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What era were Case knives at their peak in terms of quality?
- Thread starter B Hess
- Start date
i would say the 65-69 era...
40-64 was great and so were the 70s but i am a fan of the 65-69 reddish bone scales
the fit and finish stared to turn in 1979 but was very good before that
i also prefer them because im in a knifemance (feel free to use this
) with my USA era large texas jack
40-64 was great and so were the 70s but i am a fan of the 65-69 reddish bone scales
the fit and finish stared to turn in 1979 but was very good before that
i also prefer them because im in a knifemance (feel free to use this
) with my USA era large texas jack
Last edited:
knowtracks
Gold Member
- Joined
- Jan 16, 2006
- Messages
- 3,900
I tend to agree with coolness also, the USA period just does it for me! That is not to take away ANYTHING from the XX tested period because the quality was just as good and there are some patterns and examples that I would prefer over a USA period knife. But that red and green bone both just grab me!
Dave
Dave
- Joined
- Jan 12, 2009
- Messages
- 3,198
I agree. Somewhere in the mid 60s, to maybe the late 70s seems to have been the time to trust their product sight unseen.
I have a big old Jack from 69 that has had three owners including my Dad and me. It still fits and functions perfectly, and snaps like a bear trap. It is a really heavy duty knife, and it has been used pretty well over the years, but no sign of joints opening, cracks in the scales, and it even has the original shield intact.
I still have the last CASE I bought from that era, in 1976. It is an odd copperhead, case length 4", and has a large clip blade like a jack, but also has an 1 1/2" pen blade. That was my main work knife for years, and while the large blade has lightened on the snap, it is still great. The scales are worn fairly smooth (used to be red bone, but years of sweat and grime have turned them dark chocolate), the pivot pin is now proud of the bolster enough to see it, and one of the pins holding on the scales has lost its head. Overall, the knife is still solid as a rock and has no gaps in between springs, liners or the blades. Oddly, no blade wobble at all, even though there has been enough use of the main blade that it is rolled back a bit on the spine where it contacts the spring when open. And I love the hollow grind on the main blade as that makes it a slicing son of a gun.
Robert
I have a big old Jack from 69 that has had three owners including my Dad and me. It still fits and functions perfectly, and snaps like a bear trap. It is a really heavy duty knife, and it has been used pretty well over the years, but no sign of joints opening, cracks in the scales, and it even has the original shield intact.
I still have the last CASE I bought from that era, in 1976. It is an odd copperhead, case length 4", and has a large clip blade like a jack, but also has an 1 1/2" pen blade. That was my main work knife for years, and while the large blade has lightened on the snap, it is still great. The scales are worn fairly smooth (used to be red bone, but years of sweat and grime have turned them dark chocolate), the pivot pin is now proud of the bolster enough to see it, and one of the pins holding on the scales has lost its head. Overall, the knife is still solid as a rock and has no gaps in between springs, liners or the blades. Oddly, no blade wobble at all, even though there has been enough use of the main blade that it is rolled back a bit on the spine where it contacts the spring when open. And I love the hollow grind on the main blade as that makes it a slicing son of a gun.
Robert