All About Pocket Knives

I didn’t want it to come to this. I was so excited to get a new (to me) Case Tested in the mail. But I was really surprised at what it actually looked like when it came in.

1. The pattern. It’s an equal ended jack knife. I hadn’t seen a lot of that pattern from case during the time period so I was intrigued.

2. The configuration. The pen blade in is the rear- secondary position. Is that normal? It feels awkward in the hand but maybe I’m just crazy. It also has no markings on the secondary blade.

3. The tang stamp. Looks totally normal 1920-1940 to me. Check it out and see for yourself

4. No shield and handle material. There’s no shield and it’s on Deleon type handles. It reminds me of a 70s Imperial. What do you think?

5. No pattern number- but I THINK it wasn’t common practice to have pattern numbers on a case until 1949 or so.

So guys...what do you think?

I meant Delrin handles*

Knife is authentic.

Here is mine.

The pattern # for this knife is 22055. On your knife, the tang stamp is somewhat worn. Many Case patterns in the Tested era were made both with and without a shield.

On the majority of Case jack patters (there are some important exceptions), the pen blade will be in the back not the front. On the 055 pattern, the pen blade was always in the back.

I've always wondered how tang stamps get so worn down when no one ever touches that area on a pocket knife. Even my most abused EDC knives have tang stamps that are cleary readable.

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Mike

knifeaholic wrote:The pattern # for this knife is 22055. On your knife, the tang stamp is somewhat worn. Many Case patterns in the Tested era were made both with and without a shield.

On the majority of Case jack patters (there are some important exceptions), the pen blade will be in the back not the front. On the 055 pattern, the pen blade was always in the back.

Thanks, Knifeaholic! Yours looks awful pretty! I’m still learning and very appreciative of people like you and this forum!

XX Case XX wrote:I've always wondered how tang stamps get so worn down when no one ever touches that area on a pocket knife.

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Mike

Maybe simply from the action? A knife like this has seen quite a bit of use. when there gets to be a wobble in the blade - as in mine- I can only postulate that it increase the wear on the tang

Jvaughn wrote:

knifeaholic wrote:The pattern # for this knife is 22055. On your knife, the tang stamp is somewhat worn. Many Case patterns in the Tested era were made both with and without a shield.

On the majority of Case jack patters (there are some important exceptions), the pen blade will be in the back not the front. On the 055 pattern, the pen blade was always in the back.

Thanks, Knifeaholic! Yours looks awful pretty! I’m still learning and very appreciative of people like you and this forum!

Sweet knife there, Jvaughn!

Steve, aka knifeaholic, aka Resident Case Expert, has a book Collecting Case Knives that is worth the investment.

"Steve, aka knifeaholic, aka Resident Case Expert, has a book Collecting Case Knives that is worth the investment"
I strongly endorse this comment. Steve's book gives every Case pattern and explains what changes have occurred from when it was first made up to the present. There is a huge amount of very specific information that gives you some in depth understanding of every single pattern Case has made. And it is logically laid out and easy to read.
Everyone who collects USA folding knives should have this book. Even if you are not a Case collector you will still come across many examples and this book lets you know what you have found.
kj

kootenay joe wrote:"Steve, aka knifeaholic, aka Resident Case Expert, has a book Collecting Case Knives that is worth the investment"
I strongly endorse this comment. Steve's book gives every Case pattern and explains what changes have occurred from when it was first made up to the present. There is a huge amount of very specific information that gives you some in depth understanding of every single pattern Case has made. And it is logically laid out and easy to read.
Everyone who collects USA folding knives should have this book. Even if you are not a Case collector you will still come across many examples and this book lets you know what you have found.
kj

Ditto.

Nice Knife there, KJ! Love the top grind. And the black/nickel combo? doesn't get more elegant. thanks for sharing. It's a welcome relief to see guys NOT being ripped off on a knife around these parts.