All About Pocket Knives

I like quite a few of the patterns produced by Case over the years. Notably, I like the 11-1/2, 055, 39, 31 and the 54. I also like the 80 but I don't currently own one.

I got to thinking about which pattern produced by Case may the the most collected of all. Not just of the ones I like, they may not even be close. I'm talking about ALL of the patterns they have produced. What would be your vote for THE most collected Case pattern? To take it a bit further, is there any way to prove it?

Curious to see what you guys have to say.

Ken

Most collected pattern is probably 54 pattern trappers. 83 pattern whittlers would be in the running but probably not as popular over all.

There’s no way to prove it.

There’s another thread on this topic here somewhere but I can’t find it.

Ken

I will pile on to what Mumbletypeg said. A couple of years ago a really nice Case collection hit the market with multiple primo examples of many patterns including several trappers. The Trappers (54's) disappeared the fastest and they weren't exactly priced to sell (lol).

I believe the 65 is the pattern that Case has manufactured the most units of and therefore might be the most "owned" pattern which is different that most collectible.

I would bet on the Trapper. Especially to people just getting into collecting, Case Trappers are like potato chips.

Looking at the catalogues of some of the knife companies, the knife with the most handle options seems always to be the 54 Trapper. So here's another vote for the Case 54 as the most collectible.
Treefarmer

I thought maybe the 54 would be in the top 10 for sure but didn’t realize it was quite as popular as you fellows are saying. I wouldn’t have thought the 83 to be that high up either although I do own a few and think they are nice. I thought the 80 was more desirable.

You know, if you look at recent Case catalogs, it seems they make more 18 pattern knives than anything but not much very special about them.

I had to look up the 65 to see what it was. I would have never guessed it was produced in large numbers although it has been around for a long long time.

rugmar wrote: I wouldn’t have thought the 83 to be that high up either although I do own a few and think they are nice. I thought the 80 was more desirable.

Whittlers in general, of all brands, have always been popular with collectors. Over the years the 83 has been Case’s most popular whittler, with the 08 second. The 80 wasn’t offered in as many handle variations as the 83 and 08, and was not as popular over all, so there weren’t as many made. That (scarcity) may help account for the high prices the 6380 pattern brings nowadays. But the 83 is still king - take a look at what XX, XX U.S.A. and 1970s dotted versions of the 83 bring.

It’s a shame that Case has dropped all of their “split backspring” whittler patterns from production. Sales volumes may have something to do with it but IMHO the fact that they’re a difficult (and expensive) pattern to make has a lot to do with it. JMO

But to your original question, the Case collectors I know almost universally like trappers. It’s been a popular pattern for many years, across multiple generations. It has “staying power”.

Ken

Perhaps WR Case would share that information if asked?

Maybe a member of the Case Collectors Club has read about this in a newsletter?

Bob

I would vote for the 54 as well. You can tell how popular they are just by pricing a nice XX stag or red one. Wowza! One that is one of my favorites is the 47 frame . It has several variations and the 6347 I think has been a very good seller for Case.

Another candidate would be the 88 pattern large congress.

Paul

rugmar wrote: What would be your vote for THE most collected Case pattern?

There is no way anyone could prove this. Case might keep numbers on how many of each pattern has been sold over the years but you would also have to factor in private sales as well and that's impossible.

So, to answer your question on what pattern gets my vote, it's the 47.

However, I would also give the 32 & 92 "Honorable Mention".

___________
Mike

20. The lowly Peanut seems to have a huge following.

In terms of production numbers, the 54 trapper or the 18 medium stockman have to be the highest production patterns for modern Case knives, which means people collect the heck out of those. In terms of vintage collectability - thats a whole different animal, wouldn't dare comment in that realm ...

Lansky1 wrote:In terms of production numbers, the 54 trapper or the 18 medium stockman have to be the highest production patterns for modern Case knives, which means people collect the heck out of those. In terms of vintage collectability - thats a whole different animal, wouldn't dare comment in that realm ...

I think you have a great point. What today’s collectors find interesting may not mirror what collectors of the past have been obsessed with.

rugmar wrote:

Lansky1 wrote:In terms of production numbers, the 54 trapper or the 18 medium stockman have to be the highest production patterns for modern Case knives, which means people collect the heck out of those. In terms of vintage collectability - thats a whole different animal, wouldn't dare comment in that realm ...

I think you have a great point. What today’s collectors find interesting may not mirror what collectors of the past have been obsessed with.

The point about the 54 and the 18 being among Case’s highest production volume knives is valid, but I think people have bought the 18 to carry more so than collect. Of course a lot of people carry Trappers too, but not to the extent of the 18. Many patterns have their dedicated followers - Canoes, Eisenhower’s, Doctor’s, Toothpicks for a few examples. Recently the “tiny this-and-that’s” have been popular, and many of them weren’t even made 30 or more years ago.

Collectible trends come and go. But over the 50+ years I’ve been collecting Case knives the 54 pattern Trapper has been consistently popular with collectors. It has staying power! The 20 pattern Peanut, as Mad Hungarian pointed out, also has consistently had a lot of fans. A strong case could be made for it, but IMHO the 54 Trapper gets the nod as most collected over history.

FYI, I don’t collect Trappers myself (although I do have a couple). Which just goes to show you what’s collectible to one is of little interest to others. My opinion about the collectibility of Trappers is based on experience and observation, not because I favor them.

Ken

Ken.. In my addled brain I seem to remember something posted a while back over at CCC.. I think Lisa or Katie posted the answer to the original question here.. But I don't remember the answer... Or maybe it was a dream!!!
John

Ken, Thanks for your opinions posted in this thread. I read a lot of your post and have much respect for your opinions. I also like that you present your thoughts as a gentleman and always show respect. It doesn't hurt that we share the same name either

I think you are probably spot on about the Trapper pattern being the most collected. In looking and researching it seems it has always attracted a lot of attention and been offered in more variations than most anything else. I don't collect them either and, even though I have four of them, I only purchased one. The other three were gifts.

Thanks to all of you who have posted your opinions here. I really enjoy this site and always feel that I'm obtaining an education here. This has been very enlightening and if anyone else cares to weigh in, feel free to offer up your opinion.

Rugmar (Ken)

John, I also seem to recall a similar question on the CCC forum - I tried looking for it and can’t find it, and I don’t remember the answer either.

Rugmar, thank you for the kind words. When reading and posting here I imagine AAPK as a bunch of friends sitting around a table over coffee or a beer and chatting about whatever is the topic of the moment. We’re all friends, and we don’t always agree, but we’re still all friends!

Ken

overall most collected?

Maybe the 54 trapper.

I think patterns go in level of the collector, new, old, etc etc

88, 80, 94, muskrat, 50, 75, 47 are some of my favorite