Opinel bird knife

[johnnytheboy]

Not being an experienced diyer, I was wondering if it would be possible to make a custom bird knife out of an opinel.

I seen some svord peasants where the folding handle was replaced by a welded fixed handle, I thought about doing this to an opinel to make an easy clean bird knife

has anyone tried this?

 

[Stew]

There are probably ready made solutions out there that would suit.

What is it about the opinel that grabs you in the first place?

 

[mick91]

Opinel won't be easy to clean. Although possible I suppose. I forged a spanner knife for a mate the other day for that exact reason actually! If you want easy to clean look at one solid piece fixy without even scales

 

[johnnytheboy]

Mc that's what I'm on about one solid piece, opinel blade welded to a fixed shank, no scales or anything!

Stew em it's just the cheapness of the opinel if anything goes wrong with the project it's not a big ways of money!

 

[mick91]

Mc that's what I'm on about one solid piece, opinel blade welded to a fixed shank, no scales or anything!

Stew em it's just the cheapness of the opinel if anything goes wrong with the project it's not a big ways of money!

Going to be a pig to weld, and your HAZ is going to change the hardness of the steel drastically. Possible I suppose though

 

[Samon]

If it were mine I'd file out a slot for some mild steel rod to fit in the bottom of the blade and arc weld it together while the blade itself was imbedded into a cold potato, then grind the ecess weld off. Then you have a stick tang you can put into a plastic handle made from melted milk bottles!

Or some scrap steel in a similar manner for a solid metal knife, but it would be ugly and tbh you're better off just making a whole knfie from one bit of steel from a saw blade.

If you need help or someone to do the work I should be able to do most things.

 

[Adze]

Mind you... once you've bought an opinel, cut yourself a couple of times taking it to bits, probably knackered the temper welderizing it onto a bit of stock (forgot about buying that bit) or an old file and then shaping it, you might as well have bought one of these:

http://www.heinnie.com/cold-steel-bird-and-trout £22ish

 

[mountainm]

Get a grohmann. Best b'n't knife going...

 

[Macaroon]

Get a grohmann. Best b'n't knife going...

Fabulous little knife, I had the use of one for a couple of days last month; superb tool in every way.

 

[Stew]

Stew em it's just the cheapness of the opinel if anything goes wrong with the project it's not a big ways of money!

Ok.

Well to my mind, if you have a 'spare' opinel knocking around and the tools to do it then go for it but I would say if you need to start investing money in someone else's time then it's probably not cost effective versus some ready made solutions.

I would think a moulded in place micarta handle done in a similar way to this global knife I recently handled would work:
http://stewartjlight-knives.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/a-broken-global-knife-reborn.html

Grind a little bit off the tang end of the blade to make some more tang but then I think it would be strong enough with a pin through the pivot. It wouldn't be seeing heavy work.

 

[shaggystu]

How about opening up a standard opinel and giving the whole thing a good soaking in some epoxy resin to turn it into a fixed blade knife? No idea how well it would work, just a thinking out loud really.

Cheers,

Stuart.

 

[mountainm]

Get some of these
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/sheep-foliage-hand-shears-Burgon-Ball-/121752496848?hash=item1c5903aad0

then chop up.

 

[Macaroon]

Ok.

Well to my mind, if you have a 'spare' opinel knocking around and the tools to do it then go for it but I would say if you need to start investing money in someone else's time then it's probably not cost effective versus some ready made solutions.

I would think a moulded in place micarta handle done in a similar way to this global knife I recently handled would work:
http://stewartjlight-knives.blogspot.co.uk/2015/09/a-broken-global-knife-reborn.html

Grind a little bit off the tang end of the blade to make some more tang but then I think it would be strong enough with a pin through the pivot. It wouldn't be seeing heavy work.

That's a really great rescue of the Global you've done there; looks every bit as useable, and stylish, as the Grohmann knives. Classy work there.

 

[Stew]

That's a really great rescue of the Global you've done there; looks every bit as useable, and stylish, as the Grohmann knives. Classy work there.

Thanks! The handle is a bit grohmann like I suppose! I would rather have a grohmann though. I handled one many years ago and it's a shape I like.