I've been looking at a bunch of Opinel pictures online, and I see that quite a few people seem to like to removed the locking collar. I'm just curious what purpose this serves. I'm not knocking anyone who does it, I'm just wondering if I'm missing something. I'f it's to use the knife as a purely friction folder, wouldn't it be easier to just leave the collar on and not use it?
Beer or ale?
Ford or Chevy?
Bolt or lever?
Bourbon or scotch?
The beautiful thing about the lock ring is that it can be removed, so there's a world of wonderful choice.
The reasons I hear about taking them off include: legal prohibitions against locks, personal preferences against locks or a nod to pre-1955 traditional Opinel.
Personally, I think locking folders are plenty traditional and, in the case of the Opinel, add to the beauty of the lines. When I see an Opinel without its lock, it reminds of John Clease in "A Fish Named Wanda", standing there without his pants on. Not that I'm shocked or offended, mind you. It's just that I would rather look at John Clease with his pants on.
Without the lock ring, the Opinel is a pleasant enough looking peasant knife.
With the lock ring... they become stunning, at least to my eye.
Opinel by
Pinnah, on Flickr
Another reason why I keep the lock on is that I think it's a stunning bit of engineering, ranking right up there with the Svea 123, Rottefella Super Telemark 3 pin binding, Trangia alcohol burner, Sugino AT triple crank and Brooks B-17N. These are designs that go beyond good. They're utterly iconic, both in terms of the design aesthetic and their function. They're simple, beautiful and work insanely well.
The Vibrolock won't turn the Opinel into a pry bar and anybody wanting to use it as a pry bar gets what they deserve when it fails. But the lock adds a lot of safety and additional functionality, by resisting any accidental closure from glancing blows. It also maintains this security and functionality when completely fouled with dirt or sand.
I ran a pass-around last year with an old Opinel #8. One user couldn't get the ring to work well when fouled with concrete, which is pretty gritty stuff. Another person finally busted the tip off but only after twisting the blade. The lock didn't fail under the abuse.
A bit later, I'm cracking open a nice cold Harpoon Ale. That's an ale. It's not a beer. Lots of folks like beer and that's super cool. Life is great that way.