You're looking at it all wrong: that is a fine, fine letter opener!

They are tricky little things to make. I have made plenty of knives and other sharp things, but it wasn't until I was half-way through forging my attempt #1 that I really appreciated what was involved. I fought with that one and got it looking pretty close to what I wanted, only for me to over heat it while grinding then hear the tell-tale "ping" of it cracking.

One thing that comes to mind is that if you're melting it during heat treat, you're getting it way hotter than you need! Depends on the steel, but it's usually just a cherry red colour that you need. Or whenever it goes non-magnetic.