1990 Case XX Tested HB1072

[aceswyld1991]

Hello everyone,

I am new to the forum, and I need some help with a 1990 Case XX Tested Nolan Ryan Commemorative Knife, as I have no knowledge regarding pocket knives. I mainly purchased this bundle due to the Nolan Ryan autographed card, since I collect and sell sports cards. I've done a little web browsing to better understand what I bought, but I thought I'd better ask the experts before I separate these pieces. So here are my questions...

1. The bolster serial number is 000...what significance does this have? Is it a pre-production or distributor item?
2. The tang has TESTED stamped on it...what significance does this have?
3. The bundle came with a walnut case and a blue cardboard box. I'm not sure which one the knife belongs to. Is there a way to determine this?
4. As with the case and box, there are two Certificates of Authentication....again, which one is correct?
5. What kind of value does this bundle have?

I have provided pics. If more are needed to aid in answering my questions, please let me know and I will provide more.

Thanks in advance for sharing your knowledge.

[Modern Slip Joints]

Its box, pattern number HB1072, as opposed to 6172, carbon steel blade and date of manufacture combined indicate a knife Queen made for the Case Classic Series. It never passed through the Case factory. Viewed through my budget Case Classics are expensive. Since I have not bought a Case Classic in a long time I won't guess at a price.

Some collectors might view its 000 serial number similar to it being stamped prototype and pay more for that. I would not have. In general commemorative guns and knives are worth less than other wise identical standard production models if identical standard production models exist. Since they were not sold to be used commemoratives are priced for their as new in box condition including everything that came with them.

It was common for commemorative pistols to be packed in a box the size standard production guns were shipped in inside a larger box that also included the display box and any extras. My guess is that's how it was shipped. That would explain the smaller cardboard box.

Over more than a century Case has stamped TESTED XX or just XX on a zillion knives. The story is pans of blades were marked X after hardening then marked with a second X after tempering. If it is not a trade mark than it is a tradition. By the way, Queen's standard carbon steel was 1095. It required the same hardening and tempering.

Not even being a baseball fan I find it hard to believe selling the baseball card separate of everything else would realize more money but what do I know?

Having three different certificates of authenticity makes me wonder if one or two of them were printed by a previous owner but I suppose the company that ordered it from Queen could have been finalizing the design and a couple designs that were not used wound up in the box with the first knife.

[Mumbleypeg]

There’s one like it for sale on eBay. https://www.ebay.com/itm/336555883700?_ ... R4Tgseu6Zw

As stated it’s a Case Classic, not made by Case. It’s complicated. Hopefully someone who knows more about Case Classics commemoratives will be able to provide some info. My guess is there were 1000 HB1072 pattern Case Classics knives made. Of those somebody had 314 of them made into Nolan Ryan commemorative knives, put them in wooden boxes with a COA. Just a semi-educated guess. Value is subjective - being a commemorative version likely limits the pool of potential buyers to those who care about the commemorated subject. To others it may be just another knife, or perhaps have decreased value.

Ken

[Corn Creek Cutlery]

There are a couple Case Nolan Ryan at auction right now on the Bay. One looks just like yours with a card also.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=ca ... 401&_sop=1

[aceswyld1991]

Thanks, everyone, for all the great info. And if I'm following what everyone has stated, it is possible that all these pieces came as a set. So, separating them is probably not in my best interest. I just found it odd to have two boxes and COAs for one knife. In your experiences, was/is it common for Case/Queen to offer items in a set like this?

In doing some more online research (mainly Gemini AI), it states the likely value to be between $450-650 (full set - knife, case/s, COAs, autographed card) with a 000 serial number, making it the "pre-first" of the entire 1000-piece run. It also stated that a standard serial number is valued between $125-250. Does this sound reasonable and/or about right to you?

I've watchlisted the knife on eBay and saw a couple more on a website called Worthpoint.com (seems to be an auction house), but I can't see the sold prices without signing up for a free trial. I guess if push comes to shove, I'll have to do it.

[knifeaddict1965]

Thanks, everyone, for all the great info. And if I'm following what everyone has stated, it is possible that all these pieces came as a set. So, separating them is probably not in my best interest. I just found it odd to have two boxes and COAs for one knife. In your experiences, was/is it common for Case/Queen to offer items in a set like this?

In doing some more online research (mainly Gemini AI), it states the likely value to be between $450-650 (full set - knife, case/s, COAs, autographed card) with a 000 serial number, making it the "pre-first" of the entire 1000-piece run. It also stated that a standard serial number is valued between $125-250. Does this sound reasonable and/or about right to you?

I've watchlisted the knife on eBay and saw a couple more on a website called Worthpoint.com (seems to be an auction house), but I can't see the sold prices without signing up for a free trial. I guess if push comes to shove, I'll have to do it.

Welcome to AAPK, aceswyld!
They did a ton of these commemorative "Limited Edition" knife sets in the early 90s. I have seen the Nolan Ryan and others, but most were NASCAR themed. The majority of these were the 1050 Large Coke Bottle, 54 Trapper, and 2100 Large Saddlehorn patterns, but some were done in this 72 Clasp pattern as well. I bought a collection from North Carolina several years ago that included 20-25 of these NASCAR sets, and from my experience, they typically bring less than a regular knife of the same pattern with no etch, unless you get lucky and find somebody looking for this knife. The 000 serial number may appeal to some buyers, but there are way more 000 serial numbers out there on these knives than one would expect. The one on eBay like yours will be ending in 6 days, so that may give you a better idea, but my guess is that it will sell in the $150-$200 range. Hopefully it will do better, and you will do well on yours if you decide to sell it.

You can do a search for "Case NASCAR Knife" sold listings (linked below) and you will see several different sets and what they sold for. I have also attached a picture of a NASCAR 6172 commemorative that sold for a best offer.

https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_nkw=ca ... =1&_sop=16

[Rookie]

Jim Parker's book "Case Classics: Best in the Long Haul" on page 107 has this knife set shown. It says it is the 1072 clasp pattern - Sports Heroes series. A tribute knife made to big name sports figures accomplishments. Says 314 Nolan Ryan sets were made with Jigged Honey Bone handles, bomb shield, with wooden display box.

Parker's price guide in 1995 valued this set at $700. (keep in mind, Parker made the knives, so of course his price guide is going to inflate the value of his own product)

Quite a few different handle varieties came out between 1990-1993 for the general non-commemorative clasp knives.

Also, on page 113, there is a photo of a 5 foot tall wooden knife display. It says that 40 clasp knife prototypes were included in this display. Usually the "prototypes" would have the 000 serial number, but Parker could have had multiple #000 knives made to help increase sales.