough of the knife to get an idea of how loose it will be.

5. Another way the knife may be tightened or loosened: Pry open or pinch closed the width of the locking ring and/or the ferrule collar. Once the pivot pin is free from one of the peened ends, the ferrule collar can be adjusted.

I know this seems like a lot of trouble for a $10 knife, but it's a lot of fun to tinker with Opinels. If there were an adjustable Opinel style knife, it would be at least $50, heavier, not rustic, and not the same fun. If you like, I'll post some pics of my N°10 disassembled and a link to a video of a Japanese gentleman performing this process.

My last point: I have never had any luck using lubricant to loosen up an Opinel. The wood just sucks up the substance and never frees up the blade.

OK, another last point: My 10 and 12 don't open as effortlessly as the one in this fellow's vid. Mine take a bit of wrist action to sling them open, but that's partly due to the humidity this Spring and it doesn't bother me a bit.

Zieg

Edit: The video I mentioned is

 

[kraash]

The swinging open blade is best on the 9, 10, and 12 because of the length of their blades. They're still light knives, but the 8 remains for me a two hander. But you can do this with an 8, too.

First, it helps to live in a drier climate. No doubt if I were back in the SE or the PNW, the wood would swell and limit their movement. But even if you live in a humid place, it's still possible and easy to accomplish.

1. You remove the locking ring by closing the knife and locking it shut, then slowly opening the blade which forces the ring off the end. Point it where you want it to go, as it can fly off with an M1-like ping. Or do it under a dish towel

2. With a center lunch or a 10d nail, drive the pivot pin out one side of the ferrule. This will destroy the peening on the side you're striking, but no matter. The locking ring will keep the pin in place once you put it back on.

3. Remove the pivot pin. Slide the ferrule off. Don't lose them.

4. With a light to medium grit sandpaper, sand the inside of the slot where the blade tang rotates. Go slow. Remove some wood, then reassemble enough of the knife to get an idea of how loose it will be.

5. Another way the knife may be tightened or loosened: Pry open or pinch closed the width of the locking ring and/or the ferrule collar. Once the pivot pin is free from one of the peened ends, the ferrule collar can be adjusted.

I know this seems like a lot of trouble for a $10 knife, but it's a lot of fun to tinker with Opinels. If there were an adjustable Opinel style knife, it would be at least $50, heavier, not rustic, and not the same fun. If you like, I'll post some pics of my N°10 disassembled and a link to a video of a Japanese gentleman performing this process.

My last point: I have never had any luck using lubricant to loosen up an Opinel. The wood just sucks up the substance and never frees up the blade.

OK, another last point: My 10 and 12 don't open as effortlessly as the one in this fellow's vid. Mine take a bit of wrist action to sling them open, but that's partly due to the humidity this Spring and it doesn't bother me a bit.

Zieg

Edit: The video I mentioned is

Thanks a bunch, some or all of these mods are my next project, until I have time I'm going to carry this no8 and use it to cut a bunch of stuff

 

[Pomsbz]

You don't have to lock it. Locks don't matter. Treat it like a slip joint. That's basically what it really is.

No it isn't. Treat it like a friction folder without the security of the elongated tang that friction folders usually have. Because that is what it will be. Personally I wouldn't use an Opinel as a friction folder. I'm wary of FF's as it is and using an Opinel as one leaves no margin at all against Murphy with a blade that cuts like a light saber. Any mistake and you really will be looking for a new finger.

 

[Planterz]

This is off topic, but how durable are Opinel knives? I have never owned or even handled one before, it doesn't look like it would hold up real well if used much.

I'm new to Opinels, but they seem like they'll hold up well over time. Just understand that they're slicers. The bigger they get, the thicker the blade gets, but they're all thinly ground, and have a convex taper to the ground. Pretty much the same blade grind, just thicker towards the spine as they get larger.

And if it doesn't hold up, it's only $10-15 for another. Think of it as a utility knife (like a Stanley carpet knife or one of those break-off dealies) that you can resharpen until it's worn out and you buy a new one.

 

[Mikel_24]

What it does look from the pictures is that yours does not fully open to 180º. I had one that did the same thing. A bit of file work at the back of the blade (90º corner) were the blade makes contact with the ferrule fixed that. Now the locking ring engages way better and the blade opens just like I want it to.

Mikel

 

[The Zieg]

What it does look from the pictures is that yours does not fully open to 180º. I had one that did the same thing. A bit of file work at the back of the blade (90º corner) were the blade makes contact with the ferrule fixed that. Now the locking ring engages way better and the blade opens just like I want it to.

Mikel

All Opinels stop at less than 180°. If you file down the back of the blade to open it farther, you run the risk of the locking ring having to turn more than halfway around the circumference of the knife. I recommend going slow and checking it as you file. I did it with my 12 and was not pleased with the result.

Yours may react differently to the treatment, however. Small differences from one knife to the next and all that. Mikel's locking ring might not have turned far enough while on my 12 it was already turning too far before I altered it.

Zieg

 

[Mikel_24]

Mikel's locking ring might not have turned far enough while on my 12 it was already turning too far before I altered it.

Zieg

Agreed, thanks for pointing it out. My locking ring wouldn't turn 1/8th of a turn before I filed it down. Now it does go a bit more while still being plenty safe.

Mikel

 

[The Zieg]

Agreed, thanks for pointing it out. My locking ring wouldn't turn 1/8th of a turn before I filed it down. Now it does go a bit more while still being plenty safe.

Mikel

My 12 still locks safely, but it takes a bit more effort to get that lock around when opening one handed. These knives may be ideosyncratic, but with only five parts, you know they'll work and whether they'll be safe.

Since my 12 is inox, and I favor the carbon, and since the ring overtravels since my mod, I think the only solution is another Opinel. It's simple logic, right?

And since the 12's handle has always been a bit beefy to me, and I like to fish, and I like an overlong folder, don't I also need a N°15 Effilé?

Bien sûr! Apportez plus des Opinels!

Zieg

 

[Sidehill Gouger]

A while back I bought a book on the history of the company published by Opinel. I was surprised how recently the locking ring was added to the design (1955). For most of the history of the design, they were simple, no springs, non-locking "penny" knives in all of their sizes. I guess that wasn't a problem for the normal users in France.