What happen to Quality control?

I have to agree with Sword and Shield. I truly believe that it is just a matter of some less desirable pieces getting through the process. For the most part CASE is still king, but I wish someone would crown the quality control people and reduce the jesters that make it through. :p Can't someone find me a Old Pennsylvania Knife for sale, I am having withdrawals here folks. :eek:
 
here in Mississippi. Haven't had a problem with any of them. But I think because I ordered them from Bill, at Cumberland, he could be responsible for that. He checks out every knife he sends out. If you do get a Schatt Morgan, make sure you get it from him. But I think you are right about there not being any Queen knives around, I don't think I have ever seen one around south Mississippi.
 
your right about that, I have bought many knives from Bill, he looks them over as if they were for him!!!

S&S, you are right about more bad ones getting through!!! I received a case brothers 1st run swell center whittler for Christmas. I opened it and the handle was cracked from the bolster to the center pin, all the way through!! In fact the gap was wide enought to put a cutip in (you could see brass!)!!! The cracked piece was practically falling off!! Whoever wrapped it, knew it, or should have? I sent it right back to shepherd hills for replacement. Unfotunately I will only get the normal run, not the 1st since they have been out of those for quite a while :(

I usually have to go through quite a few till I find one that's acceptable.
 
Well I received my replacement whittler from shepherd hills. They looked it over good and included a case bandana for paying for the shipping back to them!! :)

...oh by the way the large case 6375 Cv amber bone stockmans are great :D !!!!
 
Rev, The cracked could have occurred during shipping and storage after the factory. Especially if its bone or stag, changes of temperature and humidity can cause the material to both swell and shrink. I have a stabalized giraffe bone knife that during wet months the scales are flush with the blade. But during dry months the scales shrink and are no longer flush.
 
This is definitely true, but the split in this went beyond humdity control!!! The box and wrapper were in perfect shape, no damage whatsoever. The crack in the handle was all the way through and you could fit the end of a match stick in it. You could see lots of brass :eek: !!!
 
I've noticed that companies will cover up their QC issues with a good warranty. A product will be not right and wil be sent out and if the consumer notices ,then they will fix it. And I dont just mean, knives. Cars also have a lot of qc isues that are on a "fix as Fail " bulletin. I guess its cheaper that way, but what these companies dont realize is that alot of consumers will just quietly go elsewhere for purchases. My mom was that way. Only one time did she raise a fuss. It was with Sears credit. other than that, if she was seriously unhappy, she simply bought elsewhere.
 
I have a question why is Victorinox being considered almost the holy grail for knife quality in this price range? Although I admit the fit and finish of every one I've every seen has been identical you get a knife with tools that are too thin to be used heavily (Highly inferior to a Leatherman, including the knife blade). Also the main use of a knife is to cut, with Victorinox you get a paper thin, brittle blade of cheap, inferior SS. A blade than can easily be out performed by a Case SS, and especially by their CV, great stuff, I won't even mention its comparison to a VG-10 Delica :) . I've been collecting/Using Cases for years and have never seen any HORRIBLE quality problems, and any that I or any one I know have had have been taken care of under warranty, for free :D

The bottom line is Case is practically unbeatable in traditional folder, granted you could get a better user knife in a Spyderco Delica or Endura, but they are about as traditional Americana as sushi :D

For a user EDC knife a Case Amber Bone stockman CV or a Delica is about as good as it gets, I used to carry SAKS, they were my first knife but I just can't believe anyone would think them superior to Case. Camillus or Boker, maybe even Queen or Buck Creek, but Victorinox, who are you people kidding :(
 
I think consistency is the key. Victorinox does a great job of making sure every knife leaves their facilities with the same quality as the next. With Case and some other brands, it's not a given that your knife will be their best.

But I'm with you about the SAK hype. Take a mediocre knife blade, a crappy magnifying glass, some toy screwdrivers, and glue them all together... I have a BuckSwiss that I like just fine, but the toys/blades aren't even 1% as functional as real tools.

-Bob
 
Spydiefan04 said:
Also the main use of a knife is to cut, with Victorinox you get a paper thin, brittle blade of cheap, inferior SS. A blade than can easily be out performed by a Case SS, and especially by their CV, great stuff, I won't even mention its comparison to a VG-10 Delica :) .
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Umm... No.

Case SS gets whipped by Vic SS. How do I know? I've tried it. Straight cutting test, with the Case Scout/Utility against the Vic Soldier. If anything, the Vic blade is thicker.

Sharpen each on the Sharpmaker, grab some cardboard. 24 linear feet later, the Case is done, just wedged in. 38 later, the Vic finally goes out. Outperformed? Only if being beaten by a 58% margin counts as winning.

Cardboard not your thing? Let's go with that old standby, 1/2" manila. Sharpen again, start out. 31 cuts for Case, 43 for Vic. 39% margin to the Vic.

Now, I like Case CV. Unfortunately, since I don't have a CV Scout handy, I can't make that call, but it's pretty obvious that Case SS is pretty bad. Their CV does do better in work use, but since there isn't a comparable blade in a Vic, I can't compare them fairly.

Unbeatable in a Trad? I'll take Queen. Sure, Case makes some nice looking stuff, but their steel choice lags behind their handle choice.
 
Well you could take a Spyderco VG-10 and probably cut through a Case (but who'd want to) or Victorinox. I can assure you a BM710HS would :) Never seen a Case Scout (I assume you mean the Camper, like a Camillus Boy Scout) but I've never seen a Case (other than SMALL ones like a peanut) with thinner blades than a SAK. I do know that a Camillus Boy Scout knife will blow a SAK out of the water in terms of toughness and blade thickness. Case Canoes, Trappers, and Large Stockmen have much thicker blades than SAKS. SS pretty much sucks anyway unless you're talking VG-10, 154CM or S30V but then you'd probably have to buy a Spyder :D or a BM. Switzerland is a fine country for chocolate, banks, and watches, but should leave knifemaking the the folks that know how: Japan, Germany, and of course the Good Ole-USA. :D J/K I have a few SAKS myself but collect them as a novelty item, I actually use a Leatherman when I need a multi-tool.
 
Not to add a further complication to the last few comments, but....

The Case camper's knife 640045R is actually made by Camillus, and has been for many years...
 
Folks, I am the one that started this thread and have been very pleased with the over all response. I would like to say that I didn't intend to bash CASE as much as I was trying to see if others thought that quality was being reduced for profits. Case still makes a great product, it is the few that don't get thrown back into the reject bin that bothered me. Simply QUALITY CONTROL. Case isn't the only one. I still look with pride to my collection of old Pennsylvania pocket knives and just like my dad said, "they just don't make them like that anymore" OH MY GAWD I JUST BECAME AN OLD MAN!!!! Thanks guys and keep your eyes open for me. ;)
 
Even I have to admit that sometimes Case does disappoint, but I've even run across a few less than perfect out of box Spydercos and Benchmades (which should be unheard of considering BM $$$) overall I've seen the fewest defects with Spyderco, when you consider the number of knives Case makes with the number of different patterns their QC is not that bad, but they are not as well "finished" as the older Case knives. I guess this is just what a warranty that is backed up by the manufacturer is for :)
 
Actually I like SAK's, been using them for over 23 years with no problems. The SS they use is perfectly fine. I would personally choose it over case's cheap 420, "tru-sharp" steel, unless of course your talking about their CV.

The blade on a issue soldier model SAK is actually thicker than the average case blade. Then of ocurse you have to take into account which year model of issue soldier SAK you are talking about. The other SAk's, yes the blade runs thin, but they work well. I also use one for whittling.

I do not think anyone here is "bashing" anyone, case has quality control issues, its just a fact. There are others also that have had problems. Anytime you mass produce anything theres room for error.
 
Spydiefan04 said:
The bottom line is Case is practically unbeatable in traditional folder, granted you could get a better user knife in a Spyderco Delica or Endura, but they are about as traditional Americana as sushi :D
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Wait... sushi isn't American?

All y'all is OLD. ;)
 
Spydiefan04 said:
Hey rev, just curious, what kind fo Steel is in a SAK?
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I have heard that it is 420 with some vanadium or other stuff added in.

SAK blades are flat ground, which is why they perform so well (blade geometry). They won't stay sharp long, and neither with Case's SS (Which is also a 420 variant). I have a flat ground VG10 blade that will do "miles" more than a SAK or CASE SS.

Now Vic's are praised because of the fit and finish (and blade geometry/performance), NOT the steel. I can't imagine how desireable a SAK with top end steel would be, but it would cost 5-10x as much, becasue of the cost of the steel and the tremendous difficulty in fabricating it.

If you want good steel, Queen's D2 is hard to beat in a trad. Sure, they have some quality issues too, but the steel makes up for it in my mind.

I really wish Case used a better steel. Seems like 95% of what they make now is 'eye-candy' for collectors. The only ones I will use are CV (which I really like but I wish I could get it in some of the nicer colors).
 
oldewelder said:
here in Mississippi. Haven't had a problem with any of them. But I think because I ordered them from Bill, at Cumberland, he could be responsible for that.
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rev_jch said:
your right about that, I have bought many knives from Bill, he looks them over as if they were for him!!!
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So how do I contact him in particular?
 
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