Thursday, April 16, 2020

Stapler of the Week Archive- Arrow JT-21 & JT-21M

Arrow JT-21 steel chrome and hammered teal finish 

Arrow JT-21M steel chrome and teal finish

In my first year of college, I bought an Arrow T-50 after learning how to stretch my own canvases.  It was the first stapler that I owned, years before they became an object of study.  The Arrow JT-21 is the light-duty version of the Arrow professional line of tackers.  After stretching several semesters of canvases with the heavy-duty T-50, my younger self probably would've much preferred the easier action of the JT-21.  

The Arrow Fastener Company was founded by Morris Abrams in 1929.  He sold staples from his New York apartment and later began to develop and manufacture staplers of his own design. The weathered version dates to the years when Arrow manufactured staplers in Brooklyn, NY, whereas the newer one to after they expanded to a larger facility in Saddlebrook, NJ.  I find it interesting how the design of the stapler has remained basically the same but the decoration gives a hint to the date of its manufacture.  Like kitchen appliances, staplers follow the tastes of an era. 
Patent drawing for JT-21
Excerpt from the Stapler of the Week, April 16, 2020.

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