LOOK! Stunning New Case Knives

If Case wants to do something more modern, why would they not do gentleman / old style knives mixed with modern? I'm talking about something more subtle than in-your-face flipper. Something that combines modern materials like titanium with classic materials like stag.
 
22-rimfire said:
I think Case would do better just offering a higher end steel product to some of their more popular slippie models. Charge for it based on what other makers are doing.
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Exactly...put that steel on a stockman and they'd be getting somewhere. They used 154cm on two larger patterns that might not appeal to everyone. I like trappers and the backpocket pattern, but not everybody wants something that big. If they did a whole line with 154cm they may have had better success...
 
I have no problem with Case branching out into modern folders but I doubt a $200 aluminum handle, generic looking framelock is going to make many waves in the knife world - pretty blah looking knife imho. For comparison sake - I can get an S35V, carbon fiber/titanium liner Spider Monkey made by the same company (Southern Grind) for only $25 more.
 
Hickory n steel said:
This is not a direction i like to see case going at all.

It's not even about me not liking framelock flippers or the looks of these awfully ugly things they came up with, they just need to stick to their wheelhouse.

Modern folders are fine, but the list of American companies making decent traditional slipjoints has been slowly getting shorter since the turn of the century and i don't like it.
I think case has a good place in the traditional knife market, and they don't belong in the modern knife world.

Framelock flippers are not the be all end all, and there's no reason case should jump on the band wagon.
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Would you rather see Case fail?
Case has no choice but to try and expand their market, look at the “Rough Rider & Related Slipjoints” thread 220 pages of cheap Chinese Case Knock offs. Rough Rider is directly targeting Case's market share and doing it at 1/3rd the price. Eighty plus % of Case's market is Candy colored and commemorative pieces and that is what RR is going after. As long as people are willing to buy those cheap RR and Frost knives, Case will continue to loose market share.

As far as the other American companies that are now history, It's their largely own fault they failed. When the so called modern knives hit the market. They sat on their collective butts and did nothing to meet the new market and when they did their offerings were to little to late. Management, labor and design it all failed to meet the new market.
Rough Rider has taken a big part of Case's business and they will take more. If Case doesn't find a new niche they will be gone as well.
 
Dean51 said:
Would you rather see Case fail?
Case has no choice but to try and expand their market, look at the “Rough Rider & Related Slipjoints” thread 220 pages of cheap Chinese Case Knock offs. Rough Rider is directly targeting Case's market share and doing it at 1/3rd the price. Eighty plus % of Case's market is Candy colored and commemorative pieces and that is what RR is going after. As long as people are willing to buy those cheap RR and Frost knives, Case will continue to loose market share.

As far as the other American companies that are now history, It's their largely own fault they failed. When the so called modern knives hit the market. They sat on their collective butts and did nothing to meet the new market and when they did their offerings were to little to late. Management, labor and design it all failed to meet the new market.
Rough Rider has taken a big part of Case's business and they will take more. If Case doesn't find a new niche they will be gone as well.
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I see your point, But a sub $50 Case slipjoint is a far cry from a $200+ modern midtech.
I'm not sure the average case buyer is in the market for a such a knife, and if they really want to " comform " and produce some modern folders i don't think this would be the place to start.
I think the best place to start would probably be something sub $50.


Btw I'm not sure SMKW who owns rough rider and is a huge Case / Zippo dealer really wants to jeopardize that, maybe they do but it doesn't sound likely to me when they know how many are collectors of the Case / Zippo names.
 
I don't where they should start just that they need to, ASAP.
I did not know SMKW owned RR. Wouldn't they make more in the long run selling their brand.
 
Dean51 said:
I don't where they should start just that they need to, ASAP.
I did not know SMKW owned RR. Wouldn't they make more in the long run selling their brand.
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People know the Case name, and I personally don't know of anyone who's familiar with the case name that prefers RR.
I'm not sure If they sell more RR or Case, but I think Zippo alone would be good cause to keep their relationship with Case / Zippo in good standing.
 
Hickory n steel said:
I see your point, But a sub $50 Case slipjoint is a far cry from a $200+ modern midtech.
I'm not sure the average case buyer is in the market for a such a knife, and if they really want to " comform " and produce some modern folders i don't think this would be the place to start.
I think the best place to start would probably be something sub $50.
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Of course it is the place to start. Those of us who have been around a while have never seen anything like the "framelock flipper" craze. Manufacturers cant make them fast enough. People have fits over LEs with different colored screws. Flippers are making money hand over fist.

Everybody is in the market for such a knife.

Case would be stupid to not try to tap into it.

Did they wait too long? Yes. Am I sick to death of framelock flippers? Yes.

But to think there is not money in making them is not understanding what is happening in the industry now and not being able to put it into context.

They are hotter than survival knives after Rambo came out.
 
I'd much rather buy a ZT in that price range. I'll keep buying their traditional knives myself.:)
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FortyTwoBlades said:
In my opinion, if Case wanted to make a truly bold move, they'd design some modern folders that incorporate a traditional aesthetic. If you're gonna' make it a flipper, why not make a flipper that still has jigged bone scales and nickel silver bolsters despite having a more modern outline? Maybe give it a thumbhole shaped like an oversized nail nick. :D I think there's some room for modern knives that draw heavy aesthetic influence from traditional knives, and I don't think that's a thing that's been done much to date. Using fancy-pants natural materials on a modern knife has certainly been done plenty, but that's not the same as creating a fusion of modern and traditional. We've done space-age modern materials for scales on traditional patterns, why not do the reverse?
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This seems to be an emerging trend and I hope Case (and everyone else, to be honest) jumps on it. I love the cutting performance and aesthetics that traditionals bring to the table, but I am firmly committed to pocket clips. I can do without one handed opening, though I'd prefer to have it, but clipless knives find their way out of my pocket too often and, with the amount of crap I carry they're just too inconvenient.
 
When i was working in the knife Dept. at a local sporting goods store over the Christmas a while back, we had a large display of Case Knives they were in high demand and quickly sold out.
I have a older XX Case i bought in 1973, wish i could post it's picture but not able to do it simple as in other forums.
 
Case has an opportunity to come out with a modern interpretation of many of the classics they make and this is what they do? I'd be more excited if they switched stainless steels and the fit and finish was better.
 
Its too little too late and it is inconsistent with their traditional market. The Case name on the OP knife adds about as much to this as the Smith and Wesson name on whatever Chinese junk it is attached to at the local flea market. If they want to do a $200-300 production knife then at least do it using polished bolsters, traditional scales, a case shield plate and quality materials and finish. Make something that is consistent with their classic aesthetics.

n2s
 
not2sharp said:
Its too little too late and it is inconsistent with their traditional market. The Case name on the OP knife adds about as much to this as the Smith and Wesson name on whatever Chinese junk it is attached to at the local flea market. If they want to do a $200-300 production knife then at least do it using polished bolsters, traditional scales, a case shield plate and quality materials and finish. Make something that is consistent with their classic aesthetics.

n2s
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I agree. Make a more modern interpretation of the classics rather than throwing a spring in them and a fugly clip. The Crooked River is a great example of a modern classic.
 
I'll summarize the 5 key points of this thread about the CG01:
1. Underwhelming
2. Overpriced
3. Too Little, Too Late
4. Poor Value
5. Misses the Mark

Oh, and the flipping action in the Knifecenter video is UGLY!

The real question will be whether this unfortunate collaboration can bring both companies down.

Case should have gone after traditional handle materials and designs combined with popular elements of modern knives; a clip, one handed opening (think of the old Mnandi nail nick) and upgraded blade steel. The LionSteel Roundheads and Shufflers are awesome! This is where Case/Southern Grind should have gone.
 
Another flipper, don't we have enough of those already? I would like something like a Copperlock with a steel upgrade and a pull that could be used as a thumb purchase for one-hand opening.
On the other hand, I'm chuffed that Case is trying something new. They don't come out with new models more than every ten years or so.
 
I was thinking of the trapperlock while reading this thread. I've had one and while not a bad knife really, it seemed like a half way attempt at modernising a classic. Doesn't Case make some slipjoints with carbon fiber scales? How about a 6165 pattern with a titanium frame lock and stag , marbled carbon fiber ,or jiggged walnut? With a s30v thumb stud blade as well. Now that would get my attention!
 
They look like $60 Kershaw designs. Nothing against Kershaw. Case should stick with Case.
 
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