Case Sodbuster Jr. Deformed handle

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dkblade

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Nov 7, 2014
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Picked up a Case Sodbuster Jr. CV with yellow handles from a reputable dealer (gift card so please don't flame me!), it arrived today, and the first thing I noticed is how deformed the handles are. I know these knives are hand made and quite affordable, but it's about twice as thick on one side as the other. Please let me know if this is expected and I will let it slide. If not, I'll email Case and [the dealer] tomorrow for a replacement.
 
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dk, I've owned three yellow jr's and all three were different. Some thick, some thin either by the pivot or butt end. Nothing extreme but far from perfect but all were just fine for what they were intended for...working.

Nothing wrong with exchanging it but I really didn't find that it bothered me.
 
Thanks for the reply Paul. I will use it as it is for its intended purpose. And I won't worry about dinging it up or getting it dirty.
 
Just got a new black Sod Buster Jr and noticed a similar lack of symmetry in the handles. My hand can't tell the difference, however, and it's nowhere near as badly mismatched as some much more expensive stag knives I've owned. It's a $19 knife that I plan to leave in the car so in my case I don't care that much how perfect it is. My other Case Sod Busters are the jigged bone handled variety and they seem much slimmer and the scales for the most part match.

On the plus side, the blade is perfectly centered, it has a nice firm pull, great walk and talk, no liner gaps, and a wickedly thin hollow ground blade. My bone handed SBJrs apparently have full-flat-ground blades, which I had never noticed before until comparing them to the black synthetic "working" model.
 
dkblade said:
Picked up a Case Sodbuster Jr. CV with yellow handles from a reputable dealer (gift card so please don't flame me!), it arrived today, and the first thing I noticed is how deformed the handles are. I know these knives are hand made and quite affordable, but it's about twice as thick on one side as the other. Please let me know if this is expected and I will let it slide. If not, I'll email Case and [the dealer] tomorrow for a replacement.
Click to expand...

Case knives are anything BUT handmade! They are mass produced on automated machinery by the thousands.
 
Mine aren't equal on both sides either. Not twice as thick though. Doesn't bother me one bit.
 
I just checked my Yellow CV Sodbuster Jr. - handles about as perfectly symmetrical as you could hope to get, blade is centered, opening and closing snap just right - guess there are some knife to knife variance's in every model. I also have a Black SS SB Jr. in a box in storage; I'll check it later. OH
 
You can see here how the pile side is thicker. And also a comparison with another Case Soddie Jr. with jigged scales.
IMGP0753.jpg
IMGP0756.jpg
 
After seeing the pics, I would return it for an exchange. I can totally understand varied thickness in natural materials like stag, but in synthetic covers, that just looks sloppy. Even the best will have one slip by QC every once in a while, they have no way of knowing this but through returns.
 
I never returned mine, though I did email customer service. They responded promptly saying they would exchange it immediately. I decided to keep it because I think it gives it character and reinforces the whole "hand made" notion. I also patinad the hell out of it with a lemon and it looks pretty cool. Only problem I'm having is taking it to work in place of my PM2. I always think "what if _____ happens and I really wish I had my PM2?" It will be a great knife for camping though...and I keep it in my truck for food prep.
 
that's messed up. You'll do everyone a service by returning it so that someone at Case does a QC check. Some scales of the wrong thickness might have gotten mixed in or something.
 
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