Case, and their "Tru-Sharp" steels?

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Are Case a pretty well regarded brand?

How do their steels perform?

What kind of bone are the different colored bone handles made from?

How well do you feel their slipjoints stay open when being used?


I've always been interested in 'em, and now I'm thinking of getting my dad a Saddlehorn model for his birthday when it comes around (I go cheap for Fathers/Mothers Day and go big on their birthdays).


Thanks guys, any comments are appreciated!
 
The Tru-Sharp steel is similar to the Vic stainless. It is not a snobby steel, but cuts and can get very sharp.
While mine are CV, I'd say Case is a safe bet. Also look at Moore Maker, Queen, and Schratt & Morgan.
You might also want to check out the traditional subforum.
 
I never could understand why so many new Case knives are not sharp out of the box. I have a Stag slab side hunter that you'd have a hard time breaking skin with. It's sort of funny the way they have a warning on the box about how extremely sharp they are.
 
Is case a pretty well regarded brand? Yes, by both users and collectors.

How do their steels perform? I can't speak personally to the Tru-Sharp, but the CV performs at least on par with or better than 1095 in my experience, taking and keeping a keen edge through moderate to heavy use.

What kind of bone are the different colored handles made from? Cow shin bones mostly. Imported from South America, primarily Brazil.

How well do you feel their slipjoints stay open in use? As well as any properly used slipjoint in my experience. Keeping in mind that knives are meant to cut and not to pry, prod, or poke they perform as they were intended to. That said, a good number of models include half stops which help to keep a knive from "accidentally" closing on your fingers.

As for a father's day gift, I don't think a Case is a bad way to go. One note about Queen's though; While their fit and finish may be slightly, and sometimes more so, ahead of Case's they are also known for coming with poorly ground edge bevels. Something to consider if this knife is going to be a user, it may need some sharpening out of the box to get it to acceptable levels of performance. Beyond that, either is a great choice in my opinion. :thumbup:


Gautier
 
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All of the Case knives that have come into the shop I work at (and we get MANY) have come terrifyingly stupid-sharp. Out of the hundreds I've sold I can't remember one that came without a screaming edge. Just my personal experience though. Perhaps they had a newbie on staff in the sharpening department?
 
I've never seen a Case stainless blade come acceptably sharp out of the box.That includes the more expensive ones like a slimlock in BG42. I only buy the CV knives now. Joe
 
The Mastiff said:
I've never seen a Case stainless blade come acceptably sharp out of the box.That includes the more expensive ones like a slimlock in BG42. I only buy the CV knives now. Joe
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That is weird, I own over 30 Case knives, in stainless, CV, ATS34 (I've got 4 Case/Bose Collabs), BG-42 (slimlock) and 2 of their 154CM models (these are particularly outstanding for the price) - all have come very sharp out of the box.
 
Both of you define what you each mean by "sharp". Standard vary from individual to individual.
 
Case has a very strong following of the "faithful". I ran into one at a knife shop and he had me totally converted (I had never cared for them before). Idecided to get a stockman to start me off. I ended up looking at every one in the store- not one had a decent grind on all three blades! To be fair, most had ok grinds on 2 out of 3, but that's not what I buy. Not having found one that met my standards, I can't speak to your other questions, but I would suggest making sure you can inspect the knife before buying, especially since it's for a gift.
 
Both of you define what you each mean by "sharp". Standard vary from individual to individual.
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One of the first tests I do is to shave my forearm. If it doesn't smoothly shave without scraping, pulling hairs or causing pain it's not sharp enough. The next step up from that is whittling a hair into strands. Not many production knives have gotten this. One Spyderco stretch 2, and one Kershaw JYD 2 ( ti framelock) in SG2 steel.

I also test the quality of the sharpening by lightly pulling the blade accross my thumbnail. It it loses bite, or starts dragging I know there is trouble. Care must be taken not to slice through the thumbnail.

Another test is pushcutting paper without slicing. It should push cut normal copy paper without crumpling it up, or having to "saw" the paper.

Very rarely does the case stainless blade even shave hair properly. I'm not real fond of the quality of the stainless used. When they do use a good quality stainless like BG42 it's not sharp untill I sharpen it myself.

The CV steel takes an excellent edge, is easy to sharpen , and rarely chips or acts up. Often it comes sharper out of the box. Joe
 
My Case Sodbuster can perform as well as any of my High-End folders---at $25.dollars!! :)
 
I have never had issues with stainless Case as far as sharpness from the factory but I will admit I have not bought a new Case (other than CV) in about 10 years.
 
jill jackson said:
I never could understand why so many new Case knives are not sharp out of the box. I have a Stag slab side hunter that you'd have a hard time breaking skin with. It's sort of funny the way they have a warning on the box about how extremely sharp they are.
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Just curious, when did you get that slab side hunter? I have a handful of Case knives made over the past 3-4 years and they've all been quite sharp out of the box.

I tell you, the lousy luck I had with dull blades and poor fit/finish on Case knives back in the "dot era" (mid 1980s) put me off the brand for a long long time. But I'm a big fan of their recent offerings. My EDC is a peanut in tru sharp and it's a great little knife. Came very sharp and does everything I need done on a day-to-day basis.
 
knarfeng said:
Both of you define what you each mean by "sharp". Standard vary from individual to individual.
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I use Fallkniven's "nail test" - If it will smoothly cut a piece of my fingernail, than it should be fine for most daily tasks.
 
I like the Case stainless and CV Copperlocks.They will generally pop hair right out of the box without drag and have a nice grind IMO.
 
A high number of the Case factory edges I've encountered could pop hair from my arm without touching the skin. While this didn't hold true across the entire length of the blades, it did across most of it. Using the moistened thumbnail and thumb pad tests, the blades that I have tested in this way have done well.

Ultimately, however, it's all irrelevant. Most of us sharpen a knife right out of the box anyhow, so if the occasional piece isn't up to par what does it matter as long as the steel is good?
 
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