All About Pocket Knives

I bought an older Case Half Whittler the other day with a “lazy” main blade; it seems to function okay but has no snap. Is that something that can be repaired or “helped along”?

The problem could be one of several things. A picture of the knife with the problem blade open would help to diagnose it. Need to see the backspring on that end with the blade open.

Ken

Also, a pic of the "back" of the knife closed, where the joint is. Looking to see if the tang is worn down, as Ken is thinking.

Almost always a worn tang or spring, sometimes a pinched blade or spring (pin peened too tight) but the blade will usually be very hard to open if thats the case

It opens very easily and smoothly. I hope these photos are good enough. It appears to me to be a 1982 model 6208SS

I have a 1974 6383 pattern knife and the main blade opens to a position just like that. It does have snap but I decided if I tried to "fix" it I would probably just make it worse.

1967redrider wrote:I have a 1974 6383 pattern knife and the main blade opens to a position just like that. It does have snap but I decided if I tried to "fix" it I would probably just make it worse.

This one has a “little” snap, didn’t realize it a first. I’m sure you are probably right: I need to leave it alone before ruin it

While the sunken backspring is certainly an indication of a worn tang, that coupled with the blade not folding out to a full open position, makes me think the blade has been replaced, or the wrong blade was installed at the factory. Either way, both issues can be fixed, but getting the tang tig welded can be fairly costly. The stop can be filed to get the blade to fully open, but that too adds cost. Overall, quite an investment for an 80's Case knife. Is there a number stamped on the back of the main blade? If that's the original blade, you may be able to send it in to Case for repairs cheaper.


WB

whitebuffalo58 wrote:Is there a number stamped on the back of the main blade? If that's the original blade, you may be able to send it in to Case for repairs cheaper.


WB

The number is stamped on the secondary blade: 6208SS. The main blade is just stamped with the Case XX SS USA and 8 dots.

whitebuffalo58 wrote:While the sunken backspring is certainly an indication of a worn tang, that coupled with the blade not folding out to a full open position, makes me think the blade has been replaced, or the wrong blade was installed at the factory. Either way, both issues can be fixed, but getting the tang tig welded can be fairly costly. The stop can be filed to get the blade to fully open, but that too adds cost. Overall, quite an investment for an 80's Case knife. Is there a number stamped on the back of the main blade? If that's the original blade, you may be able to send it in to Case for repairs cheaper.


WB

Yeah, that backspring is really sunk, that blade almost looks too small for the pattern, but I confess I do not know a lot about Case knives.

The 5th and 6th pictures show the indications of the problem as others have mentioned. I have a Case 6244 jack that has the same problem with the pen blade, while the main clip blade has good snap. I recently sent it in, but Case sent it back to me and said it did not meet the requirements for warranty and was a discontinued knife. If it is a current model, they will have parts and will be able to fix it, but you may have to pay for it. They will determine if it is warranty or not.

Worn tang/spring engagement. The worn out spring will keep the blade at an odd angle even when fully open. Many times it will also affect how the blade sits in the closed position too. The problem can be remedied by careful welding, which is a service I offer if you take interest in having it repaired in the future.

There are excellent mechanics on here that do excellent work. Looking at the pictures is proof of that. The problem you face is a common dilemma that you often see posted on here. Your knife may not be worth the cost of the repair. This looks to be a decent used knife of the same pattern as yours that sold for about $30 on ebay.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Case-XX-6208-S ... 7675.l2557


I live in a small town but the welding place has a $65 minimum charge and so goes this type of knife repair for me and also for most common knives. Older, highly collectable knives might be worth the cost? Even if your knife has sentimental value and you want to have it restored and keep it finding a donor knife might be a far better option. You could find a similar knife on ebay or look in the AAPK stores and then send both knives to a mechanic and have a functional knife made from the pair. The cost of the repair would be far less than the cost of trying to have your knife welded up - I think. Add the cost of shipping both ways and the total rises rapidly. Just something to consider. If you're wanting just to make an EDC from the current knife you have it might be a better option to shop around a bit.