I have looked over the thread about the Eames side chairs identification, but everyones main focus in that thread is on the beloved Zenith shell chairs, and there dates...but dont have other dates, to the other manufacturers. My question is: does anyone have an Idea of when Summits Plastic in Kalamazoo MI, started developing the Eames shell chairs. The fibers in the recent one I picked up today almost look close to a Zenith Shell...I thought it was at first. Anyone with Info on this, it will be greatly valued and appreciated if shared. (:
same query
I have the same question regarding Summit produced shells. I have only ever found one reference to Summit production beginning around 1972/1973 however there are plenty of shells advertised with the herman miller mark and summit 's' mark which are being flogged as 50's/60's productions. The shells I have are bright red, a dark blue and canary yellow.
Can't be certain...
I would agree with woody on the timeline, mid 60's to start. But that's in regard to the embossment we all associate with Summit. I've had/have chairs with the "Summit Prime" stamp dated as early as '58. And they do show all the characteristics of the early chairs... translucent, heavy fiber content and rounded edges as well as light epoxy on the lighter colored chairs.
and what about....
I have some chairs with:
Circle S and small triangles
No Circle S, just two LARGER triangles, but NO embossed HM logo of any kind.
These same chairs also have paper patent number labels.
Any specific dates or differences associated with either of these?
Thanks in advance for any info.
to clarify..
I meant to say..
Some of my chairs have circle S and small triangles along with HM embossed logo.
But other chairs have NO circle S, just larger triangles, with NO HM embossed markings whatsoever.
BOTH have paper "patent number" labels.
I know that having no embossed HM logo or letters indicates the chair is earlier, so maybe this helps narrow down the start dates on the summit embossed logos?
Interesting, just when you think you have it figured out, all the variables seem to overlap or contradict one another.
Circle S and small triangles
No Circle S, just large triangles
Embossed HM logo or not
Paper label or not
and OMG the MEDALLION.
Its all in a late 50s early 60s haze to me....
Any info is appreciated, thanks again.
Narrowing it down...
I just today received an armshell that i purchased on ebay that is date stamped 1959 and has no Herman Miller embossed logo or letters. This shell does have a medallion, and it also has the Summit Plastics larger double triangle embossed dead center between the shock mounts. Also has the paper "patent number" label.
So from this it seems pretty fair to say that Summit plastics produced arm shells as early as 1959. (AND, that the larger "double triangle only" embossed logo indicates earlier production than the circled "S" logo for Summit.
Also, the medallion was around as early as 1959 also.
I think the date stamp is real, but even if it were not, the absence of the raised HM logo and letters supports this 1959 date.
The shell arrived just in time to help solve this mystery!
(The chair is medium thickness plastic with small shock mounts. Grey, but on the blue-ish side of grey. Close to charcoal but not a match.)
Double Triangle
I just picked up this pair of DAX. The only other Eames shells I've acquired have been marked with HM logo and had silver legs and these are different animals.
From what I can deduct from reading here is that these are possibly early chairs (pre-1959) from the double triangle, and no other embossing.
I understand that X bases are the earliest chair legs for this model, but does anyone have anything to comment about the black legs?
Thanks, and hope the pix are helpful to all.
So what do we make of this article-blog from the official Herman Miller site?:
http://www.eamesoffice.com/blog/making-designs-better/
It seems to contradict some things said here - maybe it's just the difference in supplier-distributor vs. supplier-manufacturer? They say the double triangle refers to...
"Triangles are the logo for the Plastics Division of the General American Transportation Corporation, one of the first three makers of Eames shells."
And they have advertisements and documents to verify it. An example in a photo they show has the double triangle from GATC and also the circle Century Prime stamp. They do not mention Century as a manufacturer at all in the discussion.
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