Case Cutlery CA06894: Barlow Navy Blue Rogers

Really nice! Scales and bolsters are flushly fit. No hot spots, or sharp edges to wear holes in your pocket! Excellent nail pulls with smooth blade pivot. Blades have half stops. Very positive spring function. Steel is ground evenly and seriously razor sharp right out of the box. Blades are mirror finish stainless steel. No major gaps in between scales, springs or brass spacers. Blades are centered nicely. Case knives are truly at a level far above other manufacturers. I am very pleased with this purchase and , yes I do recommend this knife and Shepherd Hills Cutlery!

The Barlow knife I received is about 98% perfect....Great job Case, glad you're back! Honorable mention to Shepard Hills Cutlery and Amazon...both great to deal with! Thank you

This is a beautiful knife. I wish I'd bought a Case Barlow years ago. I had a cheap Barlow as a kid. I think of Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn every time I hear or see Barlow Knife written. It locks up tightly and the build quality is excellent.

UPDATE 2-25-24 : Oh well . . . oh well, oh well. Case you just lost two stars. What could motivate me to take this review from a reluctant five stars and then drop two stars ? ? ? As Hunter S. Thompson would say "I want you to have all the background" : Day one I sharpened the (dull) large blade; reprofiling it to about 14° per side, progressing through several stones ending with a quick mirror finish on a Norton 8,000 water stone (all on an Edge Pro Apex). Hair whittling and yes that is a somewhat less than robust edge but I am super careful and highly experience using crazy sharp edges during my every day work. I hardly used the knife and then I used it to cut the top off a clean plastic jug near the middle to use the jug bottom as a parts bin. The knife did a BRILLIANT job of piercing and then cutting while staying on the pre-marked line. I was very pleased with my new Case Barlow ! ! ! Later that day I noticed a glint very near the point of the blade. The edge was dinged and rolled over like I had whacked it on some hard tool or other hard surface. Nope. I would have remembered that. On my next day off I corrected the edge by stoning off the folded metal and resharpening the edge to match the rest of the blade. Tonight after not even using the knife (just opened it and closed it a few times while admiring it) I noticed another ding / roll / flat spot in the exact same place. Turns out, on close inspection, the blade over travels when closing the large blade and the tip area collides with the back spring inside the handle. Yeah . . . I'm pissed. Sure I can fix it . . . Yes I understand finding capable staff that can work with their hands let alone work to close tolerances (I didn't say tight or accurate tolerances) is getting more and more difficult. Sigh . . . ORIGINAL REVIEW BEGINS : One of my short knife reviews (that is usually a GOOD THING) : WOW ! I am Very Very Pleased with this knife. Over all the blue / black dyed bone handle is dark and pleasing with some lighter highlights here and there (not too lightly dyed like the previous several years). Scale thickness and shape symmetrical and beautiful (so NICE !). Blades just great : good usable shapes, the larger blade has negative downward angle which makes general cutting more efficient and less fatiguing if used for jobs that take some significant time and force. The large Case xx logo engraved in the bolster is deep and perfect; adding a little desirable traction if held there in a pinch grip. (after some use i've decided that may have been a bit optimistic on my part,) It LOOKS REALLY GREAT though ! Genuine brass rivets are robust, plentiful and well executed. (some rivets in Buck brand knives in recent years have been too tall and not rounded enough so that they can be a bit sNaGgy.) I could look at this blue version of the Case Barlow all day ( I also have the purple one and it is just grand as well). I am a sucker for dark blue handled knives and this one certainly scratches that itch, tickles my fancy, . . . pushes that button . . . OK I'll stop. . . . one more . . . pulls that chain. The negative ? If pressed . . . I hate to even mention it since Case is really getting their stuff together this year . . . but . . . . . . well . . . (hey the small blade is pretty well sharpened) . . . . . . soooooo . . . OK the bad news is the large blade is up to their normal modus operandi : Dull for the most part, I mean really dull, with a centimeter or so near the tip usably sharp(ish) and . . . the Case Knife signature attribute : the blade tip is dull, rounded over and polished . Bottom line(s) : beautiful gift for yourself or another. A classic to admire and collect without reservation. As a cutting tool; it will be grand and pleasing if you know how to sharpen and do that on day one. I would buy it again in a heart beat if I lost this one but I enjoy sharpening and I put my own custom edge on about any knife I acquire anyway.

One of the large side rivets was not properly installed as it protruded above the surface of the knife instead of being flat and smooth. The rivet’s edge was sharp and rough which made it uncomfortable to grip the knife. This is a quality control issue.

Finally, a collector grade knife from Case. This Barlow knife is nearly perfect and as good as it gets. No need for an in depth review. I am excited to have such a fine knife in my collection. I've not been happy with about half of the Case knives I've purchased recently. They made this one like they used before that let QA slip. Very pleased, buy with confidence.

High quality bone material. Beautiful knife and durable. Perfect for everyday carry in dress clothes Or jeans.

Decent knife but overpriced when you compare it to the quality provided by cheaper makers.