Vintage Case Knife Display

[WelshInc]

Hello, this is Ray from Welsh Pawn in Savannah, GA. We have been around since 1913 and have always had our fair share of knives and edged items come in and out of our doors. We have never joined a forum such as this, but now is a good time as any! Thanks for having us!
The main reason we have just joined is that we have a couple of old Case Knife Displays with some knives still in them that a buddy of ours is interested in buying. They have been with us ever since they were given to us by our old Case Knife Rep. My manager has only been here since 1979 and they were already here when he started so we don't know how old they really are.
Anyway, here are some photos and we are just asking for help to try to find a good valuation on them. Our owner never wanted to sell them, but our friend is a collector and we want them to go to a good home. We don't want to rip him off and we also don't want to lose out.
Thanks for any help in the matter!
P.S...There are no knives in the drawers, but there are a bunch of Case boxes in the drawers along with more plastic round push tags with model numbers on them. We have the keys for both cases as well.

[doglegg]

Wow, talk about an instant collection!

[steve99f]

Looks like there is some fading issues on the composite handled fixed blade knives, that'll hurt values. Base on the the 6207 mini trapper with the spey blade, the one display with that knife in it is from the late '70's. Still, a very cool set.

[TwoFlowersLuggage]

Very, very cool. I sure like that Mother of Pearl pen knife in the upper left of pic #3. I don't know very much about fixed blades, but there are some there I haven't seen before - like that double-edge dagger with the squared-off guard.

My only suggestion is to have your collector friend make an inventory of the numbers on the blades of each knife. As has already been said, the faded handles are going to hurt the value. I could see someone removing all the knives from the displays, carefully restoring the displays, then repopulating with mint versions of the knives. Alternatively, a local guy that knew the story and your store might just keep them as is. (I would probably be in the second camp, but I suspect most collectors with the cash to make that purchase would be in the first category).

[Mumbleypeg]

If the knives are from the 70s that composite is probably delrin, in which case those handles can be easily refurbished by rubbing with a soft cloth and 3-in1 or other light oil (do a search here on AAPK for "delrin haze").

These appear to be what Case called a number 35 display. The retailer was allowed to choose from several standard display panels or create their own with their choice of knives and other items.

I have the exact same display case as the one on the right in your photo, intact with all the knives (different knives than what are in yours), sharpening stones and honing oil, whereas yours appears to be missing 5 knives from the upper right of the panel. Mine is populated with knives from mostly 1981, and a few from 1980. It's all there just as it was when it was in the hardware store, and all in good condition (no damage to the wood or hardware, just minor scratches and wear to the finish from sitting on display in a store). FWIW since you asked about value, I've never offered it for sale but turned down an unsolicited but serious offer of $3700 three years ago. I have no idea whether that is what it is worth or not - I just don't want to sell it. Not sure if that info is of any value to you.

Here's a picture of my display for comparison purposes, along with some pictures from Case catalogs showing the number 35 displays. As you can see in those catalog pictures these displays were offered to accommodate three different panel sizes.

Welcome to AAPK. Hope you stick around and show us some of the cutlery that comes through your shop.

Ken

[RalphAlsip]

Ken, your full Case display is a fantastic piece to have in your collection. The knives look great and the case is in amazing condition.

[XX Case XX]

Here's a picture of my display

Ken:

Please don't post pictures of your Case display's ever again. I lose all functions when I see stuff like that. My hands go numb, my eyes get all blurry, and I can't breath. You're killing me dude. I can't take it!!!

___________
Mike

[Mumbleypeg]

Thanks Jerry, I was fortunate to find it when I did. Most have been gutted of their contents. This one even still had a few knives in the drawers, along with a bunch of empty boxes and the leather sheaths for the fixed blades and large folders on the panel. I didn't know that until I got it home and unlocked it.

MIke, sorry, hope you recover soon! Just trying to help out Ray with his questions - didn't mean to cause you any harm.

Ken

[WelshInc]

Thanks all for making us feel welcome and thanks so much for all the useful insight! One of our stores opened in 1982 and we thought those displays may have originated there. With Ken's info on the years of his, this seems likely that our displays started life at that store opening!
And of course if we have any interesting edged items come through, we'll put up some photos!
Thanks again!

[gsmith7158]

Welshinc it's great to have you on board here at AAPK! We are always delving for information here at AAPK and it's always nice to have someone who sees a lot of knives come through their business. We welcome you to our forum and hope that you will stick around and contribute to this juggernaut of information.

[WelshInc]

Thanks Greg! And coming from a fellow Georgia boy means a lot! We don't see a lot of GOOD stuff come through, but rest assured I'll share what I can!

[UltraPrecision]

I have a friend/customer who has 3 display cases. Two of them were used in a store (all display knives in-place) and dated 1967 and 1971. The third display is still in the original shipping box (never opened) and has a stamp with a date of "Dec. 71" on it. He's made mention about selling everything and it seems the folks here might be interested or might know someone who would be. I'm not a knife collector so any help is appreciated.

71 - Display

71 - Inventory

67 - Display

67 - Inventory

71 - Shipping Box

71 - Stamp

[biglmbass]

UltraPrecision,

Where is your friend located?

[UltraPrecision]

Southwestern part of Virginia... Small town called Cedar Bluff.

Do you know if the unopened display would contain the sales inventory or would it be just the display?

Thanks for the help

[knifeaholic]

Email sent to UltraPrecision...I'm interested.

PM me here or email at mistercasexx@gmail.com.

[QTCut5]

You've come to the right place...You're in good hands now UltraP, VA.

~Q~