No. 36 Pattern Makers Spokeshave
No. 36 Pattern Makers Spokeshave Production 1923* to 1961
Produced for over thirty years under five different trademarks
The No. 36 pattern makers’ spokeshave was produced by Goodell Pratt Co. prior to the merger with Millers Falls. After the merger, the status of the No. 36 is unknown because no catalog put out by Millers Falls shows or mentions this spokeshave. At some point after 1931, examples of the Goodell Pratt No. 36 are found under the Millers Falls trademark Mohawk Shelburne. One noticeable change to the Mohawk version is the elimination of the iron bevel adjustment thumb screw. Millers Falls did not include this spokeshave in their 1934 Mohawk Shelburne catalog, or the 1935 No. 41 catalog.
In the fall 1933, Sears listed the Mohawk spokeshave version as the Merit 5232 until the spring 1935 when the model was changed to the 3661. In the fall/winter 1937/1938, the Merit 3661 was renamed the Dunlap 3661. The Dunlap model would continue until the Dunlap name was changed to the Sears name in the spring 1954. The Sears 3661 would continue through the summer 1961 when the model was discontinued with Sears.
Millers Falls made the decision to produce the No. 36 spoke shave exclusively under the Sears domain. As mentioned earlier, the iron adjustment thumb screw was eliminated from the back, and sometime during the Merit years, the lever cap was reconfigured to hollow-out some of the metal in the middle of the cap. The diameter of the clamping thumb screw head was reduced from 5/8 to 9/16 and the thread count was changed from 10-32 to 10-30.
Summation of the changes to the Goodell Pratt No. 36 pattern makers spokeshave:
Goodell Pratt produced the No. 36 well before the merge of the two companies in 1931. The length is 9-1/8” with a 2” iron.
After the merger in 1931, the next version shows up as the Mohawk Shelburne which is a line of tools produced by Millers Falls with a lower price point with good value.
In 1934, Millers Falls decided to produce this tool exclusively for the Sears Robock Co. The initial release in the spring 1934 was under the Merit brand with the model No 5232.
Spring 1935 the model number was changed to No. 3661.
1936? Lever cap is reconfigured, and the thumb screw thread count is changed from 10-32 to 10-30 with a smaller screw head.
Fall 1937 the brand was changed to Dunlap with a model No. 3661.
It is not clear if this spokeshave was produced in the forties because of material shortages.
Spring 1949 the Dunlap No. 3661 is back in the catalog.
Spring 1954, the brand is changed to SEARS with a model No. 3661.
Fall 1961 would be the last quarter the Sears No. 3661 would be offered.
* Source Thomas Lamond Spokeshave Book
Goodell Pratt No. 36 with two thumb screws to adjust the iron and the other one to secure the iron.
Goodell Pratt No. 36 front and back view with the stamp on both thumb screws.
Mohawk Shelburne trademark with only a thumb screw to secure the iron. The adjustment thumb screw was eliminated probably to reduce manufacturing costs to offer it at a better price point.
Sears marketed this spokeshave in 1933 under the Merit line as the model 5232 shown at the top. In 1935 the lever cap was reconfigured with a ridge at the top and the middle with less metal along with a new model number 3661 (not shown). In 1937 the brand was changed from Merit to Dunlap with the same model number shown second from the top. In the spring 1954 until the fall 1961, the spokeshave is sold under the Sears name shown on the bottom two examples.