How can you tell what year a case knife is?

How can you tell what year a case knife is?

Case & Sons, there have been many different stamps used on its knives. These stamps are located on the tang of the master blade, and can be used to help identify when the knife was manufactured. Below is a picture of where the stamp is located, along with the most common stamps and the years that they were used.

What does the numbers on a case knife mean?

This number tells you exactly what kind of knife you have. The first number indicates the type of material used to make the handle. The second digit gives the number of blades. The last two or more digits indicate the factory pattern number.

What does SS mean on a Case knife?

SS = The blades and springs will be stainless steel. SH = The knife will have a sheepsfoot blade. see illustration. S = The knife will not have bolsters.

Are Case knives worth collecting?

Because of the longevity of this decidedly American institution, Case Knives is widely respected and revered among knife enthusiasts, especially knife collectors. In fact, Case may be one of the most collected knife brands ever.

What does SS mean on a case knife?

What kind of case knife do I have?

You can find the Case knife pattern number stamped on the tang of your knife’s blade. This number tells you exactly what kind of knife you have. The first number indicates the type of material used to make the handle. The second digit gives the number of blades.

What is the most popular Case knife?

The Trapper is perhaps the most popular Case pattern since the early days of the company and averages about four inches in length. It was designed for trapping and skinning small game and is extremely lightweight. The Trapper is a jack-knife with a versatile clip blade and and a long spey blade.

Are Case knives still made in USA?

Case remains committed to crafting our knives in the United States. The majority of our knives are made in Bradford, PA, where Case has been manufacturing cutlery for well over a century.

What is special about Case knives?

What’s unique about Case knives is that they stamp each blade with a special tang marking that can be used to identify the knife and production date. This is of great appeal to collectors and hobbyists and Case boasts the largest knife collecting association in the world with almost 20,000 members.

What does the X’s mean on a case knife?

The XX trademark goes way back to the early days of Case. The were one of the first knife co to double temper the steel. The would mark an “X” on the batch of knives when the when in the furnace and then when they put them in for the second run they would mark the second X so they would know the had be tested twice.

Is Case XX Made in USA?

What is the oldest case pocket knife?

Cases oldest version is a 3 5/8″ jack knife that is usually called a gunstock. Case began manufacturing them sometime before 1915, and had already discontinued it before 1940.

How can you tell the year of a case knife?

By learning the simple Case Dating System, you can easily determine the year a Case knife was manufactured. In 1970, Case added dots beneath the “USA” on the tangs of all knives. As each new year passed, one dot was removed.

Where can I find a 1970 Case knife?

For large collections, we can travel to you. We are located in the Nashville, Tennessee area. CASE XX U.S.A. block letters→ 10 dots→ 1970 CASE XX U.S.A. block letters→ 9 dots→ 1971 CASE XX U.S.A. block letters→ 8 dots→ 1972 CASE XX U.S.A. block letters→ 7 dots→ 1973 CASE XX U.S.A. block letters→ 6 dots→ 1974

When was the date added to the case of a knife?

In 1970, Case added ten dots beneath the U.S.A. on all knife tangs. Each year a dot was removed. The same dating system was used during the 1980s. The differences are the “lightning” form of the letter S in Case and USA and the fact that the dots were put above the USA. From 1990 to mid-1993, the actual date was stamped on the tang.

When do you remove the X from a case knife?

From 2016 through 2019, an X is removed each year. The 2020 Tang Stamp design goes back to the original 10 dots without a Long Tail C. From 2021 through 2029, one dot is removed for each year. Over the course of Case’s long history, literally hundreds of different knife patterns have been created.