Traditional French Fry day

BrotherJim said:
NONTRON vs OPINEL ... in one shot

Left top to bottom:
No.25 Ebony Ball, No.22 Boxwood Ball, No.22 Boxwood Clog
Like the size of the No.25 Ball but all things considered, No.22 Ball works best for me for all day pocket
If my hands for just a bit smaller, the No.22 Clog might be the most comfortable

Right top to bottom
No.8 Oak, No.7 Beechwood, No.6 Brazilian Rosewood
No.8 is more knife than I usually need for an all day carry but I really like Oak
No.7 is my favorite size but I "shaved" the top of the handle butt slightly, to be more comfortable in my palm
No.6 is okay but feels more like a purse knife ... and I don't carry or own a purse

Regardless of which knife I pick up from those pictured, the Nontron knife is going to be more comfortable in MY hand than any Opinel

ikRw2mW.jpg
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It's a satchel, not a 'purse'! 🤣

Is the Nontron more comfortable because it is a more refined knife, or just because?

I really like the looks of the clog and I've been meaning to pick up a #22 size but I'm always concerned that my hands are too large. A funny concern for someone who owns the amount of knives I do, the majority of which are never carried, but still, I generally try to only get knives that I would actually carry and use and handle comfort is important
 
draggat said:
It's a satchel, not a 'purse'! 🤣

Is the Nontron more comfortable because it is a more refined knife, or just because?

I really like the looks of the clog and I've been meaning to pick up a #22 size but I'm always concerned that my hands are too large. A funny concern for someone who owns the amount of knives I do, the majority of which are never carried, but still, I generally try to only get knives that I would actually carry and use and handle comfort is important
Click to expand...

HA !!! :D ... If my eyes were closed and I picked up a knife, the Nontron would be more comfortable than an Opinel just because of handle shape. Honestly Opinels, which I love, have never been very comfortable in my hand, regardless of size.
And I'm not sure if a No.25 Clog would be better for me than the No.22 or not. Think I need to get one and find out ;) ... but in the No.22 size, I definitely prefer the ball over the clog by a long shot. Just more comfortable ... to me.
 
Jolipapa said:
It is the toffee's name. Ma always had some (and a few others) in her bag when back from work😃 I have no idea of the pattern's name. I think MT designed it herself.
Your juniper looks very smooth.

This was my gift from my son for Christmas 2018.
View attachment 1605669



+1 for both 👍
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What a good son!! 😊
Toffee's long gone . . . . . . ;)
 
BrotherJim said:
NONTRON vs OPINEL ... in one shot

Left top to bottom:
No.25 Ebony Ball, No.22 Boxwood Ball, No.22 Boxwood Clog
Like the size of the No.25 Ball but all things considered, No.22 Ball works best for me for all day pocket
If my hands for just a bit smaller, the No.22 Clog might be the most comfortable

Right top to bottom
No.8 Oak, No.7 Beechwood, No.6 Brazilian Rosewood
No.8 is more knife than I usually need for an all day carry but I really like Oak
No.7 is my favorite size but I "shaved" the top of the handle butt slightly, to be more comfortable in my palm
No.6 is okay but feels more like a purse knife ... and I don't carry or own a purse

Regardless of which knife I pick up from those pictured, the Nontron knife is going to be more comfortable in MY hand than any Opinel

ikRw2mW.jpg
Click to expand...
Nice collection, and comparison, Jim!!👍 Nontron does real nice finishing, IMO!!
 
waynorth said:
Nice collection, and comparison, Jim!!👍 Nontron does real nice finishing, IMO!!
Click to expand...

Thank you Charlie !!! I have a few others not pictured, but mine are just the ordinary stuff
Your collection has a lot of the enviable good ones kind sir and I always admire your most fine collection of traditionals :)
 
Just got this one today... yes it's a french sodbuster : "le mineur".

New old stock. 8cm carbon blade, horn handle. Not an expensive knife, fit & finish is a bit rough!
Branded "Parapluie à l'Epreuve". According to my research, it was made by Therias (closed since 2018)

Sorry for the quality of the pictures, not great





 
I love French pocket knives. I am on hold on the phone with my bank, as I type this, to let through a purchase of 8 kits that I plan to build.

In the meantime, here's a Laguiole from an interesting guy named Mr. Sannajust who, apparently, lives in his camper-van, has no fixed address, and makes knives out of the back. The materials are very good, the guilloche is sloppy, the scales fit alright but not perfectly, the spine is very stiff, but the blade is outstanding, very stable, and lightsaber-sharp (I already cut myself several times!)

I think I have picked up about six from him.
 

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waynorth waynorth again the same trouble : too much water here, dryness and fires there... the comic dates of the 60s, nuke bomb and sputniks are incriminated for the foul weather. 🙄 😀
btw, are you ok with your hip?
ErikMB said:
I love French pocket knives. I am on hold with my bank to let through a purchase of 8 kits that I plan to build.

In the meantime, here's a Laguiole from an interesting guy named Mr. Sannajust who, apparently, lives in his camper-van, has no fixed address, and makes knives out of the back. The materials are very good, the guilloche is sloppy, the scales fit alright but not perfectly, the spine is very stiff, but the blade is outstanding, very stable, and lightsaber-sharp (I already cut myself several times!)

I think I have picked up about six from him.
Click to expand...
Maki and Makinox were the trademarks of Annet Sannajust (1901-1997 / his younger brother André-Henry established as Sannajust Jeune, later becoming SCIP still existing with Léo Sannajust) and his son Guy (1932-1987), cutlers 62 rue de Lyon, Thiers. (infos courtesy of AS's granddaughter published in another forum)

The grandson Patrick Sannajust revived the brand in 1992 under the name name Laguiole-Maky (with a Y) 113 av. Léon Lagrange Thiers. Cy went into liquidation because of unsufficient business.
 
Merci, Nice Dad.

So who is making the Maki knives right now? I got lost in your explanation. Sorry.
 
One more post for French Friday. My trusty Opinel #8 in olive wood, faithful companion for about 15+ years (I'm not sure when I got it.) Still super sharp.

Some of the little scuff marks, like the little round dents you can barely see, are from a particularly wonderful Daddy-Daughter-Dream-Date at a cafe where I taught her how to make a little solar powered car model. She used it to pound the tiny axel through. She was just seven back then.

Above it is a new one, same size, blade, and also olive wood. Can you believe the difference in color after all these years?

My wife got me this as a replacement but I just cannot part with my "Old Faithful."

PXL_20210731_003703911_1.jpg
 
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Finally picked up the 12cm Capuchadou, olive wood to match the 10cm. Even though they are the same knife, the smaller one isn't just scaled down, the proportions are slightly different as well. Not sure which one I like better.

These are advertised as having an internal blade stop so that you can snap them shut instead of easing them closed but there is no blade stop on them.

The blade tip is much more stout on the 10cm.

I prefer the classic version instead of the guilloche just because they don't have the gem stone on the shamrock.... hurts my thumb!







 
draggat said:
Finally picked up the 12cm Capuchadou, olive wood to match the 10cm. Even though they are the same knife, the smaller one isn't just scaled down, the proportions are slightly different as well. Not sure which one I like better.

These are advertised as having an internal blade stop so that you can snap them shut instead of easing them closed but there is no blade stop on them.

The blade tip is much more stout on the 10cm.

I prefer the classic version instead of the guilloche just because they don't have the gem stone on the shamrock.... hurts my thumb!







Click to expand...
When I ordered my Chamois (same handle but different blade shape) I asked Yann at FP for a guilloche version without the gem stone and they could provide that without any problem at a reduced price. Very good service and friendly people:)
 
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