Maintaining an Opinel Carbon Steel Knife

Time Stamps:
Intro & Update - 0:10
Why Carbon Steel - 0:41
Mineral Oil - 2:08
How I apply it - 3:21
How much I use - 4:42
Final Thoughts - 5:50
In this video I go over how I choose to take care of my Opinel no 7 Carbon steel knife. I toyed with the idea of forcing a patina. However I decided to allow a patina to grow naturally on my blade while using mineral oil to help prevent rust.
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[@snickelfritz7833]

I put an awesome dark grey patina on my Opinels and it isn’t that splotchy stuff you see using tomatoes. How do I do it? I buy kiwis every week when I go to the grocery. Take your Opinel Carbone and simply slice and eat kiwis with it. Let knife sit for five minutes afterward and run under very hot water. Once knife is clean, dry the blade and put on a rust preventative. The next day wash off rust preventative and slice another kiwi and wash with hot water. Keep repeating this 5 min ritual daily for about a month or 2 and at the end you’ll have a dark grey patina that is absolutely gorgeous and it won’t be splotchy like when people use tomatoes .

[@BenGeldreich]

That sounds like a great patina. Thanks for the detailed instructions!!

[@onemanghetto2429]

Olive oil works fine on your blade also just go light and wipe off excess.

[@BenGeldreich]

Thanks!

[@georgeb.wolffsohn30]

I've never oiled. My #7. I let that natural patina progress. After use it occasionally required washing -just plain soap and water. Immediate hand drying, then dousing with alcohol to displace any water I missed. Last blow drying gently to make sure all liquid is eliminated. The patina looks good to me and I've never had any red rust issues.

[@Mixwell1983]

Vegetable oils and olive oils can go rancid. For a knife maybe not an issue but for something like cutting boards you definatly do not ever use olive or veggie oil, only mineral oil. I guess in some rare case oil from the blade could get near the wooden handle and cross contaminate your food after soaking in and goin rancid but highly unlikely.

[@BenGeldreich]

Thanks for sharing!!

[@snowtiger44]

I had a little spot on my new opinel carbon to, i sanded it of and put some coconut oil on it

[@BenGeldreich]

Yes I've done the same. I always have some coconut oil around. Works great!

[@thedailydaily]

Hope that mineral oil hasn’t gone bad yet! Thanks for the video!

[@BenGeldreich]

Thanks The Daily Daily! LOL! Me too! I haven't used it for a while as my blade has quite the patina on it now.

[@Orochi_001]

Additive-free, food-grade mineral oil basically has an indefinite life span when it or whatever you’re preserving is stored properly. If used internally, manufacturers will often put a date of three years to expiration

[@BenGeldreich]

Thanks for letting us all know!!

[@duc9139]

Mine is number 7 too

[@SanchezOKelly]

You can also condition wood with mineral oil and its food safe. butcher blocks are typically mineral oil with beeswax.

[@BenGeldreich]

Hey SanchezOKelly!! Thanks for the informed comment. I’m not treating the wood right now as I’m looking into modifying the handle a bit first.

[@ronkierstead]

I’ve got my new #8 soaking in mineral oil now as I want the handle water proofed. I heard a few stories of wet handles swelling and interfering with the open close. I use it on all my wooden spoons and cutting boards as well.

[@BenGeldreich]

Hey @@ronkierstead! Thanks for the comment. Did you take the knife apart or did you just put the whole knife in a bowl filled with mineral oil?

[@ronkierstead]

Ben Geldreich I tossed the whole thing into a bowl of of the oil without taking it apart. I’ll let it sit for at least a few days.

[@BenGeldreich]

Ron Kierstead Thanks. Would love to hear about the results.

[@NotUndertaleAaron]

Do you know how to clean the collar on it? I have a bunch of dirt in it, and it feels pretty bad

[@BenGeldreich]

I took the whole knife apart. If you google search taking collar off Opinel knife or even taking Opinel knife apart you should find a few different methods. I watched a video from a person in Japan via KZbin who taught me how they did it. I can’t find that video but I’m sure there are plenty of resources out there. Good Luck!!

[@NotUndertaleAaron]

@@BenGeldreich thanks man, I appreciate it!

[@totallyfrozen]

I find rust on carbon steel blades depends on the atmosphere. I inherited 4 or 5 Opinel No. 8 from my dad. ALL of them had varying degrees of rust when I got them. I bought myself an Opinel No. 10 about a decade ago it it doesn’t have a spot on it. My dad left his in various tool boxes in his garage. Mine was stored in my closet when not in use. I wipe the blade when I’m done using it and store it in my closet. The moral of the story is that the condition of your carbon steel knives completely depends on your treatment of them.

[@BenGeldreich]

Yes I totally agree!

[@Jascensionvoid]

Do you have to dry it off with something at all or just let it sit? And how often should this be done? I have an ESEE 6p and want to keep it clean and from getting rust

[@BenGeldreich]

Mineral oil isn’t toxic so you can leave it on for a bit and wipe off any excessive.. I don’t own that particular knife but if you introduce water to the blade dry it off and oil it up if your done using it for the night. The key is to keep the blade dry.

[@Gh0stTech]

Great video. Although I believe the expiration is more for liabilities as a laxative. My guess is this stuff can work as an oil/lubricant for long time. A quick google search reveals it does not go rancid. What's your hesitation to force a patina? Is there a preference for acquiring a slow natural patina? Thank you.

[@BenGeldreich]

Thanks @Sleepwalker's Union! Yes, you would be correct. Not that I use the oil for that purpose, but hey If I was in a pinch I'd use it regardless of the expiration date. LOL! At the time I made the video I wanted to see what would happen to the steel in time from simply using my knife. Living in the PNW near the coast, means there's a lot of moisture around and so the blade developed some rust quickly. I wanted to dry and avoid the blade from rusting and rather develop it's own patina from my use. I like things to age from the way I use them versus forcing one to look a certain way. I'm not against forcing a patina, but there's something special about a well worn item that's very personal to the owner. I got a new knife recently, Benchmade 940, and since acquiring the 940 I decided to play around with a black tea and vinegar patina on my Opinel. I watched this (kzbin.info/www/bejne/mp_NeJemqr6Yjc0) Japanese(?) video as reference. The Opinel turned out great, except, I sanded the inside of the handle down a bit too much which caused a bit too much play in the blade. ;( Good thing they are reasonably priced. Do you own an Opinel?

[@stephenparkin9855]

three in one oil is the best for any metal that needs rust or corrosion protection.

[@darkblue9022]

I have the same knife, and I forgot to clean it once. Now there are spots on it. I’m not sure if it’s rust or patina.

[@BenGeldreich]

You can use an eraser or funky sand it to remove the rust. I forced a patina on mine to prevent rust.

[@darkblue9022]

Thank you for your answer!

[@m.s.769]

I use mineral oil on my carbon blade and the on handle of my Opinel #8.

[@BenGeldreich]

Yeah me too!

[@TheMaevian]

I use coconut oil, also works perfect

[@BenGeldreich]

Nice!!

[@C1944D]

How often do you have to do this if I may ask?

[@BenGeldreich]

I guess that depends on how much you don’t want your blade to develop rust. A Patina will protect the blade so getting a well developed patina is the way to go IMO. I decided to force a patina and dipped the blade in a cup of black tea and vinegar and now it’s a black blade. I don’t have to do this at all anymore.

[@C1944D]

@@BenGeldreich dude your timing was super perfect. I got my new opinel carbone delivered at my house 2 hours ago. Thanks for the reply

[@BenGeldreich]

My ears were burning so I knew I had to reply!! 😉 Have fun with your new knife!!

[@C1944D]

@@BenGeldreich thanks man. Just one last question. That dip with black tea and vinegar, how much of each do you need? And doe the tea have to be hot or cold?

[@BenGeldreich]

@@C1944D I'm not 100% sure on the ratio. I remember brewing a cup of black english breakfast tea and submerging the entire blade in the tea for an hour. I can't remember how much vinegar I added, may a table spoon. Either way If you don't like it you can wash it off afterwards with a somewhat corse sponge. At least I was able to. I should mention that I took my knife fully apart and only dipped the blade in the tea. There are a few videos floating around youtube on how to do this. Good luck, and congrats on the new knife!

[@codyprice5662]

don't worry about that Nick as far as I'm concerned the pocket knife is like an old truck if you don't have a dent you're not using it 👍

[@BenGeldreich]

I couldn’t agree with you more!! I own a lot of personal items that will patina and or show their age and battle scars.

[@Lalitaditya100]

You can use that mineral oil on your blades much after it expires, that expiry date is only for human consumption

[@BenGeldreich]

I agree!

[@genarolamberti799]

I recomend You to remover the rust of the blade use a dre.el.tool with a circular stainless Steel brush

[@BenGeldreich]

I used a carbon steel eraser instead which did the trick and then I chose to force a patina on the blade to prevent any further rust.

[@Reiperdido]

Can I just throw it in a pot full of flax oil for a few days?

[@BenGeldreich]

I’m not sure. I took mine apart and put the handle in a zip lock bag full of oil for a few days to help protect the handle. With the blade I forced a patina by dipping it in a vinegar solution until the blade turned black. I can’t see why putting the whole knife in a pot full of flax oil would be problematic but maybe others can comment.

[@stephenparkin9855]

ayup me again😊.just read thing about cast iron.layer of rust will offer protection because cast is carbon rich so does not rot with rust.this is becsuse carbon rich iron pours better when casting.thats why its brittle

[@adifferentangle7064]

I have a workshop with many, many carbon steel tools - chisels, knives, planes, axes, files, etc. I tend not to worry too much about rust, and have not taken to putting preventative oils on any of the carbon tools. If rust spots show I will derust them and sort it out, but what I find is that rust is generally linked to atmospheric conditions, and when rust forms it forms overnight- keeping protective oils on the tools tends to leave you with a false sense of security, and you might miss a rust spot which could turn into a problem if you falsely assume you've done all the right things. Some tools - particularly tools which are cast iron - are overly susceptible to developing rust problems so those do need to be paid attention to. a bit of oil on the surface is sufficient. But, where for instance the body of the cast iron plane is an issue, the blades are not, even the carbon steel ones.

[@BenGeldreich]

Hi A Different Angle! Thanks for this! I appreciate you taking the time to share your experience.

[@adifferentangle7064]

@@BenGeldreich no worries. I actually use an opinel #9 carbon in a factory job. My job requires cutting paper and cardboard constantly. I took an opinel in rather than use the scissors provided, because I am left-handed and getting right handed scissors to cut quickly is difficult at the best of times. I will make a video at some point showing my sharpening method, it's pretty basic but I find many people don't really understand the concept of sharpening. But I sharpen that knife once a week and it will still cut my hair at the end of the week, after cutting hundreds of metres of paper and cardboard. If you are in the habit of using yours regularly, the handle will do with a light linseed oil rub every six months or so. It's a good habit to do everything, including garden tools with wooden handles, at least once every six months. If you haven't used them then they can be skipped.

[@emigrant4life]

if you are going to keep the knife on the shelve for years - then yes you can oil it, but if it is a working knife like both of mine (7 and 9) then there should be a patina. 🗡

[@jordancypihot496]

just dip it in ferric chloride

[@BenGeldreich]

Hey Jordan! Yeah I think I saw a video of someone doing that. Is that what you use? I have decided to put my Opinel blade in a glass of black tea and vinegar mixture for an hour and that seemed to force a nice dark patina. I’ll see how it holds up this fall and winter. Thanks for the suggestion.

[@jordancypihot496]

i use it on drywall knives mostly because they rust if i dont but i did try it on my opinel just dip it for 2 minutes and rince it well while scrubing it with steel wool

[@user-et8vn3tr6i]

Bullshit wenn du es schleifen musst ist alles umsonst.😂😂😂😂😂

[@loveisthething]

I prefer not to maintain it. That way it gets more beautiful with age

[@BenGeldreich]

Yeah I have since gotten another one and decided to let it age naturally as well.