Upside Down Shield - Old Case Tested

[A&E]

Has this handle been doctored? Why would someone go through the trouble of doctoring this up if they were just going to put the shield on upside down?

Any opinions?

[A&E]

The reason I'm asking is because this could be a fairly valuable knife . . . if it's not all doctored up. It's a CASE Tested in awesome shape. The blade is shiny and pretty, and the green bone handles are in excellent shape . . . it's just that shield that's bugging me. As you can see from the 2nd picture, the shield isn't totally flush with the handle either. Does anyone have any opinions on this? I don't want to sell it and have someone claim I'm trying to rip them off.

[SFC ADP]

Just going from memory here,
But I want to say the handles should be more rounded to the liners instead of squared off. The jigging looks off ot me as well. And the shield upside down, the stamping itself looks off.
The handle squaring was something I read about a couple nights ago, would have to read up on it again to see if it would pertain to this year/pattern.
I am at work, so don't have access to my references!

[knifeaholic]

Knife looks perfect and genuine to me. I have owned several in that psttern. An upside down shield is a rarely seen facftory error, but it is occasionally seen.

[upnorth]

I've never seen a shield proud of the surface like that on an older case knife. I think it was added later. The bone looks O.K. though. In the pic anyway.

[jonet143]

is the shield inletted or on the surface?

[A&E]

It looks to me like the shield is on the surface . . . that is why I included that second picture. As I look at it in comparison to other knives, it definitely looks like the shield is sitting ON the bone, not inletted, as you say. It still seems strange to me, though, because it's the same size as the shield on an identical knife I have, and in the same place, so even if it WAS replaced, why isn't it sitting down flush with the bone surface? Additionally, as I asked in my first question, why would someone go through the trouble of replacing the shield if they were just going to put it on upside down?

I've added some additional pics . . . the small repair to the handle is really highlighted with the flash - it's almost unnoticeable to the eye (almost the same color).

[jonet143]

i did'nt notice the repair in your first pics. i think that is your answer.

[A&E]

Yes, without the flash the repair is virtually unnoticeable. The first pics were taken without a flash.

[upnorth]

Back to that other knife; A lot of Case knives were made without shields. I suspect someone added that "high" shield to try and enhance the look. With no shield, it was considered a lesser knife. And it's hard for a beginner, or anyone, to fit a shield properly without a jig and tooling.

[A&E]

All the pics are of the same knife. There is no "other knife." I appreciate the help here, folks.

So . . . if I took that shield off, should there be an indentation or cutout under it for the shield to fit into? That is, if there was originally a shield on the knife?

And if there isn't (an indentation or cutout for the shield), then I can safely assume someone was trying "add on" a shield, correct?

And I can also safely assume that person was kind of a moron, because he put the shield on upside down. And I can also safely assume that the person was a moron because he was trying to alter the knife to make it more desirable, thereby making himself a cheat and a liar.

Now, another question. If I were to put this knife on ebay, and was honest and open about the issues that we've discussed here, would that tarnish my reputation?

Thanks, everyone, for your insights.