Boy Scout Shovel, Combination Tool, Pick - Hoe - Shovel, Folding, WFS World Famous Sports, Made in Japan, Patent 765564, Triangle with Stars Trademark

Quite some time ago I noticed an odd "folding" shovel that was often referred to as a Boy Scout Shovel, or Camp Shovel.  I say "folding", but it is actually a "combination shovel", as it doesn't actually fold.

I was immediately intrigued when I saw these, and was determined to track down an example in good condition.  Well, I succeeded!

This shovel is very unique, in that it appears to be a folding shovel, but the head actually pivots, and locks, at a 90 degree angle, to convert it from shovel, to a pick mattock (hoe and pick).  From what I can tell, it is a variation of the old Vaughan and Bushnell Company, combination shovel-pick-hoe tool that was marketed to Boy Scouts in 1936.  
Here is a link to a page that shows some details of the Vaughan and Bushnell tools:
https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/vaughan-official-boy-scout-shovel-1559094129 

Boys Life Magazine, May 1936

The old Vaughn Bushnell tools used a siding piece to lock the head in position, and the shovel I have, used a spring loaded, double button, mechanism - pivot, to lock the head in place.  But other than the locking method, they both appear to be basically the same design.

The shovel we are taking a look at today, has the brand mark "WFS" on the wood handle.  This is the logo for World Famous Sports.  

World Famous Sports was known for producing a complete line of Boy Scout "knock-offs", that were sold in hardware and sporting goods stores to Boy Scouts and campers.  They made everything from mess kits, to packs, axes, compasses, and shovels.  All were copies of the Official Boy Scout items, but substituted the WFS logo and name where the Boy Scouts logo often appeared.  On the rucksack copies they made, the WFS logo was designed to look like the Boy Scout logo at first glance!  All of these items were made and marketed from the late 1950's to 1970's.  As far as I can tell, they were also all made in Japan (pre-"Made In China" days).

I have been unable to find a single advertisement or catalog for the WFS items from this 1960's period, so I believe they were only wholesale suppliers to retail stores.  The packaging for their items was very generic, and each package had an item number and the WFS log, but not much else.  When you start looking, you will find all kinds of old Boy Scout items that are actually WFS and not Official Boy Scout items.

I am guessing that my WFS shovel was made in the 1960's or 1970's.  You can still find lots of WFS camping gear available for sale on line, and also through sporting goods stores in the USA like Big-5, Walmart, etc.  Starting in the 1980's (as far as I can tell), WFS started making knock-off copies of popular "modern" camping gear, and stopped making copies of Boy Scout gear.  The WFS gear sold today, all appears to be made in China.

The blade of this shovel is stamped with a makers trademark that is a "triangle made from 4 triangles, with three stars in 3 of the triangles".  I have been unable to figure out what company used that trademark.  It may be a manufacturer of tools, but not necessarily a retail company marking.
Under the logo, it says Pat. No. , 765564, Made In Japan.

I did some research into the patent number and discovered that it is not from Japan or the United States.  Both of those patent numbers are for items that are not this shovel!  So, it may be that the patent number is not an actual patent, but merely placed for marketing.  That is just a guess for now.  The US patent number that matches also would have been issued between 1904 and 1905, obviously out of range for this shovel as well.  It is possible that because the design was so close to the Vaughan and Bushnell shovel, they decided to give it a "fake patent number" to hopefully make is seem more "legitimate".  Again, just speculation.

UPDATE 7-11-20:  I did a database search of all registered, worldwide patent numbers on record (over 120 million!), and discovered that the patent number on these shovels does not match any patent for a shovel, or a locking mechanism.  It seems that the patent number is just for show.  There are a number of matching patents with the same number, from various countries, but none match anything close to a shovel or locking mechanism.

There is one thing that can not be disputed though, this shovel-hoe-pick tool is very well made!  It is very unique as well!  The pivot-lock assembly is made of heavy steel and is fitted quite well.  The head locks tight in both positions.  The locking buttons have very strong springs and lock very positively.  All in all, the locking assembly is very well made.

The shovel-pick head is also very well made.  It is stamped out of heavy gauge steel and looks like it would stand up to heavy use.

The handle is solid, firmly attached, and well made out of quality wood. 

Aside from being so odd in its appearance, this shovel is a higher quality "camp shovel".  I am definitely glad I picked one up!

The best way to tell about this shovel is to take a close look at it, so lets get on with the album.