The Opinel No.18 is a folding saw with an 18 cm blade that folds into a curved, varnished beech handle, like a big Opinel knife. It cuts on the pull, and Opinel makes it for branches up to 10 cm thick, which covers most firewood and track clearing on a camping trip. It’s a great saw: very sturdy and durable, with a very sharp blade that cuts through timber easily. It’s bulkier than the other folding saws we’ve tested, though. It weighed 187 g on our scale and cost $110.
What’s in the box
One folding saw in a slim cardboard box: an 18 cm carbon steel blade with an anti-corrosion coating, a varnished wooden handle with a hole at the end, and a steel lever at the pivot. The handle is made in France, and the blade in South Korea.
What we like
- Very sharp, cuts timber easily
- Very sturdy, no give in the blade
- Simple clip lock, hard to fail
- Branches up to 10 cm thick
- Replaceable blade
What we don’t
- Doesn’t lock when folded
- Bulkier than other folding saws
- Pricey at $110
Quick Specs
| Spec | Details |
|---|---|
| Brand | Opinel |
| Material | Carbon steel bladeAnti-corrosion coatingVarnished beech handle |
| Weight | 187 g |
| Blade Length | 18 cm |
| Size | 40 cm open23 cm folded |
| Fits | Branches up to 10 cm thick |
| Lock | LeverLocks the blade open |
| Warranty | Lifetime |
The clip lock
Folded, the blade sits inside the curved handle with its teeth covered, so it can go in a pack, a door pocket or the camp box without a sheath. Swing it out and it’s about 40 cm long, against 23 cm folded. Then use the little steel clip at the top of the handle to lock the blade: swing it out, and press it back over the base of the blade so it holds the blade in place and can’t fold onto your hand while you saw. It’s very simple, which means it can’t fail easily, and once it’s locked there’s no give in the blade or any other part of the saw. The big downside is that it doesn’t lock the blade when it’s folded in, so nothing holds it shut in a bag or a drawer. The blade is held by a big slotted screw, so a worn blade can be replaced, and the hole in the end of the handle takes a lanyard. It’s the wooden-handle pick in our folding saws guide.
Sharp, sturdy and a bit bulkySharp, sturdy, bulky
The blade is stamped PULL TO CUT, and its teeth face back towards the handle, so it cuts as you draw it towards you. A pull cut keeps the thin blade straight instead of bending it on the push. The blade is very sharp and cuts through timber easily, and it performs better than some of the smaller, cheaper saws we’ve used. Opinel makes it for branches up to 10 cm thick, enough for firewood and clearing a fallen branch off a track, but not for big logs. The compromise is size: the curved wooden handle makes it bulkier than the other folding saws we’ve tested.
No.18 or the smaller No.12?
Opinel also makes a smaller folding saw, the No.12. It has a 12 cm blade for branches up to 8 cm thick, folds to 16.5 cm and weighs about 102 g, and it locks with Opinel’s twist ring, open and shut, like their knives. If the No.18 is too bulky for you, it’s the lighter one to look at; for thicker firewood, the longer No.18 we tested cuts more per stroke.
| TestedOpinel No.18 | LighterOpinel No.12 | |
|---|---|---|
| Branches up to | 10 cm | 8 cm |
| Lock | Clip, open | Twist ring, open and shut |
| Blade | 18 cm | 12 cm |
| Length folded | 23 cm | 16.5 cm |
| Length open | 40 cm | 28.5 cm |
| Weight | 187 g | 102 g |
| RRP | $110 | $70 |
| Shop | Check price at Amazon | Check price at Amazon |
Saw comparison
We’ve tested a few other folding saws, all with blades of about the same length. The Opinel is the sturdiest and the dearest, with a wooden handle and a simple clip lock; the Workpro, BAHCO Laplander and Fiskars 7-inch are smaller and far cheaper. Our folding saws guide has them all.
This one Opinel No.18 | Durable BAHCO Laplander | Lifetime Fiskars 7-inch | Top pick Workpro Saw | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Handle | Varnished beech | Plastic | Curved, non-slip | Rubberised grip |
| Blade lock | Clip, open | Safety lock | Open and folded | Open and closed |
| Blade | 180 mm | 190 mm | 180 mm | 180 mm |
| Weight | 187 g | 192 g | 206 g | 170 g |
| Price paid | $110 | $38 | $45 | $23 |
| Our score | 8.8 | 9.2 | 8.7 | 9.4 |
Conclusion: Opinel No.18 Folding SawConclusion
The Opinel No.18 is a great folding saw: very sturdy and durable, with a very sharp 18 cm pull-cut blade that cuts through timber easily and a simple clip lock that can’t fail easily. There’s no give anywhere, and it outperforms some of the smaller, cheaper saws. The downsides are that it doesn’t lock when folded and it’s bulkier than the other folding saws we’ve tested, and $110 is a lot. Otherwise, we have no complaints.
A great, very sturdy folding saw that cuts through timber easily.
The blade is very sharp, nothing has any give, and the simple clip lock is hard to fail. It doesn’t lock when folded, though, it’s bulkier than other folding saws, and it’s pricey at $110.
- Car campers
- 4WD tourers
- Hikers
If you want a saw that lasts, yes. It cost $110, a lot for a folding saw, but it’s very sturdy, very sharp and outperforms smaller, cheaper saws. If space matters most, take a smaller one.
