Opinel No8 Garden Knife 18

Over time, one may be willing to experiment and adapt with EDC items. If you have tried and liked Opinel pocket knives, but have wondered if a slight modification to a selected model from Opinel’s range would be more in line with your preferred choices, a little bit of DIY can yield a most satisfying result. Several years ago, a No 8 Opinel Garden Knife was added to my modest collection, and it was a great choice for what I wanted. But for EDC it was not suitable, due to the locking ring, and the blade length, correctly measured in the open position, from handle to the tip of the blade, just slightly exceeded 3 inches. So, my original faithful Opinel No 8 Garden Knife is unmodified, is as useful as ever, and does not venture beyond the borders of the garden. That’s okay. An Opinel No 8 Effile has been a recent purchase from HH, and as an ultralight EDC, has been appreciatively used, with the obvious modifications of a shortened blade, with a fairly effective reverse tanto grind, and removal of the locking ring (stored at home, and never, but never, becoming an EDC item). The result of the slightly revised version of the No 8 Effile is a slim 23 gram pocket knife that has a slender blade just under 3 inches long; useful and unobtrusive, barely noticeable in a pocket. Yet, perhaps a similar design but with a broader blade would be a worthy alternative? Oh, why not? So, a second Opinel No 8 Garden Knife arrived today (at the time of writing) from HH, in record time, among a few other interesting and worthwhile items. A little later, and the new No 8 Garden Knife now is a non-locking friction folder with a sheepfoot blade that is an eighth of an inch less than three inches long. The tip of the (now) sheepfoot profile lacks a truly sharp point, by personal choice, and can be pressed with a fingertip without sanguinary injury. In fact, a tiny half millimetre radius is the ideal point of this experiment. By my opting for a sheepfoot shape, the point now has very little thickness, seeing that the legendary Opinel convex geometry means a cutting edge of almost theoretical thinness, and, inherently, renowned slicing ability. The usual Opinel blade shape, with the trailing “Turkish clip” shape, has a comparatively thicker tip, because the tip includes the spine of the blade. More meat, compared to a tip that only includes the thinnest part of the blade. But, having used the new and modded No 8 for some food prep in the kitchen, it can honestly be said that the brief effort and care needed to transform this pocket knife into an EDC item has been thoroughly worthwhile. It now fully complies with current legislation to carry in public without any specific reason, with appropriate discretion. Comparing the modded No 8 Garden Knife to a standard No 8 carbon steel model confirms that the handle length exactly matches a standard No 8, although the handle of the Garden Knife as designed is much more contoured, and smoothly tapers and curves agreeably to become quite slim at the bottom. The Garden Knife’s blade thickness and breadth really is a true No 8 size, but the weight of this altered No 8 is now only 32 grams, or 1.13 ounces. The handle shape of the No 8 Garden Knife is extremely ergonomic, has provision for a lanyard, and despite being modified, the pocket knife balances exactly at the index finger’s natural position. A wharncliffe blade shape was initially considered; but it looked like it might have interfered with the groove made by the nail nick, so a sheepfoot profile seemed better. So the result has a bit of both. “Wharnfoot”? “Sheepcliffe”? At any rate, the finished result is like a folding miniature Santuko type kitchen knife. At first glance, the blade looks notably shorter than the handle, but, for me, the handle is a really good fit for my hand, so comfortable, maybe even more so than the traditional Opinel fishtail shape. And the blade length is now definitely UK friendly. The best way to remove the locking ring is with external circlip pliers. Quick and easy to do, and avoids damaging the joint by attempting to use a less suitable tool; or using the “lock closed and force open” method; which used to work well some years ago, but not since Opinel changed the design to include the groove and indentation to the locking mechanism. So external circlip pliers give the best result. The locking ring can always be slipped back on, for use at home, in the garden, or while camping, and so on. Opinions and preferences are always a matter of personal choice. And time will tell whether the customised version of Opinel’s No 8 Garden Knife will occupy a permanent place in the daily EDC kit, but all the initial impressions are positive. Advantages? The finished version is nice and light, the modified blade size and shape are now an ideal choice for EDC (admittedly, other alternative blade shapes would also do), the stock handle and finish is perfect as is, the joint is tight for a friction folder (if you are used to the quirks of this brand), the handle shape allows for much more grip for opening, the price is very reasonable, the availability is practically universal, the build quality is consistent, in my experience, and the modest amount of work required to make the item UK friendly is easily worth it. Many thanks to HH for stocking this model, and also for the lightening quick delivery.

Over time, one may be willing to experiment and adapt with EDC items. If you have tried and liked Opinel pocket knives, but have wondered if a slight modification to a selected model from Opinel’s range would be more in line with your preferred choices, a little bit of DIY can yield a most satisfying result. Several years ago, a No 8 Opinel Garden Knife was added to my modest collection, and it was a great choice for what I wanted. But for EDC it was not suitable, due to the locking ring, and the blade length, correctly measured in the open position, from handle to the tip of the blade, just slightly exceeded 3 inches. So, my original faithful Opinel No 8 Garden Knife is unmodified, is as useful as ever, and does not venture beyond the borders of the garden. That’s okay. An Opinel No 8 Effile has been a recent purchase from HH, and as an ultralight EDC, has been appreciatively used, with the obvious modifications of a shortened blade, with a fairly effective reverse tanto grind, and removal of the locking ring (stored at home, and never, but never, becoming an EDC item). The result of the slightly revised version of the No 8 Effile is a slim 23 gram pocket knife that has a slender blade just under 3 inches long; useful and unobtrusive, barely noticeable in a pocket. Yet, perhaps a similar design but with a broader blade would be a worthy alternative? Oh, why not? So, a second Opinel No 8 Garden Knife arrived today (at the time of writing) from HH, in record time, among a few other interesting and worthwhile items. A little later, and the new No 8 Garden Knife now is a non-locking friction folder with a sheepfoot blade that is an eighth of an inch less than three inches long. The tip of the (now) sheepfoot profile lacks a truly sharp point, by personal choice, and can be pressed with a fingertip without sanguinary injury. In fact, a tiny half millimetre radius is the ideal point of this experiment. By my opting for a sheepfoot shape, the point now has very little thickness, seeing that the legendary Opinel convex geometry means a cutting edge of almost theoretical thinness, and, inherently, renowned slicing ability. The usual Opinel blade shape, with the trailing “Turkish clip” shape, has a comparatively thicker tip, because the tip includes the spine of the blade. More meat, compared to a tip that only includes the thinnest part of the blade. But, having used the new and modded No 8 for some food prep in the kitchen, it can honestly be said that the brief effort and care needed to transform this pocket knife into an EDC item has been thoroughly worthwhile. It now fully complies with current legislation to carry in public without any specific reason, with appropriate discretion. Comparing the modded No 8 Garden Knife to a standard No 8 carbon steel model confirms that the handle length exactly matches a standard No 8, although the handle of the Garden Knife as designed is much more contoured, and smoothly tapers and curves agreeably to become quite slim at the bottom. The Garden Knife’s blade thickness and breadth really is a true No 8 size, but the weight of this altered No 8 is now only 32 grams, or 1.13 ounces. The handle shape of the No 8 Garden Knife is extremely ergonomic, has provision for a lanyard, and despite being modified, the pocket knife balances exactly at the index finger’s natural position. A wharncliffe blade shape was initially considered; but it looked like it might have interfered with the groove made by the nail nick, so a sheepfoot profile seemed better. So the result has a bit of both. “Wharnfoot”? “Sheepcliffe”? At any rate, the finished result is like a folding miniature Santuko type kitchen knife. At first glance, the blade looks notably shorter than the handle, but, for me, the handle is a really good fit for my hand, so comfortable, maybe even more so than the traditional Opinel fishtail shape. And the blade length is now definitely UK friendly. The best way to remove the locking ring is with external circlip pliers. Quick and easy to do, and avoids damaging the joint by attempting to use a less suitable tool; or using the “lock closed and force open” method; which used to work well some years ago, but not since Opinel changed the design to include the groove and indentation to the locking mechanism. So external circlip pliers give the best result. The locking ring can always be slipped back on, for use at home, in the garden, or while camping, and so on. Opinions and preferences are always a matter of personal choice. And time will tell whether the customised version of Opinel’s No 8 Garden Knife will occupy a permanent place in the daily EDC kit, but all the initial impressions are positive. Advantages? The finished version is nice and light, the modified blade size and shape are now an ideal choice for EDC (admittedly, other alternative blade shapes would also do), the stock handle and finish is perfect as is, the joint is tight for a friction folder (if you are used to the quirks of this brand), the handle shape allows for much more grip for opening, the price is very reasonable, the availability is practically universal, the build quality is consistent, in my experience, and the modest amount of work required to make the item UK friendly is easily worth it. Many thanks to HH for stocking this model, and also for the lightening quick delivery.

Just received two more. Going to give one to a fellow gardener. Very handy tool.

Nice different take on the original Opinel. See quality with a different handle and blade shape.

Beautiful little knife. The tapered handle fits nicely in the hand.

Great knife, works great for feather sticks. Great customer service from Heinie Haynes as always. I highly recommend this knife.

Absolutely mega knife, love it

I bought this knife for camping as it has a longer blade than the No7. It's a very simple, well made knife that fits my small hand perfectly. It has a handy hole in the handle for a lanyard should you want one. The blade is sturdy and holds an edge very well. Classic style from a classic company. I'm very happy with this knife and would not hesitate to recommend it. Excellent service from Heinie as always. I'll be back!

Use mine in the kitchen, a pleasure to handle and slice. I find it's trickier to achieve a sharp edge than the carbon but worth it for the stainless.