Case Knives

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cultivateitnow

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Aug 21, 2010
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I've only owned one case knife in my life and saddly it wasn't a good example. I think the company was having issues at the time. When I was looking at the knives as the dealer took one out of the box the Case logo fellout of it. I wanted a Case so I looked though the lot and found a better copy and purchased it. It never did hold an edge up to my expectations so i gave it away...

Fast forward 15 years to this weekend.

I've been reading some good things about Case and desided I needed one or two to play with. I had my mind set on which two I was going to buy, but that changed after discovering a second display case with Red USA Case knives dated 2002. I looked one over and just had to have it, it was nearly perfect. After the purchase I learned they were discontinued so I think I need to go back a buy a few more. I'm torn between using the knife or saving it. The knife is sweet, has good fit and finnish, no gaps, walks and talks with the best knives I own. This knife is way better than the Case I owned years ago and I hope the new Case knives are as good. Right now I'll be buying a few more 2002 while I can get my hands on them.

Anyhow, what is your thoughts about the best manufacturing year for Case? Are the knives made today as good as those the ones I just found made in 2002?
 
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Not sure about the good production years but I am sure someone can chime in with help here. But, I have had some real good luck with older models. Picked up a large stockman from 1981 that is very solid. It came used so the patina was already set in but its perfect. The scales are great and the best yet is its tight. As for some newer models I am pretty sure you can't go wrong with the Swaybacks. Seems like everyone has had great luck with those. Good luck in your search and welcome to one of the worst knife addictions I have come across yet. It is really easy and fairly inexpensive to end up with a ton of knives. Finding the right pattern will be the fun part. And wait until you begin to look at some different makers. Then the fun really starts. For you and your wallet.
 
I got bit years ago and already have a bunch of knifes and have supplied friends and family too. :)

I think I'm going to buy a few of the Case knifes I found at this location. I didn't see any yellow slimline trappers or I would have bought one of those too. I like the leather handle fixed blade, the hunter pattern and the large barrlow so... :)
 
I have found that, generally speaking, modern day Case knives are hit and miss as far as quality is concerned. I have owned several different patterns made in the last 40 years and some of them were excellent while others suffered quality issues.

I have only 7 Case knives made 1970 or earlier and they are all tight as a drum with no quality issues.

You are fortunate that you have a place where you can check them out before you buy them. My guess is that there are plenty Case knives from 2002 that have quality issues and plenty that don't. I'm glad you found a good batch.

Case will stand behind their product but it's always nice not to have to use that service.
 
In my experience Case can also be hit or miss, but I use my knives alot, and do not worry to much about gaps and things of that nature. Even blade play doesn't bother me much, as long as it has decent spring tension, I am satisfied. My advice is, carry it, use it, if it wears out, buy another one. :D
 
I have a bunch of post-2000 knives from Case. As has been pointed out, fit & finish can be hit-or-miss. The one thing I've noticed is, the edge grinds on the post-2000 knives are quite a bit better than examples I've seen from early-to-mid 80s through the '90s, which were frequently very thick or blunt. I think they did make a significant change in that regard. As others have said, knives from the '70s era and earlier are pretty darn good, especially in terms of fit & finish. The 'proof' in that, is in the prices they sometimes fetch in the collector market. At the very least, they've held their value quite well and, in some cases, have done MUCH better.
 
cultivateitnow said:
How about if I buy more now in case they wear out later? That way I have more of them to play with now. :)
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All rationalizations which enable you to add more knives are equally acceptable and looked upon fondly around here.
(Even if (in truth) most of the knives will provide a good many years of faithful service before needing replacement.)
 
cultivateitnow said:
How about if I buy more now in case they wear out later? That way I have more of them to play with now. :)
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Blues said:
All rationalizations which enable you to add more knives are equally acceptable and looked upon fondly around here.
(Even if (in truth) most of the knives will provide a good many years of faithful service before needing replacement.)
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I am my own living proof of this concept. A lot of the Case knives I've purchased, I've bought in pairs, on the 'theory' that I'll use one and save the other (just in case...).

What I've ended up with, are a lot of MIB knives, and the rest, which are 'almost new'. I've not come anywhere close to wearing any of them out. Unless I have to use one to dig through a concrete wall, in IMMINENT-LIFE-OR-DEATH-MacGyver-style, I never will wear 'em out. :p
 
"Hit or Miss" is how I would also summarize current Case quality. As a result I've focused more on other brands recently.
 
Bob

Do you have a brand that is all hit and no miss? There are still a bunch of brands I don't own yet, just haven't got to them yet.
 
i just got my first case; a chestnut bone peanut. to call the small blade a nail-breaker would be a compliment. the edges were very uneven; the worst i have ever seen. i was very disappointed. i know a lot of people here like case, and i read many glowing reviews, but after that one, i have moved on to other brands.
 
I've not seen a small blade on a Peanut that isn't a nail breaker! I've bought about a dozen Case knives over the years, various ages, can't think of one that was what I'd call bad and I'm pretty fussy, bit of a weak spring on one, that's about it. Generally they are some of the best knives I own and they are keepers.
If QC has dropped I'm sorry to hear it, but I've not seen it myself, but I've not bought any Case knives for a few years now.
 
cultivateitnow said:
Bob

Do you have a brand that is all hit and no miss? There are still a bunch of brands I don't own yet, just haven't got to them yet.
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My recent Boker purchases have all been hit-hit-hit, and within the same price range as Case.
Spend a little more for Canal Street Cutlery (the latest are huge HITS) and Queen's Schatt and Morgan File and Wire Series.

The new Chinese line of AG Russell traditional pocketknives has been getting rave reviews here, but I haven't bought one myself yet. Ditto for Great Eastern Cutlery.

Happy shopping!
 
Back before I moves to the states, I had a modest collection of Case doctor's knives and a yellow peanut.
They were really nice for the most part, but all of them had at least one flaw. Mostly it was blade wobble (which I was able to correct), a gap here and there, or a crack in the scale around a pin, but the peanut had quite a serious problem. The back of the knife was ground at an angle, ie if you looked at the tip of the handle, you could see that the handle sloped from left to right.
I have no idea about the date of manufacture, but I bought them new about ten years ago, so that would suggest 2001-2002ish.
I'm always puzzled when people disparage Chinese made knives, I have owned many, and have never experienced what I would consider to be a serious problem with any of them.
I gather Case has improved things since I last bought one, but I'm still a little reluctant to spend money without being able to handle the knife in person beforehand.
 
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Around here there are Case dealers everywhere. Hardware stores in he town I work and even the little town I live in have them. My latest find came in my little town at a car parts store. Someone I knew had car trouble and I picked them up and took them there for parts. It had no one but three display cases setup full of them. If I'm going somewhere new I look up ealers on there online database. It is nice o be able to see them before spending your money.
 
I love going into an old fashion hardware store and seeing a Case display. There's one about an hour drive from me and I recently found out that it's owned by a friend's husband. He's got the display for the yeller handles and the pocket worn redbone... and one more if I recall correctly. I heard his father is a knife aficionado so I look forward to meeting him. The next time I make it up that way I'll check out the year of production on the pocket worn redbone knives.
 
cultivateitnow said:
Anyhow, what is your thoughts about the best manufacturing year for Case? Are the knives made today as good as those the ones I just found made in 2002?
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I have Case knives from the 70's, 90's and 2000's so I have only limited experience with only some knives. My only example of early 70's Stockman is just about perfect yet my late 77-78 1/2 whilter is lacking good snap and nail nick and not the best FF at the blade and spring. Most all the 90's Case's (of which I have a few) are nothing to write home about. Personally, I would avoid them like the plague though the Pocket Worn series seems well done and worth a look. These do have better FF than all other Case's from the 90's that I have. The two 2009 examples are darn nice knives. FF is is very good but they do have miss-matched scales that IMO can be overlooked in their price point though it is obvious from the Pocket Worn knives that Case is capable of matching scales if it wants to.

Keith
 
I read on one forum a guy sent his mismatch scale Case in and case upgraded it for him. He was pretty tickled, but I'd have to have to send a new knife in before I even had a chance to use it. It's nice to be able to pick and choose at the store. I wish there were more local knife dealers these days, but I'd be broke for sure.
 
Case and Schrade are well known among non knife nuts as very reliable, dependable tools. Most people do not know that the original Schrade went under, at least from what I've witnessed when I walk into a hardware store that still has a knife display. Most of the Case models I've owned that had SS steel were junk, except for my Backpocket and humpback stockman. I wish that Case offered CV on all of their models, but I haven't been too disappointed with their latest SS offerings. Of course, I am not beating my Backpocket SS like it owed me money.

Other brands have their sore points too. GEC with super tight springs, the definition of nail breakers, but they have their reasons for it. Queen/Schatt and Morgan putting out great knives with crappy edges.

I think that once you get past all of the garish handle designs and blade stampings from Case, they have lately been putting out a great product, fit and finish wise.
 
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