Opinel Opinions?

ejt

Joined
Feb 5, 2002
Messages
89
I just bought one of these knives - OP-64, mid-sized stainless. Although a 100 year old wood handled knife design should qualify for this forum, I guess technically the ring mechanism makes this a lock blade somehow.....

But my real question is whether there is some drawback to this knife that I have yet to discover. It was dirt cheap (under $10), came quite sharp, and is amazingly light for its size. The description says "pearwood" handles, but it weighs like balsa. The simple round handle feels great, and rides easily in my pocket. The ring even makes a safety lock when the blade is closed. So can anyone tell me when I will discover why they are so inexpensive?
 
The Opinel is a very traditonal knife with a long history of service
to millions of folk's world wide. The ring lock is one of the featrues
that make the Opinel so distinctive and cheap. A brilliant idea that cost
pennies to make. You have joined a very large and growing number that
find the Opinel to be all the knife they need for everyday use. If you
check you will find several post from hardcore tactical fans here that
have expressed a soft spot for the Opinel line. Now that's a great knife
indeed.
 
Opinels are a lot of knife for very little money. Drawbacks? Well, they rust easy (but if you take care of them, they acquire a beautiful patina). They dull relatively quickly compared to harder or more complex steels, but they also take a very good edge quite quickly. If you haven't yet, I would recommend squirting some oil down around the blade pivot. This will soak into the wood a little and help prevent the wood from swelling to the point where you can't get the blade out. This happens sometimes when the knife is in a damp environment for a while. You also can't open them one-handed ;) (well, until they're broken in real good and you can just flip 'em open).
 
The OP-64 is stainless so you should not have the problem with rusting. These knives are far better than their cost would lead you to believe. Another advantage of them being so inexpensive is that you will never be reluctant to use one. If it gets destroyed then you go spend another $7.00 to $20.00 to get another one. Opinels get very high marks from me on the performance for money spent scale.

By the way, they are so inexpensive because they use really inexpensive materials and they can be very inexpensively mass produced.
 
I picked up a #8, new in the box at a local yard sale, some years ago. It was/is scary sharp. It would not bother me in the slightest to carry this knife everyday. And yes, it is traditional. :)
 
I just love the Opinel. I think they have a great "vintage" touch, and are just good knives for the money. The #8 is like the perfect size....

JD
 
ejt, I was similarly pleasantly surprised when I bought my Opinel. Check around in the archives for a website (I think it's a dealer) that shows unbelievable custom Opinels--not so much the blade but ornate handles. Real neat stuff.
 
I am a big Opinel fan.

The original post has been answered by others so I'd just like to say that I have found the red plastic/ceramic rod pull-through sharpeners by Notmark are excellent for keeping that Opinel sharp. Also works great on Moras and SAK. Seems to work on any thin bladed knives expecialy carbon steel.

I am a sharpening clutz so I love my Normark shapeners. A cheap sharpener for a cheap knife :)
 
Opinels are great. For the price and useability, everyone should have one. A true classic, like the Mora knife.
 
My little Opi no8 is just a superb little knife. Sharpens up an absolute treat. Keeps its edge well in my opinion. I took off the lacquer and dropped it in hot linseed then applied some warm beeswax. Much nicer feel to the handle. I've whittled with it with some success. What have you got to lose?
 
easilyled said:
My little Opi no8 is just a superb little knife. Sharpens up an absolute treat. Keeps its edge well in my opinion. I took off the lacquer and dropped it in hot linseed then applied some warm beeswax. Much nicer feel to the handle. I've whittled with it with some success. What have you got to lose?

Thats the best thing to do with your Opinel. Everytime I get a new opi I sand it down, even in the blade slot, all this with the locking ring removed. I heat up the linseed and soak the knife overnight. Over the next couple of days I'll use a soft rag to rub the handle as it seeps linseed. After a while you have a very nice finish. About every six months to a year I'll rub some more linseed on it and let it sit overnight and buff it in the morning. After a few years I only do it about once a year.

Over time the linseed will harden down in the wood and stabilize it from swelling. I have about a dozen Opinels I've accumulated over the past twenty years or so ranging from a number 7 to the number 12 carried in a nylon belt pouch. They are about my favorite folding knives these days for all the reasons these guys have said.

I love them!
 
Huge Thumbs Up for Opinel!

During years of working and living outdoors, an Opinel was the only knife I ever needed.

-Bob
 
Well, I'm not going to make any friends here with this post, but here goes.

I have had 2 Opinels and they were an absolute waste of money. I tried simple tasks such as cutting fuzz sticks out of pitch pine for a camp fire, and took 1/8th inch scallops out of the edge. I had thinned the edge out *slightly* on my Edgepro, as the edge it came with wasn't very good, but didn't take it any lower than 25 or 30 deg or so.

Before I thinned it I did some cutting, and it would lose an edge very quickly. Whether it was the steel or heat treat, I don't know, but either way, they both were horrible.

As most other people tend to love their Opinels, I might have gotten from a bad batch, but twice is enough for me.
 
I really like Opinels,
they're cheap, scary sharp, get a nice patina, simple and you can custimize them really easy (blade and handle)
Here's mine, an Opinel 12, it's living in the kitchen and it's the sharpest knife in my house, after every use, it get's some short honing on a wood board or cardboard.
opinel.jpg

The blade got a nice patina with the mostard-method, handle now is much thinner and fit's great for me. I gave my first try on some simple filework too - won't cost much if you don't like the result.
Opinels are made ONLY for cutting, never even think about choping or prying,
I heared that even some survival instructors prefer a Opinel over any super-tactical-prybar-hightec-blade........
 
I heared that even some survival instructors prefer a Opinel over any super-tactical-prybar-hightec-blade........
I took a 21-day desert survival course in Utah and the instructor's only knife was an Opinel. That was actually the first time I'd ever seen an Opinel. Seemed high-tech to me at the time because of the unusual fancy lock. :) The instructor was old-school, a "blanket and knife" survival type, with decades of experience. During the traveling phase of the course most of us had backpacks - he carried everything he needed in a blanket roll on his hip. "Less is more."

Best Wishes,
-Bob
 
sodak said:
Well, I'm not going to make any friends here with this post, but here goes.

I have had 2 Opinels and they were an absolute waste of money. I tried simple tasks such as cutting fuzz sticks out of pitch pine for a camp fire, and took 1/8th inch scallops out of the edge. I had thinned the edge out *slightly* on my Edgepro, as the edge it came with wasn't very good, but didn't take it any lower than 25 or 30 deg or so.

Before I thinned it I did some cutting, and it would lose an edge very quickly. Whether it was the steel or heat treat, I don't know, but either way, they both were horrible.

As most other people tend to love their Opinels, I might have gotten from a bad batch, but twice is enough for me.


Not that this will change your mind, but there is a difference between the INOX and carbon. There is a hardcore review somewhere of the carbon steel model. I would also suggest a convex edge, to leave some of the thickness.
 
sodak said:
Well, I'm not going to make any friends here with this post, but here goes.

I have had 2 Opinels and they were an absolute waste of money. I tried simple tasks such as cutting fuzz sticks out of pitch pine for a camp fire, and took 1/8th inch scallops out of the edge. I had thinned the edge out *slightly* on my Edgepro, as the edge it came with wasn't very good, but didn't take it any lower than 25 or 30 deg or so.

Before I thinned it I did some cutting, and it would lose an edge very quickly. Whether it was the steel or heat treat, I don't know, but either way, they both were horrible.

As most other people tend to love their Opinels, I might have gotten from a bad batch, but twice is enough for me.


I've got one of the smaller ones and pretty much agree with you. It was pretty sharp right out of the box, but really flimsy. I'll get around to trying the bigger versions some day, but its not high on my list.
 
I've beaten the heck out of my carbon 6, and haven't seen any of the types of damage you're saying. Even with a thin flat grind- down in the low 20s/high teens- the edge still stands up.
 
Opinels make great picnic basket or lunch box knives. The thin, sharp blades are great for slicing foods. If you lose it or accidentally throw it away, it's no big deal.
 
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