Case vs Queen-made Sowbelly

Thank you for the info, Peter. That's a good looking example of the pattern. The dyed bone and jig pattern is especially nice. It looks more like Cattaraugus wormgroove (one of my favorites) than most of the others that I have seen. I think that knife was an excellent choice!
 
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I got it! Here are a couple of photos of the Winchester, including some comparison photos with a Case and a Rough Rider.

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Check out those swedges!

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The blade mechanics on the Case and Winchester are very good. The Case has good walk and talk but the Winchester has a bit more snap to it. The RR is a bit sluggish and the spey blade rubs. I've had other RR patterns (whittlers, stockman, congress) with excellent blade mechanics so I don't think this is representative of the brand but it does seem to be representative of the RR Sowbelly since I've handled five and all of them were the same. I mainly use the clip and sheepfoot blades though.

The Case and the RR were sharp out of the box. The edge on the Winchester wasn't sharp but the grind was even and I expect that the carbon steel will take a nice edge with a little work. The grind on the RR was uneven but sharp.

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There are a few small gaps in the liners of the Winchester and the RR. The Case doesn't have any visible gaps despite how it may appear in the scan. I can't see any light through the liners in the Case. There's also a gap between the bone and the liner on one end of the RR. RR handles are glued as well as pinned but I had a similar gap lead to a loose and eventually broken handle on another RR (dogleg whittler). I'm gifting the knife but if I kept it, I'd probably try to fill in the gap.

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The main blade on the Case is a little longer than the others but the knife is also a little longer so that's not surprising. The blade geometry is also slightly different. Also you can see that the sheepfoot is a little higher on the Case (as has been previously mentioned). The main blade on the Winchester slightly more comfortable to use because the sheepfoot sits lower.

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But when the sheepfoot is open, the main blade on the Winchester sticks out a little more than the main blade on the Case. And I find the sheepfoot on the Case slightly more comfortable to use for this reason.

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The spey blade on the Case is a little longer but the Winchester is bit more full.

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Overall, I'm really happy with Winchester and I ordered a Schatt & Morgan 18 Sowbelly to go with it. I hope my 18 Sowbelly will look as good as the one posted by Peter.
 
This thread just put me over the top. The Sowbelly will be mine. Thank you for the detailed review of respective finishes. Case will be first purchase for me but I will probably follow up with the S&M 420hc, despite the dice roll on Queen's gaps and lack of sharpness -it looks like getting a good one would be worth the gamble.
 
supratentorial said:
Thank you for the very nice photos. I'm going to chicken eye them a bit longer. I've already been eyeing that Ruple sowbelly whittler for quite some time. I'm looking for a user and I don't know if I'd have the courage to carry the Ruple... still haven't used any of my customs, yet...but it would certainly look good next to my Ryu.

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Click to expand...

Whoa horses!!!
Is that a knife, or is THAT a knife!!:eek:

Lovely knife there Jake, the good thing about knives there are so many variations that anyone can find what they like...I bought a Case Sowbelly..never quite warmed to it...gifted it to my good mate....he loves it, I had the pleasure of staying the night at his place the other day, and he certainly has given that knife a workout!.
As we were having breakfast I turned a cup over...it had a nice 4mm wide raw Ceramic ( and wonderfully smooth ) base...I gave his blades a tune up on the bottom of the cup...he was beaming ear to ear to se such a thing going down at his Table...worked a treat, and didnt leave one unsightly mark! :cool:

Getting back to the subject..Jake, you must use that Ruple, if you dont!!..send it this way Sir!...I will ever so gently introduce use marks on this beauuty, then send it back to you so you ( at some stage )wont feel so bad about using it...
Yes....I would do this for you :D
 
Thank you guys for the comments. I was able to get a working edge fairly quickly since the grinds were pretty good. I spent about 30 minutes total on the clip and sheepfoot blades, doing most of the work on diamond stones and then finishing with ceramic rods. Haven't gotten to the spey blade yet. My Winchester and Schatt and Morgan knives weren't nearly as difficult to sharpen as some of the other Queen made knives that I've owned (the Burke small barlow, for example, was a nightmare and I needed to ask a pro for help). I was totin' the Winchester yesterday and noticed that the handle is much more radiused than the handles on my other sowbellies. It's very comfortable in the hand. Duncan, thank you for the generous offer. :D That sowbelly whittler has a lot to do with my increased interest in the pattern. It's a safe queen and it still gives me goosebumps when I take it out to look at it!
 
Well done Jake! The Queen made Winchesters aren't quite with the S&M and Marbles line in f&f, but nice enough. You'll really be impressed with the 18 Sowbelly, if it's like mine. Here's the reverse side of my 18.....
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Peter, That knife is a beauty! Here's a photo of some Cattaraugus worm groove for comparison.

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Thank you, Kevin. Rogers makes beautiful knives. I hope to add one to my collection.
 
Got my Schatt & Morgan Series XVIII Sowbelly today and it is a good as it gets in my opinion. No gaps. Very good blade mechanics. Most of the Queen made knives that I've received were unsharpened but the factory edges on this sowbelly were as sharp as the best that I've received from Case or GEC. The handle feels a little less rounded than the handle on the "Winchester" (also made by Queen but decades earlier). The XVIII Sowbelly is comfortable in the hand. The jigging is perfect and the color is a dark burgundy.
 
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