I am going to remember this thread the next time some new guy starts another one about some knife made overseas....
Not in Europe and people pile on bashing it....... It happens pretty much every time......
And I will link to this thread....
It will still be really funny..... Even then......
Then I am going to really have a lot of fun with that......
After seeing so many defending this thing...... Like it's magic..... And really going out of their way to defend it....
You know quality knives. Quality steel, and heat treat. You have used thin customs, with super steels, in high hardness.
If the knife was made in Pakistan, with the same atributes (meaning they had the same steel, and were built the same), I would buy them. They would be even cheaper. If they made them in China, the same way, I'd have no trouble.
I have knives from Twain. China. Japan. USA. France. Germany. El Salvador. And a few other random places. All fine knives.
I am not an origin snob. I still like basic steels. Tool steels, carbon steel, even lowly medium carbon steels are fine if they are ground right, and heat treated right.
They are not "fine knives" from a finish standpoint. They are not customs, or high end production, or anything. Again, they are $13 or less. I could not care less where they are made. The fact that they are an original design, made in France is fine with me. I know junk when I hold it, or use it, and of the 8 Opinel I have owned and used, none were junk (that latest new Buck sure the hell was, though, truly abysmal construction and fit, though it costs 3 times as much). Was it less of a gas station knife because it as made in the US, and was more expensive? I have used $6 Chinese knives with way better quality.
I can't think of a knife that I have used that cuts better at any where near even 6 times the cost.
I like them enough to want more in the INOX and in different woods.
No one is trying to say that a $13 dollar knife is better than a Phil Wilson laser slicer in super duper uber steel at near 70rc.
I still have Busse and Swamprat. I still have production folders, modern and traditional, and a few customs. I have used a few knives that cut better. Held an edge longer. I have a custom knife with a secondary blade that will cut better, and hold and edge longer. I could purchase about 46 Opinel for the price it cost to have that custom knife built. I don't need 46 Opinel, and I really love that custom.
The enjoyment of one does not diminish the other for me.
I bought my wife an Opinel #6 (INOX)
Out of the box, it was flat dull - glinting along the entire edge, completely unsharpened at the heel. No big deal, didn't expect much anyway, and it sharpened-up easily being so thin, 15-dps microbevel.
As a box-cutter, it works as well as most utility blades in that it is very thin but goes dull quite quickly, stops cutting clean and requires more force, but at least there is minimal wedging. Still, my thicker knives are better cardboard cutters (i.e. less force required, cut more cardboard before requiring a touch-up)
If any wedging DOES occur, the blade is narrow and the handle so round that it tends to twist on cuts unless a very firm grip is maintained - again something that my wife did NOT like and another reason i stopped using it for cardboard.
Finally, carving wood :thumbdn::thumbdn: When carving/whittling, holding the knife close to the cutting edge allows for a better transfer of force for clean, controlled cuts. Wood tends to bind and put lateral stress on a blade. The opinel is very thin so it cuts deep... and binds. Prying/twisting (part of carving) easily deform the apex and, holding from the handle of the knife, the blade often bends rather than proceeding with the task. In order to put more force behind the cutting edge, one must apply pressure to the spine of the knife where you are trying to make the cut, and the thin opinel blade-spine is quite uncomfortable in this.
In summary, this inexpensive thin cutting tool is great for cutting materials which are NOT likely to twist the blade, bind it (and so require a lot of careful force behind the blade), or quickly wear it down, in other words very soft materials. Cardboard, wood, rope, etc. not so much. It isn't very convenient to carry, open, or close. Cutting paper, fabric, and soft fruits&veggies or meat :thumbup: But those things do not account for the majority of my cutting needs, and even if they did, the inferiority of this knife for other common uses compromises its utility. I'd rather pay 4-5X more for a knife that can do EVERYthing I need it to do, do it well, and be safer and more convenient as well, and apparently my wife feels that way as well. The Opinel will wait in a drawer until my girls are old enough to use it responsibly.
That's my $0.02 No hate, just realism.
I have to say, that this experience is the opposite of my own. I have used them hard, and had no edge deformation. Hard wood, hickory, and a lot of it. Twisting, light prying. I have hit industrial staples, cast iron, etc. The Inox has had great edge retention in my uses. Better than a lot of other steels I have used. I wonder if you took the steel too thin?
It makes great fuzz sticks. But one issue you might be experiencing may be due to the size of the knife you were using. The #6 is much too small for my hand for any real pressure or hard use. The 10 is much more comfortable to bear down on, and when using it, I don't need to use the thumb pressure on the spine (which is thin, and not rounded).
I'm not going to change any opinions, I know, but I like them, and that's enough for me.
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