Gravity Knife (Reate Exo)

This model is a recreation of the Reate Exo, using images and measurements of the real deal as reference. While you may not be able to slice a sheet of paper cleanly with this, it works perfectly well as a fidget toy to keep on your desk.

All required parts included – no extra hardware necessary!

Printing and Assembly

I recommend arranging the parts as follows:

• Blade: Spine facing down
• Blade Peg: Flat rectangular side facing down
• Handles: Spine (long narrow side) facing down
• Handle Peg and Retaining Ring: Flat side down

Once the parts are printed and the support material removed, the knife can be assembled as follows:

1. Insert the blade of the knife into the inner handle (the one with two rails running along its length).
2. Insert the blade peg through these rails, and through the hole of the blade. This should allow the blade to slide back and forth along the length of the handle*.
3. Align the hole in the bottom of the outer handle with the hole in the bottom of the inner handle. Insert the handle peg through the hole, and press the retaining ring onto the other side of the peg, creating a friction-fit. The two halves of the handle should now be able to hinge at this bottom hole smoothly*.

* There are a couple of friction points on this knife that, with leftover support material or printer inaccuracies, can cause jams or rough movement; these being the contact between the blade peg and the two rails of the inner handle, and the contact between the two halves of the handle at the bottom hole. I was able to smooth out both of these parts with 400 grit sandpaper, and the mechanisms are now quite smooth. If you find a way to slice/arrange these parts that avoids these pitfalls, let me know!