Opinel Blade Removal

[Keithpaints]

Want to know if anyone has removed blade from Opinel knife so collar can be bent back & reused . From looks it maybe possible.

My #12 Opinel was using to strip bark off to get to Cambian layer to poison vines & other growth that had totally engulfed Janice Antie's house high up in valley. Lost it found couple years later open position completely covered in layer of rust. Handle spalted from rainforest conditions. After sanding off rust found lots of pitting on the blade.

Handle is very nice. One of a kind. Cheaper way to fix is get new #12 & switch blades.

More expensive send it to France &
have a custom blade put on it.

 

[deltaplex]

Yes, they're made to get installed over the assembled knife, so they can be "pushed off" using something similar to snap ring pliers with little to no deflection to the collar. Plenty of YT restoration videos to watch if you'd like to see someone do it.

 

[Keithpaints]

Thanks will do that

 

[Matt Jacobs]

Piece of cake, look up a quick video and you'll be done in seconds. I got #8's for my family one year for Christmas, took them all apart and made the handles custom for each then cleaned up the action and put them back together, fun project

 

[Keithpaints]

Don't know why didn't try utube anyway figured folks here know the score. I even have reverse pinchers took 1 second to take off outer ring thanks guys it was a piece of cake.

 

[Keithpaints]

I might add as the outer collar with reverse snap ring pliers was easy.

The nail that holds the blade to inner collar is more of a challenge. Even you tube vids scarce on this part, some skip the part where nail push through is filmed because it is somewhat hard to do.

After removing 4 nails 2 old spalted handles & 2 new handles kind of figured it out. From first nail that I bent & had to straighten out pounding with hammer on vice flat. For me filing the push through part of pin flush with outer ring. That way you can fit a thicker nail punch & push pin through without flaring the head making matters worse.

 

[M1k3]

@bryan03 has done a few of these. Maybe he has some advice?

 

[Rangen]

Now I want to remove mine, so I can do that to my handle.

 

[Keithpaints]

Two handles with one stainless & one carbon.

 

[Keithpaints]

The two leftover handles got blades from going to put in field of red ginger let fungus do its thing.

 

[Keithpaints]

My science geek fungus are important in soil biodiversity. We as humans think of harmful fungus & bacteria. Lichens grow on trees, rocks & are considered to be a keystone species. Lichen are symbiotic life form. Fungus with rhizomes to attach to rocks & wood & algai to gather energy from the Sun. Blue Green algai pumped oxygen into atmosphere.

Put rocks up here in 10 years ago lichen have covered them the environment is perfect for their growth.