Opinels with pocket clips

It will not change the fact that the Opinel is just clunky in the pocket. Not criticizing by any way, but the way the Opinel sits in the pocket is just bleh. I don't see the clip changing that. I prefer by miles my GEC Sunfish, which may be heavy, but is smooth as a pebble in the pocket.
 
If it works for you great, nd more power to everyone modding their knives.

But....the Opinel has been in its present form, unchanged for about 130 years...because a great, time tested design. To me, if it needed a pocket clip, it would have one already.

Its like making an assisted opener tanto Opinel. Why.
 
Eversion said:
...I tend to favor a leather pocket slip with a clip on it for these sort of things.
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To me, it's already slow enough to deploy. Adding a slip would slow it down even more, right?

herisson said:
It will not change the fact that the Opinel is just clunky in the pocket. Not criticizing by any way, but the way the Opinel sits in the pocket is just bleh. I don't see the clip changing that. I prefer by miles my GEC Sunfish, which may be heavy, but is smooth as a pebble in the pocket.
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It's true, and there's no reason they can't design a new model. Maybe the same friction folder mechanics, but with a flatter handle. Maybe the 'slim' version is like that? (I haven't tried one)

marcinek said:
If it works for you great, nd more power to everyone modding their knives.

But....the Opinel has been in its present form, unchanged for about 130 years...because a great, time tested design. To me, if it needed a pocket clip, it would have one already.

Its like making an assisted opener tanto Opinel. Why.
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As above, they can keep producing the classic models, but why not make some attempt at something modern?
The French are good at hanging onto their traditions, which is good for some things, (art, architecture, culture) but why not make a newer one too? They do have some with colored plastic handles and one that will even hold a 1/4" hex bit. But nothing that really looks pocket friendly yet.
 
Smaug said:
As above, they can keep producing the classic models, but why not make some attempt at something modern?
The French are good at hanging onto their traditions, which is good for some things, (art, architecture, culture) but why not make a newer one too? They do have some with colored plastic handles and one that will even hold a 1/4" hex bit. But nothing that really looks pocket friendly yet.
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Why retool to get into another part of the market that is already saturated?

Sure, they could pivot and make a titanium frame lock flipper, but why? Everybody and his brother makes one.

How many companies make a knife like an Opinel? They have a solid hold on their niche, which is a French, truly traditional knife, and they are doing well with it. For over a century.

If it aint broke, done fix it.
 
Eversion said:
Interesting. How do they feel in hand after putting on a clip at such an askew angle like that?
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Sorry for the late reply.

The ergos change completely, but surprisingly doable. The reverse grip kinda feels better. I still need to use them to be able to tell more, i was only squeezing them so far..
 
To be honest, Opinel does try to prod into the "modern" market. Plastic (bright colored) handles, multitool oriented knives, serrated blades... I understand but, to me, it's just not Opinel anymore. A flattish beechwood handle would be so much a better evolution while still being truly Opinel. Just me...
 
herisson said:
It will not change the fact that the Opinel is just clunky in the pocket. Not criticizing by any way, but the way the Opinel sits in the pocket is just bleh. I don't see the clip changing that. I prefer by miles my GEC Sunfish, which may be heavy, but is smooth as a pebble in the pocket.
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I like that GEC.. and that is why I took off the clip from my Chaparral. Just compare these two:

opinel-vs-chaparral.jpg


And what can I do with the clip? Yep.

opinel-v-chaparral-clip.jpg
 
One positive point for the Opinel's "blocky" handle is that it provides a full hand's grip, ideal for some heavier work... Ok, there's that, but I still hate the feeling in the pocket. And I carry heavier and bigger knives in my pockets, as long as they feel right. The Opinel does not, and never did, feel right.
 
Bastler said:
Hmm... I knew a guy who mixed 7-up with single malt scotch. Some things I consider to be incompatible, others are entitled to disagree.
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Scotch makers keep producing the classic Scotch, but why not make some attempt at something modern?
The Scots are good at hanging onto their traditions, which is good for some things, (kilts, haggis) but why not make a newer one too?

Like 7 up and single malt in a can! Or with Mountain Dew. Or like flavored Scotch. Blue raspberry. Cinnamon!

:D

Like a Opinel with a clip.
 
marcinek said:
The Scots are good at hanging onto their traditions, which is good for some things, (kilts, haggis) but why not make a newer one too?

Like 7 up and single malt in a can! Or with Mountain Dew. Or like flavored Scotch. Blue raspberry. Cinnamon!

:D
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Even in a most mushroom induced midnight nightmare, I ain't gonna try to imagine that!:eek::eek:
 
In the first 40-odd years I used Opinels, I never got into the habit of carrying them, in large part because of the lump they made in my pocket. Then I came to BF, and learned from some clever fellows here how easy it is to sand, whittle or file the beechwood handle into a shape that rides comfortably in the pocket. I saw how others changed the shape of the blade, and altered a few of my own. I figured out how to retro-engineer the newest lock rings so they worked the way they were supposed to. I looked on in envy as people more clever and imaginative turned their Opinels into works of art.

An Opinel is not a sacrosanct design, but rather a blank canvas. People can and do modify the hell out of them to suit their own purposes. Some people have even put pocket clips on them, been doing it for years. I don’t pay attention to those threads. There is a current thread around here that I follow, which discusses the removal of clips from modern knives, something that I often do.
 
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