Thoughts on Opinel knives?

I just received my first Opinels this afternoon, a 3, 6 and 10. I bought the range to see what will work for me. First thing I noticed that all were sharpened to the level of a butter knife. I'm fairly new to knives so I don't really know what to expect. I would have thought these would start off a bit sharper but I expected to need to touch up the edges a bit. This will be more than just a bit, however.

That said, these are incredible knives for the price and probably for quite a bit more money as well. The handles may not be pricey but they fit my hand well and feel solid. The #3 will likely be relegated to cutesy pocket duty as it really is small. I got #6 for daily use, as it is the smallest with the lock ring. It is a bit big for me at work (hospital), but not by much. #10 looks to be a worker.

A coat or two of linseed oil and a bit of sharpening and these knives will see some regular action around the house and beyond.

Jay
 
steelheadr said:
First thing I noticed that all were sharpened to the level of a butter knife. I'm fairly new to knives so I don't really know what to expect. I would have thought these would start off a bit sharper but I expected to need to touch up the edges a bit. This will be more than just a bit, however.
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You might be surprised - 3 of my 4 weren't very sharp, but because of the thin blade & full flat grind they didn't take much to make sharp. Try < 5 minutes with a strop and you should have a 'scary sharp' knife. I haven't used anything more than a strop with green compound yet and my Opinels scare the hell out of me.
 
I've started with the #10. My plan was to take the knife apart, strip the finish off the handle, treat it with linseed oil and clean up the blade nicely.

Opineldisassembled.jpg


First step complete...the knife is apart. In the process, the pivot pin was bent just a little. Will this be a problem on reassembly? Is there a source for replacement pins? I'm sure the shipping will be 100x the cost of the pin.

Thanks,
Jay
 
steelheadr said:
First step complete...the knife is apart.
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It is amazing - how cheap and simple the Opinel knife really is. And yet it is a very effective knife for many tasks and one hell of a good slicer! It may not be the same thing as a one handed opener with a S30V blade - but it can be bought cheaply and handle a decent variety of cutting jobs.

Viva Le Opinel! (or possibly La Opinel).
 
They are excellent firesteel scrapers. And an opinel + firesteel is a great lightweight bushcraft combo of essentials! :) It's also a way to EDC a carbon steel blade for us stell snobs! ha ha ha! :)
 
I haven't actually carried an opinel in years. And my collection seems to have loaned itself out!

I went ahead and ordered from patriot knives, just paypalled him $27 (round up the 3 pennies) for one each of the 6,7,8.

Two days, here they are, picture perfect.

I'm back into my opies again. I forgot how simple and fun they are.
 
i just ordered 4!

i think im gonna customize one for my father with a soldering iron but idk what im gonna put on it exactly...
 
Bought a nr 10 last weekend. Already had a 4 and 6. I like them but the pivot of this last one rusted up overnight when I didn't clean it properly. That's why I don't like carbon steel for folders.
It's still a great all purpose knife though. It can do anything. I remember a thread of someone using an Opinel to baton though logs. And it's cheap!
 
Pvt.snoballz said:
i just ordered 4!

i think im gonna customize one for my father with a soldering iron but idk what im gonna put on it exactly...
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According to some French tourists I ran into last year, it's traditional to burn your name into the back off the handle using a magnifying glass and the sun's rays. :)
 
I like my #7 over a number of my folders. However, the damn thing swells shut anytime it gets too humid. That kind of sucks living in Texas. Still, I always pack it along in the woods. It usually gets food prep duty or "give the little brother a knife to whittle" duty.
 
dougo83 said:
I like my #7 over a number of my folders. However, the damn thing swells shut anytime it gets too humid. That kind of sucks living in Texas. Still, I always pack it along in the woods. It usually gets food prep duty or "give the little brother a knife to whittle" duty.
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To open it when it swells unlock the ring and, with the spine facing in the direction of the strike, tap the end of the handle on a hard surface (like a table, tree, or rock) and the blade will pop out enough to grab onto. Or just do what I did and sand an "easy open" notch in the handle so you can pinch the blade open instead of using the nail nick. :)
 
A buddy of mine has a folding saw of Opinel.
It worked so fine in the last outing and Irori night.
To be added it looks quite cool.
 
How the f did you guys get the pin out? I want to sand mine at the tang but I cannot for the life of me get that pivot pin out. It's stuck halfway through (no trouble pushing it back in though).
 
kgd said:
Good knives and great EDC blade. Only problem is their tendency to swell shut when dunked or in high humidity. That limits their use as a field blade substantially.
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Easiest fix.

Leave the knife in your car on a hot summer day for a day or two, till it gets a bit too loose. Then soak the joint in mineral oil in a cup for a week. It won't swell shut then.
 
I have an Opinel , after a bit of work on it it is a classy looking 'old school' knife.

I would not depend on it though for my primary blade unless I had no other choice :)

Tostig
 
I bought a Nº 8 (stainless) a couple of years ago, but never use it. It's very difficult to open it once it's closed; the blade seems to get in too deep in the handle and the notch in the blade is inaccesible. I haven't figured a way to solve this. It's a pity because is a very sharp knife.
 
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