Question about medium congress knife dating

The W.R. Case & Sons Cutlery Company has a very rich history that began in 1889 when William Russell (“W.R.”), Jean, John, and Andrew Case began fashioning their knives and selling them along a wagon trail in upstate New York. The company has produced countless treasures and it continues to do so as one of the most collected brands in the world.
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ampavlinac
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Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by ampavlinac »

Hello all, I am a new user. I have a Case XX medium congress knife, and judging by the tang stamp I'm looking at 1940/45-1964. However when I look into the pattern stamp, 64052 I get the dates 1965-1969. I'm guessing that would make this 1964/65? Any input would be greatly appreciated.
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btrwtr
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by btrwtr »

That is a very nice looking old CASE XX knife!

The CASE XX tang stamp is what dates this knife, not the pattern stamp. The knife was made 1940-1964 according to the tang stamp.
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ampavlinac
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by ampavlinac »

Awesome! Thank you! I have been working with some really beautiful Case knives today :).
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RalphAlsip
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by RalphAlsip »

Hello and welcome to AAPK! Thank you for posting the high quality pictures that make it easy to answer your question.

Here are a couple of links to some good Case reference material posted on AAPK to help decipher the Case tang stamps and pattern numbers:

http://www.allaboutpocketknives.com/con ... ng-system/

http://www.allaboutpocketknives.com/con ... ification/

Steve Pfeiffer (aapk name = knifeaholic) has written a book with extensive documentation on Case knives from 1940 to present. If you are interested in Steve's book you can find it on Amazon and many other book sellers.

Now to the specifics of your knife. Because it is stamped "Case XX" it was manufactured between 1940 and 1964. So it is the branding stamp that is used to determine age. The pattern number stamp indicates the handle material, the number of blades, and the pattern number. In some cases a pattern will be discontinued, which would then provide some indication of age, but should be used as an alternative means of verification of the branding stamp (i.e., an authenticity check).

The AAPK research links go into a lot more detail about interpreting tang stamps. With time and exposure I became adept at deciphering the Case tangs on pre-1980 knives. I will admit to being bewildered by the post-1980 stamps, but mainly because I have not put any effort into trying to understand them.

By the way, your knife looks to be in excellent condition with unquestionably red handles. It is a really nice example! Good luck with your collecting.
ampavlinac
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by ampavlinac »

Thank you, that is super helpful. I must admit I am having an easier time deciphering the four digit tang stamps than I am with the longer pattern stamps, such as 05247SP.
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RalphAlsip
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by RalphAlsip »

Ah... another complexity. Sometimes the patterns will be manufactured with multiple blade configurations. The letters at the end like "SP" will indicate which of the blades (SPey, Punch, SHeepsfoot, etc.) were configured into the knife.

There is another recent thread on AAPK where the "1/2" modifier is discussed.

http://www.allaboutpocketknives.com/kni ... 66&t=48641
ampavlinac
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by ampavlinac »

Thank you! So great. Here is another beauty I worked with today as well.
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gsmith7158
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by gsmith7158 »

The 64047P. That knife was discontinued in 1978 and is highly sought after. Very nice bone on that one as well.
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RalphAlsip
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by RalphAlsip »

You are welcome! Thank you for the pictures !!!

That green bone 64047P (Punch blade) is stunning! Just curious if you are working on a book / catalog ? Your pictures are very, very nice and the knives are fabulous!
ampavlinac
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by ampavlinac »

Actually I am a cataloger for an online auction site, you all (and this website) have been an excellent resource to help me research these knives. I really really appreciate it. If you'd like to see more of the knives I've been working, on I'd be glad to show you. My late father was a huge firearm and knife fanatic, a lifetime NRA member and a past president of the Ohio Gun Collector's Association, so I sort of feel like I've been hanging out with my dad all day ::nod::
ampavlinac
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by ampavlinac »

This one was quite a stumper for me. I gathered that this was a 1965-1969 063 pattern knife without bolsters.
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RalphAlsip
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by RalphAlsip »

The Pearl knife is a 82063 S (stainless steel blade), and further defined as a SHAD, with I believe mean "shadow" pattern (i.e., no bolsters). I'd need to see the other side of the large (Master) blade to know what timeframe, but my guess is this is an XX from 1940 - 1964. This commonly called a "Senator" pattern.
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RalphAlsip
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by RalphAlsip »

Now that I hear what you are working on, I want to express my appreciation for the due diligence you are using to get the descriptions accurate and the effort to do a job well. ::tu:: As a collector, I look at a few of the online auctions and many of them appear "slapped" together.

A lot of people come to this site because they recently inherited a knife from "Grandpa" that was grandpa's pride and joy and they want to know "what's it worth" so they can sell it and then are never back on the site again. The "what's it worth questions" get answered here, but the folks that are serious users of AAPK look at their own family heirloom knives as "priceless". Your comment below is very encouraging to me and makes me feel like the time I spent answering your questions is time very well spent. So thank you for comment about your dad - he sounds like quite a guy! There are several AAPK members from Ohio.
ampavlinac wrote:Actually I am a cataloger for an online auction site, you all (and this website) have been an excellent resource to help me research these knives. I really really appreciate it. If you'd like to see more of the knives I've been working, on I'd be glad to show you. My late father was a huge firearm and knife fanatic, a lifetime NRA member and a past president of the Ohio Gun Collector's Association, so I sort of feel like I've been hanging out with my dad all day ::nod::
ampavlinac
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Re: Question about medium congress knife dating

Post by ampavlinac »

If any one is interested in seeing the knives in this sale, here is the link. I didn't catalog all of them, but I did catalog quite a few, and I hope I did an accurate job ::pray:: :) .

https://www.ebth.com/search?q=case+xx+knife

Thanks again for everyone's help! I'm sure I will be posting here again in the future.
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