Who Carries Opinels, and Why?

[BK14]

Hi everyone,

For the last week I have been carrying an Opinel no 5, that's been lent to me by a family member. This is my first real experience with the brand, and in carrying it around for a few days I am falling in love with the simplicity and how well it slices fruit and the like. I am definitely looking to get my own, but I am unsure which size. I know with their price I could probably just get two but I don't want to purchase something I won't often use. I was thinking about the no 7, but the 8 seems far more popular and I was wondering why. So my question is this: most people on this forum likely carry and use high quality modern folders pretty much daily, so where does the Opinel fit in? I doubt I would ever carry an Opinel as my only blade, so would not the smaller size of the 7 make it easier to use as a backup? I look forward to hearing from everyone who uses them how Opinels of varying sizes fit into their EDC. Thanks in advance for the advice, and I apologize if this has been discussed before but I was unable to find much to answer my question in the search function.

 

[MAD777]

Some days, I carry the No. 6. It is the smallest size with a lock, I believe. I also have a No. 8 and No. 10 which are backup blades for backpacking trips.

My attraction to them is their featherweight simple functionality. The only negative is that the wood swells when wet, making the knife very stiff to operate. (there is a plastic handle alternative).

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

 

[CornSyrup]

In my observations most people who carry Opinels fall into one of three categories.

- People who are unaware of the existence of other modern folders.
- People who require the frequent use of a knife in their everyday lives, and/or need a knife for hard cutting tasks.
- People who pooh-pooh modern folders as "bulky, overpriced, bad cost-benefit-ratio" items.

I feel that the Opinel design is not as convenient or as easy to carry & operate as a modern locking folder. The lack of a clip, the wood construction, the cylindrical profile, the way the knife 'locks,' I highly prefer the added portability and ease of use that comes with a modern locking folder with a clip.

 

[Lycosa]

I love the Opinel but I prefer Flat and a pocket clip.
rolf

 

[pvicenzi]

I frequently use a #8 at work, but prefer a #6 for pocket carry. For less than the price of a typical Benchmade, you can buy the entire collection, (except for the massive #13, and the keychain knife), and it comes in a nice wooden box..

 

[jousmit19]

Es una navaja tradicional, su seguro giroblock, su ligereza, su corte, su precio, su variedad de tamaños y modelos muy coleccionables, es perfectamente una navaja de caballeros

 

[deltaboy]

I have 8 and 10 ones. I tend to carry them outdoors .

 

[Quiet]

I own two Opinels and I can say I've never once carried either of them. Oh, wait, no, I take that back. I had one in my bag for a couple weeks, and one day I had an apple with my lunch and I wanted to slice it really, really thin.

So, I used my Spyderco PM2 with its better lock and materials and similar slicey blade grind and got the job well done. After that, I stopped carrying either of them. I keep them as curiosity items, and little else.

 

[Carboniferous]

1. The thin stock and full flat grind make them better slicers than the vast majority of modern folders

2. They're beautiful imo (mine has olivewood)

3. They're extremely light and comfortable to hold

4. They have history to them

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

1. The thin stock and full flat grind make them better slicers than the vast majority of modern folders

Full height convex grind, actually.

As far as use, they're thin knives made to excel at actual cutting tasks, with comfortable handles, good steel and heat treatment, they can take more abuse than their light build would suggest, and they're cheap enough that you can really abuse them and not have to worry about damaging it. You can use them as consumables without fear. So they're very popular as agricultural and work knives for those sorts of reasons. The wood swelling issue is overplayed in my experience. If they tighten up on you just rap the butt end against a firm object and it'll open enough for you to pinch the blade. With repeated use the excess wood wears and you're left with a pretty smoothly operating knife.

 

[deltaboy]

The reason I keep one in my Lunch box is they just cut ✂like nothing else.

 

[brancron]

I'm a fan of Opinels. They cut beautifully due to the super thin blade, weigh next to nothing (great for suit pocket carry), are cheap, and are "people friendly" in public. The fact that the steel doesn't hold a great edge is not really a problem as it takes literally 10 seconds to get them back to shaving sharp. They are simple, elegant, and carry with them none of the B.S. that many other modern knives do.

 

[Pàdruig]

Lots of love for Opinels here. If you do a quick search in the forums, you are bound to dig up a number of threads discussing them.

As has been mentioned, they are inexpensive, lightweight, simple, durable, and they cut very efficiently. They also lend themselves to being easily modified if the original handle or blade shape doesn't suit you. I find that the No. 8 is popular for a reason, it is a great "everyday" size and will perform just about any cutting task you would ask of it.

That all being said, they are a traditional pattern, therefore they have none of the bells and whistles that accompany more modern designs. Even if you end up carrying a more expensive knife regularly, you can't go wrong with having a few Opinels around as backups.

 

[Pàdruig]

You take fantastic pictures brancron :thumbup:

 

[terrinecold]

Full height convex grind, actually.

As far as use, they're thin knives made to excel at actual cutting tasks, with comfortable handles, good steel and heat treatment, they can take more abuse than their light build would suggest, and they're cheap enough that you can really abuse them and not have to worry about damaging it. You can use them as consumables without fear. So they're very popular as agricultural and work knives for those sorts of reasons. The wood swelling issue is overplayed in my experience. If they tighten up on you just rap the butt end against a firm object and it'll open enough for you to pinch the blade. With repeated use the excess wood wears and you're left with a pretty smoothly operating knife.

rap the butt is the way I was taught to open one.
In France where I come from they were usually the first knife you owned. I have had number 8s since I was 10 and I currently take one whenever I go outdoors for a camping or climbing trip for instance or for mushroom gathering.

All the remarks made by FortyTwoBlades are correct they are very good and cheap the steel whether you have a carbon steel one or a stainless one is good. In addition there are places with laws against automatically locking knives and where the manual virobloc is legal.

 

[BK14]

Wow, a lot of good insight here. For those that love Opinels, do you carry them as an only, or primary blade? If not, do you carry them as a backup, and if so, what do you use them for and how do you carry them? Loving the replies!

 

[brancron]

You take fantastic pictures brancron :thumbup:

Thanks! I need to get a better camera than my phone though; the pictures come out a bit grainy when they're blown up.

 

[A.L.]

I love their thin blade, but that's pretty much it. Not so much fan of their lock either, slipjoint works better for me. That's just my preference of course.

They are fun to mod though!
Here's my "cigar opinel" with dremeled drop point blade:

 

[chrisN01]

Today I am using my nr 9 to butcher a boar. C

I just love the simple performance of this knife.


Skickat från min iPhone med Tapatalk

 

[frankster]

I don't pocket carry mine. However I find them to be one of the best kitchen knives available. The blade can be sharpened wickedly sharp without much effort and they save drawer space.

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