How rare is an inverted handle stamp on a Case XX WR Pocket Knife Mini Copperlock Amber Bone? circ 1974 est

C

Curmudgeons

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Jun 10, 2026
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A neighbor passed along his knife to me 12 years or so ago. Just found it in an old box. I noticed that the handle stamp was inverted, different from all photos I see on the WWW.
AI or RI (retard intell), says it is uncommon, but not how uncommon. Any guesses or experiences to aid in enlighten me please, and thanks

Case XX WR Pocket Knife Mini Copperlock Amber Bone. Circ 1974 I estimate. Very worn down blade stamp.
 
Curmudgeons said:
A neighbor passed along his knife to me 12 years or so ago. Just found it in an old box. I noticed that the handle stamp was inverted, different from all photos I see on the WWW.
AI or RI (retard intell), says it is uncommon, but not how uncommon. Any guesses or experiences to aid in enlighten me please, and thanks

Case XX WR Pocket Knife Mini Copperlock Amber Bone. Circ 1974 I estimate. Very worn down blade stamp.
Click to expand...
bStamp01
bStawmp02
Other case nonsense
can't find a upload image link for here so I improvised,
 
Ahh that’s a fairly new copper lock. Yes I’ve seen shields upside down. You can glue/press them back in may have just been in a hurry that day or previous owner just put it in wrong after falling out.
 
Yeah, the Copperlocks first were introduced as a brand new pattern in the late 1990s. I think it was around 1997 as previously mentioned. The pattern didn't exist before then. I quoted an excerpt of Case's description of the Copperlock below, from a popular Case vendor site:

"...In 1997, Case introduced an entirely new knife pattern that took the collector world by storm. Designed by Case Legend Tom Hart, the CopperLock® (549) combined elements from classic Case knife patterns (Trapper & Copperhead) to make an entirely new lockback knife. With a fully locking blade, it has the cutting power of a lockback, with the look and feel of a traditional Case pocketknife. "

[end quoted text]

It does look like the shield probably fell out of the handle at some point and was glued back in upside down. Past the 1970s or so, Case no longer pinned their shields in place. Their later glued shields have been known to come out at times. One of mine did.
 
Last edited:
Case Copperlock History (Introduced in 1997)
By Shirley Boser
When we started working on the design of the CopperLock, our Sales manager at that time, Dick Kearney, had requested Tom Hart, our designer, to design a single bladed lock trapper. Dick had request the handles be made of old red color bone with Roger's jig. Tom liked the flat blades with the long nail mark and a cut swedge and they both decided where to put the lock mechanism.
The first sample was great. Dick says "This was by far the nicest looking knife I had seen." He had more samples made, passing them around to get feedback. Since the back of the tang stuck up above the bolster about 3/8", it was suggested that it needed a larger bolster to prevent the knife from catching in the pocket. Hence, the Copperhead bolster was put on the pocket end of the next set of samples and was the design we went with.
The pattern numbers, 549, was given to the CopperLock, by yours truly as it was a combination of the 54 pattern and the 49 pattern.
The name CopperLock was determined when they went to the Copperhead bolster. Up to that point the knife had been referred to as the "Lockback Trapper".
I hope this answers your question.
Shirley @ Case
W.R. Case Historian
 
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