Case Tru-Sharp stainless steel?

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Grapevine

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Apologies if this has been discussed before. I've been trying to run a search on the forum but the search function doesn't seem to work for me (I'm on a Mac using Safari as the browser, but also tried Internet Explorer).

Anyone have knowledge or experience with Case's Tru-sharp steel? I know not to expect too much out of performance from it, but how does it compare to other often used stainless like the ones on Swiss Army knives? Or steels used in kitchen knives like Henckels or Wustoffs.
 
From my personal experience with Case knives (I have never had a vintage one), they suck- They focus on delivering nice looking products, but overpriced, and with inferior steel.

on the other hand, they have some higher-priced knives featuring ats-34 blades.

The Swiss army knives have better steel, IMO
 
The Tru Sharp stainless can be brought up to be sharp enough to shave with that has never been disputed really. The problem is that they lose that shaving edge pretty much on the first cut and go down hill from there.

For someone like me that wood carves a nominal edge holder cuts hard wood for about ten minutes before I notice it is dragging and needing a few strops. I like them to cut longer than that. This is the minimum performance I will except. Any typical Spyderco knife right out of the box will cut hard wood for 20 minutes and some up to about 30 minutes before needing a strop or two to bring the edge back to snuff. D2 steel is pretty much the same way and most of my 1095 and 52100 blades are up there with it also. About 30 to 35 minutes before the blade starts really dragging depending on the type of cuts, the type of wood and just generally speaking. The length of the blade makes a difference also. On softer woods like pine or bass wood you can go for much longer between strops.

Many carvers will say that they only get about 15 to 20 minutes on hardwoods with a good blade and they feel the need to strop. And this is probably true if you are using a small carving knife blade with an inch and a half of useable edge or less. So what I'm referring to here is a folder blade with 2.5" or more of useable cutting edge on it. Some of the longer blades can go for quite a while because you just move to a different spot of the cutting edge to do some work before stropping the edge.

The Case Seahorse Whittler I used on occassion is a beautiful knife. I have carved with it and it does have that surgical stainless steel, or I guess Case also calls it "Tru-Sharp, and it sports that great main blade in that much loved Wharncliff blade shape we carvers just adore. It goes about 5 minutes maybe 7 carving hard woods and needs stropped. The smaller blades are pretty much not even going to last for more than a couple of cuts in hard wood and the whole useable edge is dulled beyond acceptable levels. The edge comes back just fine to shaving again after a few strops in most cases but it lasts about 5 to 7 minutes once again on main blade and quickly disappears on the smaller ones. I can push it further than this but the edge rolls, and it becomes damaged enough that just a few strops are no longer going to do the job to bring the edge back. I tried to give Case stainless the benefit of the doubt when I bought that Whittler. I really did. But these are my experiences with it truthfully. If Case used CV steel in this Whittler it would be in my pocket as a daily whittler and everyday user. But because it is stainless 'surgical' steel it is in my safe with a box full of other old knives I've deemed worthless.

So, in a nut shell summary this 'surgical steel' is simply unacceptable to me a for what I routinely do with my knives. It works for a lot of people though.

Anyway, that is the difference I see carving North American Hardwoods from steel to steel. In my experience a "good" steel will carve on a block of walnut for 30 minutes before the edge needs attention and then it will come right back to the edge it had when you started in about 4 strops maybe 5 per side. That is what I see in my high carbon carving knives in 1095 and 52100 steels and what I have seen in some of my D2 blades.

S30V seems to keep up well with these high carbon blades but the 440C blades I have go for about 20 minutes or so. Not quite as good but still very acceptable though.

Hope that helps.

Note: this a paste from a past post I made on this same subject so if it looks familar it is. Hey! It was easier than having to think. :)
 
You should stop by the Traditional "Folders & Fixed Blades" section, we've had some pretty lengthy discussions on this and I believe 2-3 of them are relatively close to the top so you won't have to search.

I don't think Case's steel is the problem, I think their price is a problem. You can purchase a knife with superior steel for less money, or spend 1/4 (or less) the money and get a knife with steel of similar quality.

Frost ( :barf: ) is making the "Steel Warrior" line of knives which beat Case in every aspect (fit and finish is up there with the best), with similar/same steel... they sell for about $6.

IMO their ATS-34 models are a joke. They upgrade the steel which costs them about $2 a knife and then try to sell it for $250+, crazy.

I have a few modern Case knives in my collection but only when I can get them at really good prices.
 
After owning several " modern production " Case knives, they are off my purchase list for all the reasons already stated. I buy Queen & Opinel for pocket carry nowadays. :cool:
 
Case "tru sharp" is nearly useless for anything but one or two mild tasks before resharpening. I only had mediocre results with opening letters (lots of them). For $40 and up, you better REALLY want the knife for its design because the blades fall short of what Buck and Schrade (used to) make for half of the price.
 
Here's a link where a fellow forumite did a comparison review of the Steel Warrior to a Case.

Case - roughly $50+
Steel Warior - roughly $8
 
I own a few Case knives in SS, and I also own a Steel Warrior.

I guess I'm just not hardcore enough, because Case SS works just fine for me, although I do sharpen whichever one I am carrying once a week.

The Steel Warrior has fantastic fit & finish, no doubt about it. At $9, it's probably the best value you can find.
However, I much prefer the "melted" finish that Case has. I don't like sharp edges, and there are none on Case knives.

As for these prices some of you guys are coming up with for Case, I have no idea where you buy from, but you need to find a better dealer.
 
Thanks for the responses guys. I did go through the Traditional Folders and Fixed Blades forum and did read those threads. I know that the general consensus is that Case's SS isn't that good. But I wanted to try and qualify that a bit more. I think the vast majority of us are used to some darn good steels that hold an edge. At our level, what may be acceptable to the general public isn't to us. And so far I've only been seen comparisons between Case's steel against the established workhorse steels that we love (except for Mr. Finkelstein's post).

That's why I was hoping for a comparison between Case's steel and the more widespread Swiss Army Knives and kitchen knives. Because those knives also have steel that wouldn't stack up well against things like D-2, 1095, ATS-34, etc., yet they're quite acceptable for what they do. I definitely know not to expect any sort of edge holding performance comparable to Spyderco and the like, but if it compares well to SAKs or a Henckels kitchen knife, then that's fine for what I'm expecting it to do.
 
Apparently, someone has to be buying those SS Case or they wouldn't be making them continuously. Still, they don't seem to listen to users who prefer the CV. I bought a Case CV on opinion from others and am happy with the performance. So maybe most Case buyers are collectors who don't see that they will be using them.
 
Case SS is fine for a dressy knife that won't see any hard use. However, it is barely adequate for a medium-use knife, and below average for a hard user.
 
Boink said:
Apparently, someone has to be buying those SS Case or they wouldn't be making them continuously. Still, they don't seem to listen to users who prefer the CV. I bought a Case CV on opinion from others and am happy with the performance. So maybe most Case buyers are collectors who don't see that they will be using them.
Click to expand...

My guess is that most people who buy the stainless models fall into the following categories:

1) Collectors
2) Light users
3) People who haven't experienced better steel
4) People who automatically consider "Case" synonymous with quality - the brand loyal folks

Or a combination of these.

I suspect people who fall into the last 3 categories probably aren't the best sharpeners. For them, the length of time a knife holds a razor edge doesn't matter. They won't be able to put one on a knife anyway.

I wish Case would make more CV knives. They'd probably get more complaints about rust, but they could provide prominent warnings on the box and papers and possibly include a small bottle of oil or something.

I also wish that instead of making a million different variations, they would focus on improving the quality.
 
I has to jump in this one. I have five or so Case knives. I have not used them for cutting, so I can not say anything good or bad about their steel. That being said they do seem to lock up tight and seem to be made with good quality. I may be wrong but I think they are well built, please correct me if I am wrong. I bought the case knives that I have because of the stag handles and I like the design of the cheetah and russlock. I also got them at a price I could not pass up. John
 
As far as quality goes, it's mostly the fit and finish that some people complain about. It tends to vary - maybe not a quality issue, but a quality control issue.

Some people, of course, are very picky. If the stamp on the tang is a little weak, this will bother some people but not others.

Here is a good thread over at Traditional Folders and Fixed Blades with some mention of Case.
 
A lot of people like case stainless, they are just not as loud or prevalent as the case haters you find here. To call their tru-sharp "surgical" is an insult.

Most people who like or tolerate case steel say it's better than surgical and rostfrei, comparable to swiss army, gerber and buck. Most people who care for case stainless, including a whittler on the other forums, say its serviceable and they don't mind having to sharpen. They like the fact it doesn't rust when they fold it up wet and slimy and shove it back in their jeans and sweat so much their pants are wet at the end of the day.

Ryan8 case is popular not really for any of the reasons you listed. First they sell because they are traditional patterns that appeal to a lot of non-knife nuts. Second they sell becuase they are readily available, more so than many production knives. Third they sell because they are US made. Fourth, they sell because their price point versus value appeals to their customers. Fifth, they sell because people are happy with their product, buy more as presents and recommend it to others.
 
The Case knives made with stainless steel are intended for collectors. The steel isn't hard but it is very resistant to corrosion (important to collectors who aren't going to use the knives.) Those made with CV steel are intended for users. They perform just fine except in the area of corrosion resistance. On occasion Case makes a series for collectors with high tech stainless such as ATS-34. The current Cattaraugus series is one of these. They are expensive but they are collector knives you can use if you like.

So the trick to buying case is understanding what you are buying and for whom the product was intended in the first place. Then you will get something appropriate for your use.

Case knives are the most collected knives in the industry so the majority of their production is designed for that end use and, hence, have the stainless blades. I collect Case Eisenhowers (all stainless blades) and leave them in mint condition. I have a few CV steel Cases that I carry. So just make sure you understand what you are buying and you are likely to be quite happy with your Case knife.

Other manufacturers do the same thing, by the way. Boker makes both stainless and carbon steel series with different end uses in mind. Queen makes the higher end knives in soft stainless for collectors and some of the practically priced series in D2 for users.
 
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