Old Case Serpentine Jack

K

kodiak

Joined
Dec 24, 2002
Messages
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I put this in my pocket a couple of days ago. I am going to carry it for a few months. It is a beautifully made knife. The fit and finish are supurb. It rivals some customs I've seen. I found out that it was made between 1940 and 1954. It's called a Serpentine Jack. It's a bit bigger than the Peanut, just what I wanted. The spring tension is great, the bone is a perfect fit (and I mean perfect), It looks great also. I wonder how the steel compares to the modern CV. It is defiantly one of my favorite knives. I needed money and had it up for sale a couple of times..... I'm so glad it didn't sell! I love that the shield is double pinned on. :cool:



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Beautiful ol' Case! Outstanding color! :thumbup:

I have one one Case XX and had two Case XX USA (and am looking at another now to add to the fold) and those old knives were wonderfully made. The carbon blades held a razor sharp edge for a long while. Oh and that snap! Gator snap! Watch them fingers!
 
What a lovely knife!

Don Hanson had this to say about the Case CV steel: old vs. new
Hope that helps.

Don Hanson III said:
As Elliott mentioned, I've done some tests between older XX and USA (1940s-1960s) Case knives and new CV Case knives 2003-2007. I've been a Case pocket knife nut a long time and was just curious.

The newer CV knives held an edge a good bit longer while cutting cardboard, two to three times longer. The newer CV blades were also a bit harder to sharpen, which leads me to believe they have a higher Rc hardness.

12-13 years ago I also ran into a guy who owned and ran a machine shop, he also collected old Case knives. He pointed out an interesting bit of info. He Rockwell tested (hardness test) a number of old Case CV knives, Tested, XX, and USA, 1920s-1960s. They all tested in the high 40s, which is basically a spring temper. These old knives are known to be easy to sharpen and folks liked em that way.

I have also looked over a couple of original Case documents with the analysis of their CV steel, one from the 50s' and the other from 2008 I believe. The CV from the 50s' is 1095 with .50% chromium and .19% vanadium added. Very close to W2 (great steel), if had a bit less chromium. Or 01, if a bit more manganese.

The 2008 CV was basically the same except .86% carbon and more manganese. Pretty close to Howard Clark's 1086M which is one of the finest steels I've worked with. Right next to W2.

A very small bit of alloy, like vanadium does wonders to a simple carbon steel and is one reason W2 is so good A very small amount of chromium can also be good.

Hope this helps,
Click to expand...
 
How do you know the shield is double pinned on? I am just curious.
 
Thats a fine lookin old Case... Gotta love the older red bone.
I may be mistaken, but I have a feeling the double pinned shield he referred to, was the two total pins, one on each side of the shield
 
If Case would make this pattern now with CV steel, I'd be on it like a fat kid on a donut.
 
I am a huge fan of serp patterns and that one is a beauty. Thank you for taking the time to show us that exceptional classic.
 
Thanks for all the great replies! That is a great little excerpt on old and new carbon steel. I love the Case CV, the newer is quite a bit harder than the older. You can see the duel pins (one at each end of the shield) on the inside of the knife. If you look hard enough you can see the pins on the shield also. I would love this pattern in newer CV for sure. It would be easer for me to use also. It is the perfect pocket size and weight. Thanks again guys!

Length closed-3 3/8
 
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