Opinel folder?

David Nowlin

David Nowlin

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Jan 17, 2018
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Got my first one today. Wasn’t expensive and I don’t know with all the talk about the latest greatest $300-$400 super knives it’s kinda refreshing to get a usable light weight knife not made you know where for less than $20. Light and a novel design i can live with. Still gonna carry my Buck 110 and the occasional Spyderco but Opi gonna get some pocket time.
DN
No 9 & No 7 in Inox incase you were wondering.
 
Any particular oil you recommend?
i use boiled linseed oil on wood like axe handles ets but do you mean gun oil or mineral oil?
thanks
DN
 
Rich S said:
Be sure to soak the pivot ends in oil and seal them so the wood won't swell and make them hard to open.I love my opies (6,7,9)
Rich
Click to expand...
I hated my Opinels because of this. If I had known to oil them I wouldn’t have left them open in my tacklebox until they turned to rust.
 
I like Opinels. Inexpensive, functional, fun to mod. Better suited as a lunch pail or picnic knife than a pocket carry EDC, IMO. YMMV. :)
 
Take off the locking ring and use some 320 to 400 sand paper to handout and widen the blade slot and around the blade pivot.

Then shove some Vaseline petroleum jelly in the joint and then use the better half's blow drier to melt it all into the wood. You can also use Johnson's paste floor wax, or even Chapstick. Once you melt the stuff in real well, you'll have a very water resistant Opinel. Do it about once a year to keep it up.

Or, take of the locking ring, and immerse the pivot end in a shot glass full of mineral oil, anklet stand for a day. Dry off, let sit in sun to ooze out the excess and put locking ring back on and use.

Any of this will give you an Opinel that can be submerged in a glass of water for 30 minutes with no swelling.
 
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good man size the no.9.
you would be happy to note
that some of the toughest folks
on the planet have even made opinel
a personal choice.
Le Couteau - Opinels IDENTITAIRES **
 
Opinels carry a lot more easily in the pocket if the handles are trimmed to flatted the sides and cut down the flared pommel. Most of the discussion of these mods appears th the Traditional subforum. For years I used Opinels, but rarely put one in my pocket, until I learned how easy is is to modify them. Now I carry one almost every day.
 
Any quality wood preservative will do. You can personalize those grips, stain them and apply lacquer for a nice look . No motor oils.
 
I have about 5 or 7

Great knives.

I don't do too much oiling of the pivots. I've swam with them and floated down rivers in the water with an opinel in the pocket. I've not met one yet that would swell too tight to open... I've had them get a bit stiff, though.
S7OA6Nv.jpg
 
I like the opinels but I wish they would make the handle ”embrace” the ring slightly more. I have cracked few handles already. Not huge fan of the ring lock.
 
Melt some wax (Johnson floorwax works well) into the blade slot to seal the wood and lube the pivot.
 
Melt it like with hair dryer on high heat?
Also found a local hardware store that sells Opinels. I walked in the door and the 6’5” wood and glass display case is the first thing you see. And the No 9 inox I paid $18 for at the other store was only 12.99. I got the carbon steel model.
Also got a No 8 in walnut or Olive wood with a bear and some mountains carved into the wood. Today was a good cheap day.
dn
Correction. Not walnut or olive wood. Think it’s oak.
 
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David Nowlin said:
Melt it like with hair dryer on high heat?
Also found a local hardware store that sells Opinels. I walked in the door and the 6’5” wood and glass display case is the first thing you see. And the No 9 inox I paid $18 for at the other store was only 12.99. I got the carbon steel model.
Also got a No 8 in walnut or Olive wood with a bear and some mountains carved into the wood. Today was a good cheap day.
dn
Click to expand...

I wish I had a local shop that carried them.
 
I'd say my opie is one of my most used knives (kitchen duty). I still find their thin convex very impressive.
 
Jackknife or anyone, do i have to remove the lock ring to perform the oiling or waxing of the pivot area? I figure since i now have a few of these i can do them all a little different and see how it all works out over time. I have Vaseline
( mainly used to grease bird feeder polls to keep squirrels off) and i have several different gun oils, linseed oil and WD40 ( a water disperser ) which seems to be what would prevent the water swelling thing.
Don’t really want to disassemble and do the sanding operation. My moto is keep it simple stupid.
dn
 
David Nowlin said:
Jackknife or anyone, do i have to remove the lock ring to perform the oiling or waxing of the pivot area? I figure since i now have a few of these i can do them all a little different and see how it all works out over time. I have Vaseline
( mainly used to grease bird feeder polls to keep squirrels off) and i have several different gun oils, linseed oil and WD40 ( a water disperser ) which seems to be what would prevent the water swelling thing.
Don’t really want to disassemble and do the sanding operation. My moto is keep it simple stupid.
dn
Click to expand...
Yes, I pop off the locking ring when I do this. BUT...sometimes I just leave the locking ring off, and use the Opinel like it was originally made; a friction folder. In fact, the most use Opinels I own are the small number 5 and number 4 that don't even have a locking ring. After I get them good and water proof, I peen the pivot rivet so it is a nice snug pull. I love the simplicity of the friction folder and have done this for many years now.

I still have all my fingers. But then I also use a Japanese Higonokami, and a Sardinian Resolza as pocket knife of the day now and then. I figure if the Opinel was in use until 1955 with no locking ring, then thats good enough for me. Ultimate traditional.
 
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