Got ‘84, ‘85, and ‘86 catalogs coming. Obviously, not in the heart of the vintage era that we are most interested in, but Xacto history ‘data points’ nonetheless. Will scan and submit to Scott as I can work through them once received.

Earl

__________________
Earl L. Cagle, Jr.
NAR# 29523
TRA# 962
SAM# 73
Owner/Producer
Point 39 Productions

Rocket-Brained Since 1970

Sounds good. Keep 'em coming.
Would really like to see 61 thru 64 to see when the 1G and 2G handle availability ended.
I have a feeling those are going to be really hard finds.

__________________
When in doubt, WHACK the GAS and DITCH the brake !!!

Yes, there is such a thing as NORMAL, if you have to ask what is "NORMAL" , you probably aren't !
Failure may not be an OPTION, but it is ALWAYS a POSSIBILITY.

Got a ‘75 Xacto catalog coming. We have only two others from the 70s, the ‘71 catalog I got sometime last year and the ‘78.

I’d really like to get the ‘72 thru ‘74 catalogs, as I think there were a fair number of changes then with how some of the knife sets were done (vinyl blade holders to magnetic strips, etc), and redesign of the balsa stripper and the plane. Also, change of the metal #8 basic knife to the orange plastic 8R knife. But, I do not know the exact dates of ANY of those changes other than basically in 72-74 or so. Also, I think Xacto sold out to CBS in that time frame (before in turn being sold by CBS to Hunt Manufacturing in 1981).

Anyway, we’ll at least add the ‘75 soon. Started scanning on the ‘84 the other day; the 84-86 catalogs arrived in the mail late last week. Those three catalogs are longer than some of the other catalogs…like 48 pages or so each.

Earl

__________________
Earl L. Cagle, Jr.
NAR# 29523
TRA# 962
SAM# 73
Owner/Producer
Point 39 Productions

Rocket-Brained Since 1970

Looking forward to seeing them !

__________________
When in doubt, WHACK the GAS and DITCH the brake !!!

Yes, there is such a thing as NORMAL, if you have to ask what is "NORMAL" , you probably aren't !
Failure may not be an OPTION, but it is ALWAYS a POSSIBILITY.

Earl

My research finds that the Company remained under private ownership until* 1971 when it was purchased by CBS, Inc. and operated as that company’s subsidiary corporation.* In 1981 Hunt Manufacturing Company purchased X-Acto from CBS, Inc and dissolved it as a corporate entity.* X-Acto remained a brand of* by the Hunt company until 2003 when the Hunt company was merged with Elmer’s Products, Inc. It has since remained* a subsidiary of the Elmer’s company ever since.

Thanks for the date info. I knew CBS had bought Xacto sometime or the other in the early 70s, but did not have the exact year, nor the exact year when Hunt sold them off to Elmer.

I was noticing the addresses on the 84, 85, and 86 catalogs I’m currently scanning. Both the 84 and 85 catalog show the Van Dam street address in Long Island City, New York. The 86 catalog though shows the Statesville, NC address; the address associated with Hunt Manufacturing. So, looks like they maintained their old Van Dam street address for a handful of years after the Hunt Mfg acquisition.

Earl

__________________
Earl L. Cagle, Jr.
NAR# 29523
TRA# 962
SAM# 73
Owner/Producer
Point 39 Productions

Rocket-Brained Since 1970

Here is a bit of a blurb on the Hunt purchase of Xacto from CBS in ‘81:

“As Hunt moved into the 1980s, the company continued its long streak of profitability, as demand for its staple items continued strong. In March 1981, Hunt paid $13.9 million for two properties previously owned by CBS Inc., the X-Acto company, which made hobby knives, and the House of Miniatures company, which sold dollhouse miniatures through the mails. Both were located in Long Island City, New York. At the time of this purchase, Hunt took on $15 million in debt, in order to increase its holding in the hobby and leisure products industry even further, since it believed that this market showed strong potential for growth.”

Taken from: https://www.referenceforbusiness.co...ng-Company.html

Earl

__________________
Earl L. Cagle, Jr.
NAR# 29523
TRA# 962
SAM# 73
Owner/Producer
Point 39 Productions

Rocket-Brained Since 1970

Thanks Earl. That’s good information. It looks like Hunt was in the process of integrating the dissolved Company assets into its operations. I see Hunt lists new headquarters and 3 production facilities. It looks like they may have changed distribution and production practices and introduced new and or physically modified products under the X-acto name.