No Products in Your Cart
Magnetic Knife Strip[4/4 · 2ft · 5-Pack]
One pack. One build. All 5 boards used. • Makes 5 knife strips
Shop Black Walnut 4/4 · 2ft Pack Shop All Speciesselect 2' Lengths
How it goes together
Black Walnut
Hard Maple
Cherry
White Oak (QS)
Red Oak
Ash
Hickory
Ambrosia Maple
Sapele*
Padauk*
Purpleheart*
*Exotic — not available for shipment to US customers.
Get the knives out of the drawer and onto the wall, where the edges stay sharp and the one you want is always in reach. Each board becomes one 18" strip with five rare-earth magnets hidden in the back, so the front is clean hardwood. One 2ft pack makes five: one for your kitchen and four to give away.
Quick Build — for experienced woodworkers
| Part | Qty | From | S4S size | S2S size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knife strips | 5 | Boards 1–5, one each | 18" × 4" × ¾" | 18" × 3½" × ⅞" |
| Rare-earth disc magnets (buy) | 25 | 5 per strip | ¾" Ø × ¼" | ¾" Ø × ¼" |
| Wood plugs, ⅜" (buy or cut) | 10 | 2 per strip | ⅜" Ø | ⅜" Ø |
Magnets: five ¾" × ¼" rare-earth discs in ¾" Forstner holes drilled from the back, 3½" on centre, ⅛" of wood left on the face (holes ⅝" deep on S4S, ¾" on S2S), set in epoxy.
Mount: 2 × #10 × 2½" screws, 1" from each end (16" apart), counterbored ⅜" and plugged.
Finished size: S4S 18" L × 4" H × ¾" thick · S2S 18" × 3½" × ⅞". Holds about 5 lb of knives.
Before You Start
Shopping List
- 1 lumber pack — 4/4 · 2ft (S4S or S2S)
- 25 neodymium disc magnets, ¾" Ø × ¼" thick (N42 or stronger)
- 5-minute epoxy
- 10 × #10 × 2½" screws
- 10 × ⅜" wood plugs and a little wood glue
- Sandpaper 120 / 180 / 220
- Finish: wipe-on oil, hardwax oil or water-based poly
Tools
- Saw for crosscuts (mitre saw or circular saw with a speed square)
- Drill press with depth stop (or a drill and a depth collar)
- ¾" Forstner bit, ⅜" counterbore bit
- Router with chamfer bit, or a block plane
- Stud finder and level
- Random-orbit sander or sanding block
- S2S only: jointer, straight-line rip jig or hand plane
S4S or S2S? S4S boards arrive flat and square on all four sides — cut and build. S2S boards have rough edges you straighten first, and finish ⅞" thick instead of ¾". No jointer? Choose S4S.
Our sizing assumptions: ⅛" per saw cut · S4S boards 23½"/47½" long with ¼" to square an end, 4" wide, ¾" thick · S2S boards trimmed ½" each end and ¼" off each rough edge (3½" clean), ⅞" thick · sizes drawn for the narrowest board in the pack. Wider boards give you a bigger offcut or a wider part — never a shortage.
Step-by-Step
S4S Lumber Pack
Surfaced 4 sides — no jointing
- 1 Cut the strips. Square one end of each board and cut it to 18". Save the short ends for test pieces, coasters or a spoon rest.
- 2 Lay out the magnets. Pick the best face as the front. On the back face, draw a line along the middle, 2" from either edge. Mark five centres on it at 2", 5½", 9", 12½", 16" from the left end, 3½" apart.
- 3 Test first. On one of the short offcuts, drill a ¾" Forstner hole ⅝" deep and drop in a magnet. That leaves ⅛" of wood. Hold a knife to the front face. It should hold firmly. If it slips, try a stronger magnet grade.
- 4 Drill the magnet holes. Set the drill press depth stop to ⅝". Clamp each strip face down and drill all five holes from the back. Do not go through. Blow out the chips.
- 5 Drill the mounting holes. Mark a hole 1" in from each end, centred on the width. That puts them 16" apart, the usual stud spacing. From the front, counterbore each ⅜" wide × ⅜" deep, then drill a clearance hole for a #10 screw the rest of the way through.
- 6 Shape and sand. Chamfer or round the front edges and ends. Sand 120 → 180 → 220. Keep the front face flat so knives sit tight against it.
- 7 Set the magnets. Mark the same pole on every magnet with a marker. Put a dab of 5-minute epoxy in each hole and press a magnet in, marked side toward the front. Fill the rest of the hole flush with epoxy. Let it cure.
- 8 Finish. Wipe-on oil or hardwax oil, 2–3 coats. Let it cure fully before knives go on.
- 9 Hang it. Find two studs and centre the strip on the bay between them. Level it, pre-drill into the studs, and drive #10 × 2½" screws. Glue the plugs into the counterbores, trim flush and touch up the finish. Load your heaviest knife first and check the hold.
S2S Lumber Pack
Surfaced 2 sides — straighten edges first
- 1 Prep the boards. Trim ½" off each end to remove any end checks. Joint one edge straight, then rip the other edge parallel (¼" off each rough edge is our planning allowance). S2S boards finish ⅞" thick, so screws and some sizes change — use the sizes in this column.
- 2 Cut the strips. Square one end of each board and cut it to 18". Save the short ends for test pieces, coasters or a spoon rest.
- 3 Lay out the magnets. Pick the best face as the front. On the back face, draw a line along the middle, 1¾" from either edge. Mark five centres on it at 2", 5½", 9", 12½", 16" from the left end, 3½" apart.
- 4 Test first. On one of the short offcuts, drill a ¾" Forstner hole ¾" deep and drop in a magnet. That leaves ⅛" of wood. Hold a knife to the front face. It should hold firmly. If it slips, try a stronger magnet grade.
- 5 Drill the magnet holes. Set the drill press depth stop to ¾". Clamp each strip face down and drill all five holes from the back. Do not go through. Blow out the chips.
- 6 Drill the mounting holes. Mark a hole 1" in from each end, centred on the width. That puts them 16" apart, the usual stud spacing. From the front, counterbore each ⅜" wide × ⅜" deep, then drill a clearance hole for a #10 screw the rest of the way through.
- 7 Shape and sand. Chamfer or round the front edges and ends. Sand 120 → 180 → 220. Keep the front face flat so knives sit tight against it.
- 8 Set the magnets. Mark the same pole on every magnet with a marker. Put a dab of 5-minute epoxy in each hole and press a magnet in, marked side toward the front. Fill the rest of the hole flush with epoxy. Let it cure.
- 9 Finish. Wipe-on oil or hardwax oil, 2–3 coats. Let it cure fully before knives go on.
- 10 Hang it. Find two studs and centre the strip on the bay between them. Level it, pre-drill into the studs, and drive #10 × 2½" screws. Glue the plugs into the counterbores, trim flush and touch up the finish. Load your heaviest knife first and check the hold.
Why drill from the back? The front stays one clean piece of hardwood. Knives never touch metal, and the ⅛" skin of wood is thin enough for the magnets to grip through.
Why one hole 1" from each end? Studs are usually 16" apart on centre. Holes 1" in from the ends of an 18" strip are exactly 16" apart, so both screws land in studs when you centre the strip on a stud bay.
Why pre-drill? Maple, oak and hickory split if you drive a screw without a pilot hole. Pre-drill every screw and countersink so the heads sit flush.
Make It Yours
- Keyhole hangers: skip the plugs and rout two keyhole slots in the back so the strip lifts off the wall.
- Tool strip: hang one in the shop for drill bits, chisels and screwdrivers.
- Spoon rest: turn the 5" offcut into a matching spoon rest with a shallow dish carved or routed in the top.
Safety and Care
- Wear eye and hearing protection.
- Rare-earth magnets snap together hard and can pinch skin or chip. Keep them away from children (swallowing them is dangerous), pacemakers, phones and bank cards.
- Pre-drill every screw — hardwoods split without a pilot hole.
- Mount into wall studs (or rated anchors sized for the load). Check for wires and pipes before drilling.
- Hang the strip above the counter, out of children's reach, and never above a stove or sink where knives can drop into something.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not for S4S boards — they arrive flat and square on all four sides. S2S boards need their edges straightened: a jointer, a table saw with a straight-line jig, or a hand plane all work. No jointer? Choose the S4S pack.
About 5 lb of knives, usually five or six, from a paring knife to a big chef's knife. Screwed into two studs, the strip itself can hold far more. The magnets are the limit.
No. The blade only touches wood. Set the spine against the strip first and roll the blade on, then roll it off the same way.
Yes, with a tile bit and rated anchors at the two screw holes. Go slow and use tape on the tile to stop the bit wandering. Studs are still best if you can reach them.
About 5" off the end of each board. Use them to test your magnet depth, then turn them into coasters or a spoon rest.
Yes. A 4ft pack makes five 36" strips for a long backsplash or a shop wall. Use 10 magnets per strip, 3½" apart, and screw into three studs.
