Case Knives has announced the Case Axe Handle knife. It is a new slipjoint pattern co-designed with Bill Ruple, an award-winning custom knifemaker. A brand-new pattern is rare for Case. The company usually adds fresh handle colors, jigs, or shield designs to patterns it already makes.
Price: $83
Where to Buy: Case Knives
Case is one of the oldest American knife brands still in business. It has been making knives since the 1800s. Most of its knives are built on traditional folder shapes that the brand has used for decades. New Case releases usually come as fresh handle materials, colors, or jigs on those familiar shapes. That is why a brand-new pattern is a big deal.
Case says the pattern was designed with Ruple and gets its name from the shape of its handle, which copies the look of a traditional American axe. The company plans nine versions of the knife in its first year, with more to come.
A New Handle Shape and a New Pattern Stamp
The handle is the main feature of the knife, and it is where the name comes from. Case notes that the 4-inch handle on the production knife runs a bit shorter than the one on Ruple’s original custom version. Its profile is styled after a classic American axe: wider and subtly rounded along the bottom edge, then flaring outward where the palm rests. If you have ever swung an axe or a hatchet, the silhouette will look familiar the moment you pick it up.
Because the shape is new, Case is also giving the knife a new pattern stamp: BR’135. The brand says the BR stands for Bill Ruple. The 1 marks his first inline project with Case. The 35 is a nod to his 35 years of custom knife work.
Case says 135 is also the number of years the company had been in business when the project started. So the stamp ties together Ruple’s career and Case’s own history.
Case calls the Case Axe Handle knife its first inline collaboration with Ruple. The company describes him as an award-winning custom maker and a member of the Texas Slip Joint Cartel. Per Case’s launch post, the two had collaborated before on a small-batch custom version of the Axe Handle, built around a concealed “hidden lock” mechanism and upgraded handle materials. The new production knife is based on that earlier design.
Specs and Materials
The Case Axe Handle knife measures 4 inches closed, with a 2.74-inch clip point blade in Case Tru-Sharp surgical steel, taper-ground for clean cuts (per Case’s official spec sheet). It weighs 2.85 ounces, give or take slightly depending on the handle material, and it is built in Case’s home factory in Bradford, Pennsylvania.
You open the blade by hand using a nail nick. The knife uses a slip joint, which means it does not lock. Slip joints are a classic style. A spring inside the knife holds the blade open instead of a lock, and the style is often tied to heirloom folders. Slip joints are also legal in more places than locking knives, though laws differ by location.
The knife has a stainless steel bolster at the pivot and stainless steel liners inside, and it does not come with a pocket clip.
Case has not named any alternate blade steels at launch, though its product page says the pattern will come in a “variety of available materials, colors, and blade steels,” leaving room for future options.
The Launch Lineup
Case’s 2026 Core Product Guide includes nine Case Axe Handle knife variants, all built on the same core knife and spec sheet. What changes between them is the handle: the material, the color, and the jigging pattern. Most use bone scales, while one uses genuine jigged Buffalo horn.
The lineup includes Caribbean Blue Bone, Navy Blue Bone, Dark Red Bone, Amber Bone, Pocket Worn Old Red Bone, Gator Jig Bright Green Bone, Crandall Jig Tequila Sunrise Bone, Jigged Buffalo Horn, and Case 6.5 BoneStag, with the BoneStag sitting at the top of the range. Case has said more seasonal releases are planned throughout 2026 and beyond.
Pricing and Availability
TThe Case Axe Handle knife is priced from $83 to $102, depending on the handle. The Caribbean Blue jigged bone version is the least expensive, while the BoneStag sits at the top of the range.
Case announced the knife in a launch earlier this month. As of publication, the product page at caseknives.com lists the Case Axe Handle knife as “Coming Soon,” with a sign-up for launch notifications and a dealer locator for in-person availability.
Case’s launch materials say the team felt the design was worth the extra work of building a brand-new pattern at its Bradford, Pennsylvania factory. The brand expects it to “spark a collector following and become a favored EDC among slip joint fans.”
Price: $83
Where to Buy: Case Knives
Brent Tyler, Case’s VP of Global Marketing, summed up the release: “We wanted to create something that honors Bill Ruple’s legacy while making his design available to a wider audience. The Axe Handle combines functional style with the heritage and craftsmanship that define our brand.”
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(as of April 17, 2026 11:43 GMT -05:00 - More infoProduct prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on [relevant Amazon Site(s), as applicable] at the time of purchase will apply to the purchase of this product.)
