Letter openers- need heat treat?

H

Hulkie

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Oct 22, 2012
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G'day , can I make some letter openers without heat treating? What would be the negative aspects. They will strictly be used for intended purpose. TY
 
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I would suggest you use 301 stainless in 1/2, 3/4 or Full Hard condition .That will give you about HRc 30-40 and strong enough to not accidentely bend from being too soft .You should be able to buy this in strip. Cut out the blade and fasten a handle on it . It work hardens easily so drill with a sharp bit using good force and slow speed.
 
A good idea from mete,or I use 1/16" 440C and H/T.
Stan
 
To answer the HT or no-HT question:
Steel is different after HT. Stainless blade steel does not become stainless until it is hardened.
Other benefits can increase, too.

As mete pointed out, many steels can be purchased in the hardened condition. Starrett carries many of these.

I would use hard 301 as mete suggested.

However, if you are just making some Christmas gifts, getting a 3/4" X1/8" strip of 440C and grinding it as-is will work.
 
Doing a HT will lessen the chance of a letter opener bending in use. Often they are used to pry, and many letter openers tend to be on the thin side.
 
Heck my favorite letter opener is brass and it works reasonably well.

Then again, I've also strayed from the "intended purposes" and tackled slicing open taped boxes. That's when the bending is likely. I've always wished the brass could get sharper though. Most letter openers I've seen, even steel ones, have dull blunt edges; not an attribute I appreciate. It may sound odd, but opening a letter in one fell sweep with a razor sharp edge is quite satisfying.

How many will you be making and who will be using and have access to them? In other words, what attributes do you desire the tool to have?
 
Phil Dwyer said:
Heck my favorite letter opener is brass and it works reasonably well.

Then again, I've also strayed from the "intended purposes" and tackled slicing open taped boxes. That's when the bending is likely. I've always wished the brass could get sharper though. Most letter openers I've seen, even steel ones, have dull blunt edges; not an attribute I appreciate. It may sound odd, but opening a letter in one fell sweep with a razor sharp edge is quite satisfying.

How many will you be making and who will be using and have access to them? In other words, what attributes do you desire the tool to have?
Click to expand...

Thank you all, I will be making 7 Letter openers.They will be recieved by older folks as a Christmas gift.
I will look into the hard steel. I was also thinking of nickle silver.
I've been busy so I haven't researched the info on this thread. I will do so.
Bladesmith, thank you for your response . I did not know stainless becomes stainless post heat treat. Is the 440c more resistant to rust vers other SS when not HT'ed?
As stated , I will look into all advice, however, are there any opinions about nickle silver ?
I will look into starrett 301 SS, I haven't come across terms like full hard. I mainly purchase 0-1 pcg and 1095/1084 for forging.
Thank you again. Hk
 
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