Opinel #8 or Svord Peasant knife?

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Spongebobby

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Oct 11, 2010
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I'm lookng for a more traditional knife and my choices are down to the Svord Peasant knife and Opinel, probably number 8. Which one would you guys reccomend and why? and also, if i go the Opinel route, carbon or stainless?
 
I've been tempted to try out one of the Svord Peasant knives. The one thing that has made me hold off is, the blade seems relatively short compared to the handle length.

As for the Opinels, I'd recommend both the carbon and stainless. Opinel's stainless is Sandvik 12C27M, which is excellent. Takes just a little longer to sharpen to a fine edge than the carbon (usually the case with stainless, in general), but the result is well worth it. Takes a very fine edge. The other thing to consider, with the carbon blade, is if you're planning to use it for food prep, the carbon steel will definitely impart a 'carbon steel' taste to acidic foods (fruits, especially). And obviously, the carbon needs to be a little more carefully maintained. Keep the pivot clean & free of juices from fruit. I recently did some grape-slicing (messing around with patina & testing sharpness) with my 'carbone' No. 8, and some of the juice got into the pivot. It oxidized in there, at the very back of the tang, and made the pivot pretty sticky after a day or two.
 
Opinel.

Less bulky, more easily modified, and cheap enough that you can buy two or three of them for the cost of a few beers down at the corner pub. I've been using Opinels since 1982, and I've yet to find too many knives that slice and dice like an Opy right off the stone. Even when they loose that razor edge, they still cut well because of the profile of the blade.

Take some sand paper and reshape the handle to how ever you want it. Refinish with the Minwax stain of choice, and seal with Helmsman Spar Urathane. That will give it a lot of water resistance. If you use a toothpick or match and work some Vasoline into the pivot area, it will waterproof it to where it can be totally submerged for short periods with no problems. I made a Spanish Navaja out of a number 12, and it looks way better than when it came out of the factory. I've used both the carbon and stainless, and the carbon used to be a wee bit better, but about 5 or 6 years ago I think they upgraded the stainless they used to the afor mentioned Sandvik. Since then, the stainless may have an edge. No pun intended. Oh hell, yes I did intend it.:D

The number 8 is a good all around pocket size. I like to tape up the blade and use a 12 inch mill smooth file to make a spear point out of it. If you buy the number 8 garden knife, it comes with a nice spear point.

Carl.
 
Obsessed with Edges said:
I recently did some grape-slicing (messing around with patina & testing sharpness) with my 'carbone' No. 8, and some of the juice got into the pivot. It oxidized in there, at the very back of the tang, and made the pivot pretty sticky after a day or two.
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Ya gotta use the Vasoline in the joint. Smear it in with a paper match, and use a folded over paper towel to wipe out the excess. I was told this by a real French guy and it really works. Really.:thumbup:

Carl.
 
jackknife said:
Ya gotta use the Vasoline in the joint. Smear it in with a paper match, and use a folded over paper towel to wipe out the excess. I was told this by a real French guy and it really works. Really.:thumbup:

Carl.
Click to expand...

I've heard of that, and I even made a trip to the grocery store the other day to pick some up. Odd thing was, they only had a VERY large jar of the stuff (a store brand of 'petroleum jelly'), which would've been a lot more than I'd ever use. So, I haven't picked it up yet. I'm sure I will, though.

I'll 2nd a (very humble) request to see a pic or two of some of your Opinels. I'm particularly curious about the finish you've applied. I just finished sanding the flats & hard edges off of my Walnut No. 8, and I'm contemplating what to finish it with. I've picked up a can of Watco Danish Oil, but haven't unsealed it yet, as I'm still on the fence a bit as to whether I'll use it for this. (Edit: I'll see if I can post a pic or two of mine today).

Thank you Carl. :thumbup:
 
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Obsessed with Edges said:
I've heard of that, and I even made a trip to the grocery store the other day to pick some up. Odd thing was, they only had a VERY large jar of the stuff (a store brand of 'petroleum jelly'), which would've been a lot more than I'd ever use. So, I haven't picked it up yet. I'm sure I will, though.

I'll 2nd a (very humble) request to see a pic or two of some of your Opinels. I'm particularly curious about the finish you've applied. I just finished sanding the flats & hard edges off of my Walnut No. 8, and I'm contemplating what to finish it with. I've picked up a can of Watco Danish Oil, but haven't unsealed it yet, as I'm still on the fence a bit as to whether I'll use it for this.

Thank you Carl. :thumbup:
Click to expand...

Karen and I finally got a camera, now just have to learn to use it and post pics on the forum.

I use 220 sandpaper to get the awful orange finish off, then smooth and finish with 500 grit, and then 0000 steel wool.

I'm careful to fold over the sandpaper so it's a snug fit inside the blade slot, including around and in front of the blade pivot. On many, I don't even use a stain, just rub lots of linseed oil into the wood. After a while, it takes on a fine oil finished gun stock look to it. Other times, I'll stain it with Minwax golden oak, and let sit for a few weeks, then seal off in the Spar urathane.

Now the past few years, I have slacked off, and taken a new Opinel, and just sealed it in the spar urathane, and vasolined the joint, and it works just as well. I bought karen a number 8 Opinel with heart's all over it since she loves hearts, and it was Valentines day. Since I didn't want to mess up the hearts, I just gave it a coat of spar urathane and greased the joint. It's held up well under Karen's use, to the point of being washed in the kitchen sink when it was used on food stuff. That Frenchie vasoline trick really keeps it from any swelling.

If you go with an oil finish, then you stay with an oil finish, rubbing it down once a day for a week, once a week for a year, then once a year for the rest of the time.

If you go with a urathane finish, just vasoline the blade pivot once a week or so, and forget about it.

Some of the Opinels are coming through with some nice wood, like walnut, olive wood, bubinga, oak. I wouldn't mess with them, just seal and grease.

Carl.
 
I think Opinel 9 is smallest for apples and No.12 is smallest for succesfully chopping of tomatoes or cucumber :) My EDC is classic No.10 inox. I don't so like fillet Opinels, but have some of it.
 
Here are a few pics, regarding the sanding I've done on my Walnut No. 08.

This is pre-sanding, for comparison (the Walnut is the lower one):


Post-sanding (two pics; I've temporarily removed the locking ring):
 
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That looks good, and I would just smooth it out with 500 paper and 0000 steel wool at this point. Polish that grain. :thumbup:

Carl.
 
jackknife said:
That looks good, and I would just smooth it out with 500 paper and 0000 steel wool at this point. Polish that grain. :thumbup:

Carl.
Click to expand...

Actually, that's why I was 'on the fence' about applying any additional finish. There's more of a satin/semi-gloss sheen to it, than shows in these pics. I used 220/400/800/1200 wet/dry paper (makes it ooohh so smooth :D ) and then actually rubbed it some more on the thigh of my jeans last night, while watching TV (my thigh's actually a bit sore today, from all that rubbing). That's when the 'sheen' started coming up on the Walnut, and made me wonder if any additional finish was even necessary. Didn't know if the Danish Oil would dull/degrade that a bit; it's a mix of Linseed oil, varnish and mineral spirits. It's supposed to penetrate and seal the wood from within, once and for all, so I don't know if I'll need to re-apply down the road. I've read on some other woodworkers' forums, there's a danger of it becoming a bit gummy if it's applied too thick or too often. I'll try it out on some other wood first, just to see what it looks like.

Thanks again. Still lookin' forward to seeing some of those pics! :thumbup:
 
Opinel for EDC, because it is more pocket friendly and appears like a gent's knife.

Svord for work/woods, because it is stronger.

You can take about 1/2" off the end of the Svord handle if you please. Probably can trim back the tang, too.
 
Svord all the way...L6 steel,good heat treat, can wear it arounnd your neck...i edc,d mine for 18 months....great little knives..FES

P1040560.jpg
 
Get both. I like a larger No.9 or No.10 Opi myself but I must say I've been smitten with the Svord too. They take a razor edge just like the Opi,
but it's a stronger blade which can be handy for some jobs. The Svord is a good choice here in the UK as it's not classed as a locker and a very small
mod to the blade makes it an EDC ...... because of that, I think I'd pick the Svord over the Opi, but you do need a deep pocket or a sheath to carry it.
 
The Svord is an amazing cutter in its own right but I have to say it doesn't carry well in the pocket. The Opinel is much better as an EDC but will not handle even a fraction of the lateral stress that the Svord can handle. Then again the Opinel has the rotating lock and is more secure that way. For the price get both.
 
but then again i dont have an opinel... yet.
love the Svord, its a little rustic but i slicked mine up with some sandpaper, stained it and finished the handle much less pointy, the steel sharpens fairly easily, ideally needs a sheath although i have carried it in pocket.
either way ya cant go wrong
gene
heres mine along with my '42 reissue zippo
svord.jpg
 

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