Opinel No. 8, since 1890

The Opinel No. 8 is a folding pocket knife composed of five essential elements: a Yatagan blade with convex profile, a beechwood haft, a fixed ferrule, a rivet, and a rotating safety ring. The blade measures 8.5 centimetres; the handle, 9 centimetres; the total weight, 45 grams. Its proportions—compact enough to fit securely in the hand, substantial enough for genuine work—account for its emergence as the most popular size in the Opinel range.

"Exigez!!" — a French advertisement demanding genuine Savoyard knives of the Opinel "La Main Couronnée" brand Printed advertisement, undated. via Pinterest

Joseph Opinel's innovation was not stylistic but manufacturing. Working against his father's preference for hand-forged tools, he applied modern machinery to knife production, developing hydraulic-powered processes that could produce handles at speed without sacrificing the object's essential character. The design has remained virtually unchanged for over 136 years. The blade is stamped with the Crowned Hand, Opinel's mark of authenticity. The handle is varnished beechwood, sourced from PEFC-certified forests in the Jura and Vercors. In 1955, Marcel Opinel added the Virobloc safety ring, allowing the blade to lock both open and closed—a refinement that addressed practical concerns without altering the knife's fundamental form.

Opinel No. 8, 1973: "on peut tout faire avec un Opinel" — a skier with an Opinel knife, in white on blue — "on peut tout faire avec un Opinel" — a skier with an Opinel knife, in white on blue *Poster, 1973.* via Pinterest

The No. 8 crossed from regional tool to cultural object through sheer longevity and utility. It has been used at table and in field, for cutting dried sausage and for sculpture, gardening, and repair work. Passed down through generations, it became an integral part of Savoyard and French heritage. In 1985, the Victoria and Albert Museum recognized it as one of the hundred best-designed objects in the world, alongside the Porsche 911 and the Rolex watch. It entered the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Today, Opinel manufactures approximately 15 million knives annually, the No. 8 remaining the flagship model. The knife is available in high-carbon steel (XC90) and stainless steel (Sandvik 12C27M), with handle options ranging from standard beechwood to exotic woods and horn.

Timeline

1890 First made · Disputed Opinel No. 8 enters production in Savoie, France.

1927 Production A modern factory is built and inaugurated at Cognin, on the outskirts of Chambéry.

1955 Designed Marcel Opinel adds the Virobloc safety ring, allowing the blade to lock both open and closed.

1985 Recognised The Victoria and Albert Museum recognizes the No. 8 as one of the hundred best-designed objects in the world.

2003 Production The production site at La Revériaz in Chambéry becomes the main headquarters.

Milestone dates are taken from the production notes behind this entry and have not been checked separately.

The date

The sources disagree. The competing years are set out below.

Multiple independent sources — the Opinel USA dedicated No. 08 page, the official Opinel brand page, a Facebook post from the official Opinel account, and Wikipedia — all agree that Joseph Opinel designed the first knife (which became the No. 8) in 1890. The No. 8 specifically is named in these sources as originating in 1890, not merely the company.

Also claimed

1897

Wikipedia notes that the numbered series of twelve sizes (Nos. 1–12) was formalised in 1897, which could be argued as the year the No. 8 as a distinct numbered product was established, rather than 1890 when the original knife was first made. However, the sources treat 1890 as the origin of the No. 8 design itself.

Why it still counts

Sameness: The Opinel No. 8 today is the same folding pocket knife with a wooden (beechwood) handle and steel blade in the same yatagan/drop-point form as the original 1890 design. The 1955 addition of the Virobloc locking collar is an incremental safety enhancement, not a change to what the knife IS — it remains a simple folding knife that could substitute for the original in any practical use. The knife passes the sameness test. Continuity: No evidence in the sources of any discontinuation, revival, or production gap for the standard No. 8. The "discontinued" snippets in the search results refer to the No. 8 Outdoor variant and to other numbered sizes (No. 11, No. 12), not the standard No. 8. The same company has made this knife continuously from 1890 to the present.

Timeline

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