I was inspired to make this by the knife made by Aaron Schnatterly and recently shown by Gordon Frye. My wife has wanted me to make her a letter opener for a while now and I thought this the perfect style to try. It's a bit rough but she was happy with it.

Blade is mild steel and blunt (as a good letter opener should be), bolsters and rivets are brass, and the scales are birch with a linseed oil finish. I decided not to use glue and it seems to stay together quite well. It's certainly up to the intended task.

All this recent talk of knives and cutlery has made me want to try my hand at a few more. The great thing about small projects like this is that you don't have to wait too long for the gratification of having finished a piece. If like me, you are lucky to get a couple of hours a week for your hobbies, this can mean a lot.

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Looks like a successful project! Well done! Thanks for sharing!


It appears to be pretty similar in form to another knife fragment (tang with partial grip scales, shoulder of blade, but the rest is corroded away) from the Museum of London book Knives and Scabbards, #137.

See if yours and mine don't look related...