I have decided I need a folding knife essentially for picnics (as cutting cheese and pork pies with a plastic knife is a game for fools). Don’t want to spend a fortune.

Recommendations? Victorinox Sentinel any good?

There is only one answer. Opinel.

The best VFM you can get will be via chinese sellers on ebay.com/aliexpress. You’ll be able to get titanium framelocks with decent blade steel for £20-£50. Another option might be the Svord Peasant knife.

PJ266 – Member

There is only one answer. Opinel.

There are plenty of alternatives. Opinel are cheap and chearful, and available everywhere but they are less than ideal in many ways. Difficult/impossible to open one handed, they don’t lock automatically and the detent isn’t sufficient to hold the blade in place if don’t and the actual blade steel isn’t the best unless you go for the more expensive versions.

Swiss Army Champ.

When you say ‘more expensive’ Opinel knives, which one do you mean?

Not that bothered about one handed operation or locking.

Never had a problem with Opinel knives , we have a 4″ one in our camping kit that is at least 20 years old and still sharp(very) despite the blade looking a bit rusty .

If you want to cut things like bread and tomatoes, then a serrated blade is going to be more useful.

I have one like this.

Spyderco do a UK Penknife, which is legal and non-locking, but which has a very definite decant at half-way open/closed, with a choil to stop the blade closing up on your fingers, or there’s the Squeak, which is similar but with a smaller blade, or the Pingo, which is designed for Danish laws, in that there is no hole in the blade to aid one hand opening, or notch for using a fingernail either, the blade has to be opened two-handed, but it has a very strong spring and detents and there’s jimping at the base of the blade to help avoid accidental blade closures on the fingers.
None are ‘cheap ‘n’ cheerful’, but they’re all bloody good knives which will last years if you look after them.
Pingo: https://www.heinnie.com/spyderco-pingo
UK Penknife: https://www.heinnie.com/spyderco-ukpk-frn-leaf-flat-grind
Squeak: https://www.heinnie.com/spyderco-squeak
Whatever knife you go for, I’d suggest getting one of these: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lansky-Sharpeners-4-Rod-Deluxe-Sharpener/dp/B000B8FW0E
Very neat little box with four crock-sticks contained inside, which drop into the sets of holes on the top, a coarse brown aluminium oxide set and fine white ceramic, and you get a choice of 20 or 25 degree edge.
Much cheaper than the Spyderco TriAngle sharpener, easy to carry, all you need other than maybe a couple of diamond stones, a coarse and fine/ultra-fine in case an edge gets really dull.

ratherbeintobago – Member

When you say ‘more expensive’ Opinel knives, which one do you mean?

My mistake, there’s little or no difference price wise. For some reason I thought the carbon was more expensive.

Not that bothered about one handed operation

Well you won’t be until the second or third or fourth time you want to open it when you have something in your hand.

or locking.

It’s definitely worth considering if you don’t like slicing your fingers open.

I have an opinel knife, its far better than the bargain price would lead you to believe.

The carbon steel Opinels do keep a very good edge, but they do rust easily; you can preempt that by soaking the blade in warm Apple vinegar, which gives a black coating, when you wipe off the residue the blade is a dark grey and more resistant to normal rusting.
They are bloody good knives, the edge has to be treated with respect, though, as I found to my cost a couple of years ago slicing up some thin kindling for my little stove…

Well you won’t be until the second or third or fourth time you want to open it when you have something in your hand.

The OP wants a knife for picnics, not to pretend he’s Sylvester Stallone dangling from a rope halfway up a mountain in Cliffhanger. He can always put the pork pie down and use both hands if he gets a folding blade.

or locking.

It’s definitely worth considering if you don’t like slicing your fingers open. [/quote]

Which is why a nice simple cheap picnic knife with a plastic handle and a plastic sheath, which can both be washed properly and easily, is the best tool for the job.

slowster

The OP wants a knife for picnics, not to pretend he’s Sylvester Stallone dangling from a rope halfway up a mountain in Cliffhanger. He could always put the pork pie down and use both hands if he gets a folding blade.

What sort of guff are you talking about? A folding knife with one handed opening is handier than two, end of story. I realise this is STW so obviously the artisanal, classic retro defacto choice advocated by the chino and brown brogue wearing masses has to be deferred to but the truth is there are hundreds of designs that are better in almost every way than the opinel. The opinel wins on price, certainly, but it loses out in virtually every other way.

Cheap – opinel
Mid price – victorinox pioneer
Bit more – spyderco pingo or squeak

Little point spending more than this In my opinion

FWIW
I use a spyderco squeak for this sort of thing. It looks relatively friendly and non stabby to non knife loving folk.
Nice blade, nice n small but very handy and nice one hand opening.

Does ‘for a picnic’ count as a good reason to be carrying a knife bigger than 76mm does anyone know?

Letter of the law, I don’t think so. But if you’re away from any built up areas or crowds you should be fine.

EKA Swede 8 – £27.95 from Heinnei Haynes. 😛

Mine is EKA Swede 92. 😀

The most important job of a picnic knife is to open beer and wine bottles. Which rules out the Rambo switchblades.

Just checked and as I thought, nothing difficult about opening an opinel onehanded. Not as easy as some but that feels like something that’s mostly important if you need to cut the rope on your climbing buddy, or fight off steven seagull. I’ve never felt in such a rush to execute a pork pie.

Northwind – Member

Just checked and as I thought, nothing difficult about opening an opinel onehanded it’s far more difficult to open one handen than most other designs. Not as easy as some but that feels like something that’s mostly important if you need to cut the rope on your climbing buddy, or fight off steven seagull to cut something you are holding in the other hand.

Your other hands not a carnival claw. You will be able to pick it up again if you were to place it down to free up said occupied hand to open the knife.

For camping I have a fixed msr in a sheath that lives in my kitchen kit.nothing to unfold then

5thElefant – Member
The most important job of a picnic knife is to open beer and wine bottles

Sabre/Champagne.

Sabre/Champagne.

I think you’ll find a naval officer’s sword will do just as well, as demonstrated by people I know, and by Thomsen in Das Boot.

I have also been called upon to slice a haggis with a cutlass.

What about a bit of Sheffield steel?

A. Wright & Son classic Spear Point Pocket folding knife

Reasonably priced, great edge, classic design

Svord peasant

Advantages of a locking blade but street legal

Lovely blade

(mini is uk legal, but you have to trim/Dremel the butt edge of the normal blade by about 3mm to bring it under 3″)

Non locking British army Jack knife is hard to beat too – oil the joints.

A. Wright & Son classic Spear Point Pocket folding knife

That looks nice…

What sort of guff are you talking about?

I’m talking about the OP’s requirements:

I have decided I need a folding knife essentially for picnics (as cutting cheese and pork pies with a plastic knife is a game for fools). Don’t want to spend a fortune.

Although many of us have used a Swiss Army knife or an Opinel for an impromptu picnic, they are not the best tool for the job, and for food hygiene reasons I do not like the idea of a folding blade knife.

Since it’s for picnic use, something cheap and functional that won’t be expensive to replace if it’s lost, is a far better choice.

The OP referred to pork pies and cheese, but if you want to cut bread or tomatoes (which both often feature in many people’s picnics), then a serrated blade is the best tool for the job.

I keep a knife like the one I linked to in a bag on my bike, so that if the fancy takes me I can buy a baguette etc. while I’m out and have an impromptu picnic. It will do a far better job than an Opinel, a Swiss Army knife or a titanium framelock (whatever that is), and if it gets damaged or lost it’s cheap to replace.

OP, if you have young children, then possibly a better alternative to having a blade with a sharp point would be something like the Victorinox tomato knife. It doesn’t come with a solid plastic sheath, but you could probably make a very simple sheath for it, even if that just meant stapling a couple of long pieces of card together. If you also need a bottle opener and a corkscrew, then the Victorinox Waiter is the most compact of the standard size Swiss Army knives.

Its a picnic ,just grab something from the cutlery draw before you go,buying a special knife to cut your pork pies?? this is why we’re all going to hell.

What the hell are you lot doing that you need a street legal knife.

I certainly don’t carry it for protection. My knife lives in the case next to the chopping board – the fish slice , spoon , salt pepper and the washing up liquid.

It never even crossed my mind to check it was street legal as I’m not really wandering about the streets with it. It’s carried with an obvious purpose. Not while I go to the cinema incase I fancy Makin my own Baguette.

It’s completely possible to open and lock an opinel with 1 hand. Just takes practice, loosening up a bit and nicely oiled wood…

Negatives are no bottle opener or corkscrew … but for something to actually eat with they are very good as they are more or less a dining knife.

trail_rat – Member

What the hell are you lot doing that you need a street legal knife.

Different drag race classes innit.

Ru Paul’s drag races maybe.

Just looked mine up it’s an msr alpine kitchen knife. I’d like to see a court get a carrying conviction to stick.

When I’m over in Canada later this month I’ll be picking up a deejo carbon 15g.

The Opinel is a classic for a reason. It works! It’s the perfect picnic knife, thin blade helps with cutting and slicing and the edge is easy to keep razor sharp. You can even easily fillet a fish with one without making a mess of it.

My knife lives in the case next to the chopping board – the fish slice , spoon , salt pepper and the washing up liquid.

Sounds like you’ll have to tear that pork pie apart with your bare hands at the picnic.

An Opinel is actually easier than many knives to open one handed it is designed to be opened with a knock on the heel and the lock can be operated one handed too if you really have to.

Its not ideal for picnic knife as they do not like moisture and infrequent use , the wood swells and the blade rusts .

Laguiole are nice with a corkscrew on the back if you can get one in budget.

seems like an ideal little kit to chuck in with a picnic

It’s also ideal for bike touring,hiking and bothying

Opinel for me.

My current daily knife is one of the spyderco uk legal ones and it’s very good but not cheap.

For the price the opinal ones are good and many sizes to suit

So many out there to choose from, very much personal taste. I went with a Boker – https://uk.knivesandtools.eu/en/pt/-boker-plus-tech-tool-city-1-01bo801.htm?gclid=CjwKEAjws-LKBRDCk9v6_cnBgjISJAADkzXetfCdPlmhjUsfzVfWJPyZ7yf9OgrcEtIx_LzvlwCN4BoC9bHw_wcB

Used to use an Opinel but finally settled on a Victorinox Camper SAK which is still going strong after 20 yrs.

Why? Because it also opens cans, plucks nosehair, picks teeth, cuts French sticks, tomatoes, pork pies and walking sticks and any number of other things with equal aplomb.