Vintage Opinel folding blade 8 piece collection - Need more information

[Dmed911]

I received an 8 piece Opinel folding knive set from a friend who received it as a gift +-10 years ago. He doesn't know anything about the knive set and I can't seem to find any info on the web regarding this specific set. I own a few opinel folding knives, but these differ in a number of ways from the standard Opinels that are available commercially these days.

Can anyone give me more information on the set?
- Is this a vintage set - How old is this set approximately?
- Why is the stamp / lettering on the beech wood handles in red instead of black?
- What wood is used on the slim / thin blades?
- Why no lettering / Stamp on the slim blade handles?

Photo Links:

http://tinypic.com/r/n4iix3/8
http://tinypic.com/r/nqqxzn/8

 

[brownshoe]

Don't know what you mean by vintage, but the sets have been for sale for awhile. Last time I saw these sets being sold in a catalog, was about 5-10 years ago. I believe it was Smokey Moutain KnfeWorks. The price for all was about 25% less than if bought individually new. If they lock open and closed, they are newer. The older ones, but not that old, did not lock closed.