One of the oldest knife manufacturers in Europe is Opinel. The knives of this factory are unique in their own way. Their concept has been almost unchanged for almost a hundred years, while the demand for French products has not fallen. The history of the company began in 1890, when Joseph Opinel assembled his first
folding knife at a family factory
. As it turned out, the eighteen-year-old founder of the company had a remarkable talent as a gunsmith, and his products began to enjoy unprecedented success. By 1897, a collection consisting of twelve knives appeared, which differed only in size and were respectively marked from one to twelve. In 1909, Joseph registered the trademark "Opinel". From now on, knives of this brand were decorated with an emblem in the form of a blessing hand crowned with a crown.
1955 significantly changed the folding knives of this company. A protective retaining ring was installed on the blades. This new product is called "Virobloc". Of course, to call the installation of the blocking part significant changes in most cases is somewhat strange. But when it comes to such a conservative company as
Opinel, whose knives are executed according to classical canons, such a speech revolution is quite justified.
The traditional line of knives is still produced by the company, today it is only 10 knives. Of course, besides her, the French produce a lot of other blades, for example, the Opinel kitchen knives enjoy well-deserved authority around the world. But the most popular was and remains the traditional line, which is called "Original" or "Traditional line".
Browse blades "Opinel". Traditional line knives
Let's take a closer look at the company's products by examining one of its legendary knives. The hero of our review today is "Opinel Original No. 02 Key-ring". This knife, although marked with a double, but, in fact, it is he who has been the smallest in the traditional line for 80 years.
The design of the blade is very simple: a convenient wooden handle, in which a slot for the blade is made, the blade itself, the axis and the metal insert that protects the moving elements from breaking. Such a design was invented long before Joseph Opinel, but it was he who brought this concept to perfection.
The scimitar type blade is made of advanced Swedish stainless steel. This alloy is characterized by low carbon content and high chromium content. The cutting edge of the blade is barely noticeable, the sharpening angle is 20 degrees. With these characteristics, the knife should be sharp like a razor, but no - the stock sharpening uses, to put it mildly, not all the potential of steel. But the reviews of the rugged guys are impressive. For example, one of the participants in the Russian knife forum boasted that he had managed to sharpen Opinel folding knives so that they cut the newspaper on the fly.
The knife handle is made exclusively of beech. This is a classic option for knives, because the beech is solid and light, and beautiful in addition. But there is one thing. The wood of this breed is very sensitive to moisture - it does not like not only pure water, but also high humidity.