Recent Case knife quality

J

jec88

Joined
Mar 6, 2012
Messages
833
I like Case knives, they are my second favorite brand. I have commented in the past about buying some and the quality was hit and miss. I picked up 2 medium stockman (6318) over my vacation, and I'll have to say the quality, fit and finish is perfect with both. I have never even looked at a case in stainless steel until a couple of weeks ago. Maybe the stainless models have better fit and finish than the cv models? I don't know, but both of the stockmen I picked up were 2015 models and stainless.
One was the pocketworn red. I just really liked the red on this one and I looked at several and all were top notch. I've never bought a pocket worn one before and they look like they have had a little extra quality checks before they were sent out. The other I bought was a burnt amber bone with the bass pro shop shield instead of the case shield. I also looked at several and picked out the one that was colored the way I liked and all I looked at were really nice.
Usually, I have to go though several before I find one I like. This time, the batches I looked at all pretty much looked perfect, it was just a matter of finding one with the coloring that I preferred.
I've been carrying the burnt amber bone for about a week now and on vacation and not doing much real work. I guess about the only real use it has seen is opening stuff and cutting stuff out of the garden, but so far, the stainless steel has been just fine and at this stage I haven't noticed any real world difference between the ss and cv. I might miss out on the blade blackening up, but as much as I'm liking it, it could end up getting some serious pocket time and with the coloring and jigging, it should look good getting pocket worn.
 
Case is definitely doing well on the medium stockman. I've purchased four this year, so far. A Carhartt Rugged duck in stainless, a yellow Delrin in CV, and two yellow Delrin punch stockman in CV. I didn't have to pick and choose either. All that I checked were virtually identical in fit and finish. No wobble. No tang rub. Great snap.

I am also pretty happy with the stainless on the Carhartt. Did Case up the Rockwell a point or two on their stainless? The Carhartt seems to be holding an edge quite well. As well as (gasp) my recent USA-made Buck slipjoints. I also really like the look of Case's "as ground" blade finish.

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Case stainless is good stuff for an everyday pocket knife. I know there are folks who prefer a super steel, but I actually prefer a steel that's a little on the "soft" side. I carried a Case stainless peanut for quite a while, and Ihad no complaints. It cut twine, opened UPS boxes, opened my mail, and did garden duty with no problems. When I needed to give it a n occasional touchup, the nearest coffee mug did just fine to sharpen it up. A minute stropping on the back of an old belt put a hair popping edge on it.

Case stainless is good stuff. But then I also like the SAK stainless!:D
 
CASE are following a wise route if they put out consistently good/acceptable knives in basic patterns for real pocket use. I'm not talking about collecting themes or suchlike display handle gimmickry.

There have been quite a number of threads lately on CASE quality and it seems to me - based on my own experiences and what I've read - that CASE are mindful of offering a consistent product at an affordable price. I respect this. Their stainless is perfectly good for the kind of tasks pocket-knives of reasonable price should be expected to do. When you combine this with a good choice of handles and trustworthy construction, then you have an affordable Traditional you will like to use. That's what it's all about isn't it?

Thanks, Will
 
I love Case Knives. Have for about 40 years. Yea there are some that the F&F is questionable but thats with every production Knife.
 
I have two of the large stockman knives, one in yellow delrin, one in amber bone. After using the amber bone for a while, all the blades have a wobble, not bad but it is there. They yellow one doesn't. That having been said, I would not hesitate to buy a Case knife, I believe in supporting an American knife maker and not an import company.
 
I like supporting Case and they put out a lot of knives and some will develop faults from simple use. It can be disappointing...but they have excellent customer service and will fix that wobble henryhide.
I recently sent in a damascus swayback gent due to significant wobble that I did not notice when i got it and I only used it to open boxes or letters. Sent it off and Case replaced it. All done in a couple weeks. No wobble...real happy with it, although I did tea dye the covers slightly darker.
 
I like mine. I bought 2 Yellow Delrin Peanuts and a Chestnut Small Toothpick, (CV all) and every one of them has been perfect.

Enough said
 
From the two that just arrived, I am very impressed with Case's quality. These are the stainless versions since I've given up on the carbon bladed knives, just me ;) but these take a razor edge, wicked razor edge! Walk and talk on both knives are solid, the Peanut has a stronger snap but that may because the shorter springs, not a nail breaker but you know you are pulling a blade out!
G2
 
I'm generally satisfied with my Case knives. There are some fit and finish-type things with some of them that seem to bother other people that don't bother me, though I do notice them if I take time to look closely enough. I guess it all comes down to expectations at a particular price point.

I like their stainless steel just fine. I can get it as sharp as I want it without significant effort, and it cuts everything I need to cut. I carry the SS and CV interchangeably. They seem to be very similar in performance in my normal usage.

I haven't noticed any particular change in Case quality over the past several years. I've had about the same ratio of knives that have "minor issues that I don't care about or can rectify myself but that I do notice" across that time period.
 
I finally gave up on Case. I order online from several retailers and sometimes I get a good one and sometimes I get one with serious problems. It costs me more than the knife to return it for warranty. I love the looks, designs, and materials, however.
 
I had a CV Swayback Jack not too long ago and was very happy with it. Good fit and finish, everything flush, no major gaps, a little bit of wiggle in the blade but nothing to write home about.
 
Their two steels really are pretty similar in performance. There are a couple of minor differences, I think the stainless prefers a less polished edge. I like both pretty well with a slight preference to CV for nostalgia.
 
I generally just read and don't post but this thread hit close to home. I just bought 4 Case knives from different on-line stores, one med Stockman, one Large Stockman, and two large trappers. 2 CV and 2 Stainless. All blades had a sharpening burr on them when received. Blades were far from razor sharp. Both stockman have tip drag on another blade and one has the balse to blade and a drag on the inside handle of the knife. Main blades do not close dead centre. Good springs and strong snap, no wobble on any of the 4. Blade polish not as good as it used to be.

To be fair to Case, I emailed them about the defects, they immediately offered to fix them if I send in the knives, but then I would have $26 in postage, 13 to get them to me and 13 to send them in for repair, tied up in what are basically $50 knives.

I still think Case is a good knife for the price but unlike some of the other posters, I don't think they are as well finished and built as the ones I have that are 20 to 60 years old.
 
I have always heard of the hit and miss antics with Case, but I have never....I repeat never, experienced this myself. Every case knife I have bought in the past 5 years has been perfect. in fact, I have received a few GEC knives with issues I would expect from Case. Go figure. I love both brands with all of my heart though. I just paid 35 bucks for a chestnut bone medium Stockman. I couldn't believe how perfect it was.
 
Dean2 said:
I generally just read and don't post but this thread hit close to home. I just bought 4 Case knives from different on-line stores, one med Stockman, one Large Stockman, and two large trappers. 2 CV and 2 Stainless. All blades had a sharpening burr on them when received. Blades were far from razor sharp. Both stockman have tip drag on another blade and one has the balse to blade and a drag on the inside handle of the knife. Main blades do not close dead centre. Good springs and strong snap, no wobble on any of the 4. Blade polish not as good as it used to be.

To be fair to Case, I emailed them about the defects, they immediately offered to fix them if I send in the knives, but then I would have $26 in postage, 13 to get them to me and 13 to send them in for repair, tied up in what are basically $50 knives.

I still think Case is a good knife for the price but unlike some of the other posters, I don't think they are as well finished and built as the ones I have that are 20 to 60 years old.
Click to expand...

Please post photos of the wells like this...

supratentorial said:
Dan4, can you make an update with a photo of the well?

Here are some photos of Case & Rough Rider knives that show the difference between a manufacturing defect and normal wear. The Rough Rider 725's clip blade and sheepfoot blade are hitting hard and the spey is hitting the liner hard. In contrast, there is no contact between the blades and liners on the Case 3347. Any rub marks on the Case knife would be caused by pushing on the blades instead of pulling straight up.







Click to expand...
 
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