In a recent thread, new forum member drGeek wrote: “Your documentation has helped my restoration greatly, as well as let me feel like I'm in the 1950's. If only the prices were the same!”
http://www.shopsmith.com/ss_forum/viewt ... 67#p246467
That got me thinking about something I was considering writing in a different context somewhere else totally unrelated to Shopsmith. I decided to put the things I had been thinking in a Shopsmith Context first.
drGeek has a 10ER, so to make things relevant to this analysis, I had to step up to a Mark 5 era machine to compare apples to apples and stay on the Mark, or Mark V in this case.
Most any of us can see the quality, craftsmanship, enduring design engineering and value through the years in Shopsmith branded equipment whatever vintage, regardless of the company or ownership through those years who owned the rights to manufacture it at the time.
While the 10E born in late 1947 and ending in the upgraded 10ER made into 1953 were the beginnings of all things Shopsmith, 1953 saw the introduction of the Mark 5 with ‘A’ series Sand Cast headstocks, replaced in 1954 with the “B” series which are stunningly similar to those made in 2018.
1950’s it was, and in 1954 the Mark 5 sold everywhere for $269.50
Under FLSA, the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 established the minimum wage at $0.25/hr. It increased to $0.30 in 1939, $0.40 in 1945 (two years before Magna was founded in 1947)
In 1950 it went to $0.75/hr. where it remained until March 1, 1956 when it went to $1.00
So, in 1954, using the published price of $269.50 it would be interesting to compare it to the established minimum wage today in California where it was made in 1954. Today in California, the rate is $10.50/hr. or 14 times what it was in 1954. (Nationally $7.25 or 9.67 times) Washington and Massachusetts are $11.50, Oregon $10.75, and Maine, Maryland, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, are all above $10 and 40 localities have adopted minimum wages above their state minimum wage so California rate is not that far out.
For reference the 10ER was 199.50 in 1953.
If we multiply the $269.50 for a Mark 5 by 14 we get $3,773.00 for a 1954 Gilmer Based, 3/4 HP, Mark 5 with a small table, an extension table, a rip fence and accessories like the miter safety grip, upper and lower saw guards were extra or not even available yet.
Let’s contrast that to 2018. One can buy from Shopsmith direct, a Mark V 520, with Larger Work Table, the Pro Fence Table System more rigid extruded aluminum work table and extension table rails with quick locking knobs; and a heavy-duty rip fence, featuring dual fast-acting locking levers and a T-Slot in each face, allowing the use of standard Shopsmith feather boards as hold-downs, the Safety Miter Grip, upper and lower saw guards, and other standard accessories not present with the 1954 Mark 5.
555977 Shopsmith Mark V Model 520 with Pro Fence Table System is $3,829.00
$3,829.00 less the $3,773.00 for a FLSA adjusted 1954 Mark 5 without all the features the, 1 1/8 HP motor, the larger table, etc., etc., means the 520 costs $56.00 more in the context of 1954 dollars.
Yes you can still get a 510 today
555924 Shopsmith Mark V Model 510 with Standard Fence and Table System $3,559.00
$3,559.00 less the $3,773.00 for a FLSA adjusted 1954 Mark 5 without all the features the, 1 1/8 HP motor, the larger table but not Pro Fence Table System, etc., etc., means the 510 costs $214 less in the context of 1954 dollars.
Yes let’s take a peek at the Power Pro and regression price it while we are contextualizing value ….
556187 Shopsmith Mark 7 with PowerPro and Pro-Fence Table System $4,279.00
$4,279.00 / 14 to cost adjust what that unit would have cost in 1954 had anything of this technical nature been envisioned, means a 1954 Mark 7 with PowerPro headstock would have been $305.64 in 1954 dollars had it existed.
So my conclusion is, the good old days may not have been that much better fiscally compared to today in the FLSA income context.
I know that it is not a fully equitable comparison, but it speaks volumes to the quality of engineering, manufacturing, usable life and functionality of equipment designed and built some 64 years ago, that can be restored, even upgraded to today’s standards, and within the world of replacement parts and functional usage, it stands almost alone in value.
What’s more, is that some used and functioning 1954 manufactured units can be bought today in 2018 dollars for the same numerical cost they were in 1954. That is a remarkable testament to quality.
That is the Shopsmith Story, and why so many of us are engaged in preserving, restoring, using and documenting them, and their history.
And you didn’t think you could afford a new one! If they could in 1954 dollars (and they were sold in the millions) you can afford one today if it’s your passion.
Everett L. Davis - 2018
- 1954 Shopsmith Brochure.png (695.88 KiB) Viewed 16333 times
