Sometimes I buy a pocket knife just because… I can’t really tell you the reason, I guess that’s why they call it an impulse buy. Well, that’s the reason I bought this Case Russlock pocketknife. I received an email from one of the big knife companies saying they were running a sale on their Case Russlock’s. I visited their sales page and I liked the looks of this knife, so I ordered it. The rest as they say, is history.
After using this pocket knife for several weeks, I have to say that it’s not my favorite Case pocket knife! The thought of opening a pocket knife one handed appealed to me, which is probably another impulse reason I bought the Russlock!
However, after receiving the Case Russlock, I found that opening the knife one handed takes a little bit more practice and effort than what I like. In fact, the spring was so strong that I have difficulty opening the knife smoothly. Now I must confess, I have big hands, so someone with smaller hands may be able to master one handed opening a lot easier.
Other than this, I love the knife. I guess the Pro’s out weight the Con’s as I’m still carrying it as my daily use knife.
The clip blade is a great all around blade. The blade length is around 2 1/2 inches long and made out of surgical stainless steel. The closed length is 4 1/4 inches. This particular knife came with the stag scales which I think really sets this knife apart from others. The knife came from the Case factory razor sharp. It shaved a nice little bare spot on my arm when I took it out of the box. That’s the way they all should come out of the box!
So far, in the three weeks I’ve been using this knife, I haven’t had to sharpen it once. But that’s no surprising as all the Case knives I’ve ever owned held an edge very well.
The lock is very secure. Once the blade is opened fully, a flat spring falls behind the blade securing the blade in the open position. It takes a good amount of side pressure to push the spring to the side so the blade can be closed. In my opinion, this is much safer to use than other pocket knives that rely on friction to keep them open.
The lever (some people call it a ‘tail’) that opens the blade is fairly robust. The back of the lever have small serrations that allows your skin to get a good grip while opening. This is handy when your hands are wet or you have something else in your other hand.
Since it’s the Crappie spawn here, I’ve been using the Case Russlock pocket knife to cut out the rib cages off of the fillets. It has worked wonderful for this job. I normally reserve this task for a small 4 inch fillet knife I have, but with the small precision blade of the Russlock, it makes short work out of this job. And before you ask, the reason I use a non-electric knife to cut away the ribs is because I feel it’s quicker for me to do it this way and maintain minimal meat loss around the ribs.
I also imagine this pocket knife would be a great knife for the small game hunter as well!.
As with all pocket knives, you’ll have to keep the channel that the blade rest in cleaned. I’m constantly amazed at what kinds of stuff finds it way into that groove!
If the thought of having a pocket knife that opens with just one hand has always appealed to you, give the Case Russlock pocket knife a try. They come in a wide variety of colors, so I’m sure you’ll find a color you like. Although the one handed operation isn’t as smooth as I would like on my pocket knife, you hands may be able to open it smoother and quicker. Needless to say, it’s a quality knife that will give years of reliable service.
Yes a fantastic all round knife which is very useful for many tasks and in many situations. Given its versatility it really seems to render all other designs redundant. It is a tragedy that it cannot be carried in public in the United Kingdom