I entered into an agreement this year to write a post each month on different OLFA knives. This month I’m going to talk about the OLFA® Model L-1 18MM Heavy Duty Utility Knife and the optional blades for it.
I’ve spent a lifetime trying to find the right knife. I’ve purchased well over 100 knives and threw out or gave most of them away because they were either the wrong knife for the job or it broke after a few uses. I even developed a hatred for snap blade knives because the only products I had available at my local stores we junk.
But after using the OLFA knives for the last 6 months I have really changed my mind about using snap-blade knives. I’ll go out and buy OLFA knives because I now know these knives are the quality I require.
OLFA® Model L-1 is small enough for women’s hands yet robust enough that it fits my hand well. I never feel like it will slip out of my hand when cutting up cardboard boxes for the recycle bin. This is the perfect knife for the kitchen junk drawer.
OLFA® L-1 FACTS
I’ve come to realize the OLFA® L-1 knife is one of the most economical and versatile utility knives on the market. It is one of the few knives in my drawer that I use everyday. It’s a very solid knife and has no wobble or play in the blade mechanism.
It feels good to use. Even better – it’s only $8!
This knife and the various blades available for it are ideal for a wide variety of industrial, construction and DIY applications. You can use this knife for drywall, roofing materials, flooring materials, rubber, leather, and linoleum. You can even get a fine tooth saw blade for flush cutting wood and craft projects.
Understand, this is not a Chinese knife. The knife and blades are made in Japan to Japanese quality standards. (Some of the blade are made in Germany.) The body is hard plastic, and the knife channel is stainless steel. We have been using this knife to clean up and remodel a bathroom and I noticed that the blade channel is self-cleaning. Just move the blade back into the handle and the chunks of drywall and plaster fall right out. The channel is designed so the blade does not wobble around.
The blade locks with a ratchet wheel that holds the blade tight. The blades are very easy to change.
Even though you can buy this knife for less than $8 at the Home Depot it is a heavy-duty knife that will last. It comes with one 8 edged stainless steel blade.
OLFA® L-1 18MM
Item: 18mm Pistol Grip Ratchet-Lock Utility Knife (L-1) with Stainless Steel Blade Channel
Lock type: ratchet mechanism
Preloaded with: LB Silver Snap-off blade
SKU: L-1
Model: 5003
MSRP: $9.29
Buy from The Home Depot for $7.97: OLFA L-1
Buy from Amazon for $8.61 and free shipping! OLFA 5003 L-1 18mm Ratchet-Lock Heavy-Duty Utility Knife
OLFA® 18MM Blade Options
Stainless Steel General Purpose Blade. LB 18mm Blade: This 5 pack gives you 40 edges per pack. OLFA 1092625 LB-5B 18mm Heavy-Duty Snap-off Blade, 5-Pack
Hook Blade. LH 18mm Blade: 5 blade pack. 4 hooks per blade or 20 hooks. OLFA 9005US LH-20B 18mm Heavy-Duty Snap-off Hook Blade, 5-Pack
Solid blade for Insulation, foam and other thick items. LSOL 18mm Blade: OLFA 9009 L-SOL 18mm Heavy-Duty Solid Blade, 10-Pack
Extra sharp High Carbon Steel. These blades are great for carpet! LBB 18mm Blade: OLFA 1072195 LBB-5B 18mm Ultra Sharp Black Heavy-Duty Snap-off Blade, 5-Pack