A shutter dog, also called a tieback or holdback, is rotated in front of an open shutter to hold it open. This page shows what to read off an old John Wright Company shutter dog - style, size, material and mount - so you can compare it with John Wright's Hardware Catalog (Catalog Version 19).
John Wright's Shutter Hardware Installation Details guide (also on catalog pages 17-20) explains that a dog has a through-hole and is mounted so that it can be rotated out of the way of the shutter; gravity keeps the weighted dog from rotating freely.
1. Style name and size
The table is a selection from catalog pages 12, 13 and 16. Sizes are in inches, as printed.
| Style | Item | Size |
|---|---|---|
| Grape | 088200 post, 088250 lag | 6.25 |
| Shell | 088201 post, 088251 lag | 5.25 |
| Flower | 088202 post, 088252 lag | 4.25 post, 4.5 lag |
| Rat-Tail | 088203 post, 088253 lag | 6.25 |
| Scroll | 088204 post, 088254PC lag | 6.75 |
| Scroll, large | 088256 lag | 8 |
| Scroll stippled, large | 088255 | 8 |
| Scroll, beveled | 088257 lag | 6.75 |
| English Rat Tail | 088265 lag | 6 |
| Charleston | 088266 lag | 7 |
| Georgetown | 088267 large, 088268 small | 6.25, 5.50 |
| Faux | 088270, 088271 | 6.75 |
Not in the catalog but on John Wright's website: JP Style #30-L Grape, #32-L Shell, #35-L Flower and #38-L Star, and Beacon Hill, all with lag. John Wright calls the #32-L an "Exact replica of James Peters #32-L Shell with Lag" and gives the Beacon Hill lag bolt as 4-1/4 inches.
Product documents write 88-254PC where the catalog writes 088254PC.
2. Material
- Cast iron: the Colonial Romantic dogs, the scroll dogs 088204, 088254PC, 088255, 088256 and 088257, and the faux dogs (catalog).
- Hand forged: 088265-088268. John Wright's English Rat Tail page says "hand forged from steel".
- On John Wright's website: 088254E is "Made of thick mild steel", 088254ES is 304 stainless steel and 088254AL is cast aluminum.
The 88-439 magnetic holder cut sheet says it is "designed to work with iron or steel dogs only" and will not work with aluminum or stainless steel.
3. Mount: lag, post or sill mount
The guide says "Shutter dogs are commonly mounted in one of three ways": a special lag screw with a washer and hairpin clip, where a lag shield "is required for masonry"; a round or square post mount ("Post mounts are designed for wood surfaces"); and a sill mount on a wood window sill - "some dogs (#88-265 through -268) can be mounted using a sill mount".
Lags
The 88-254PC scroll dog comes with 3/8 inch by 4.5 inch lag screws, washers and hairpin clips; its document says the lag "allows for adjustment range of up to 2 inches". For the English Rat Tail (088265), John Wright gives a 5/16 inch by 4 inch lag, slightly smaller than the lags with its cast iron dogs.
John Wright's Hardware for Shutter Dogs list has two separate lags: 088435 (stainless steel, 0.375 inch, 4.5 inches long) and 088448 (6 inches, for "Bi-fold or extra thick shutters"). John Wright says both work with its cast iron dogs but not with its forged dogs without modification. Neither that list nor our store lists a separate lag for the forged dogs. The 088225 Lag Shield Anchor is listed for 3/8 inch lag screws in brick and masonry.
Post mount
The catalog prints the 088436 Shutter Dog Post Mount as "Used to Mount a shutter dog instead of a lag screw", 2.5 inch diameter, 3 inches tall. John Wright's page says it is for cast dogs, hardware and screws included, and "Will not work with forged dogs without modification." It is the only post mount in that list. Neither the catalog nor John Wright's 088436 page says it is the post supplied with the "with Post" dogs.
Sill mount
The 088560 Sill Mount Set is hand forged, 18 inches long and sold in pairs (catalog). John Wright's page says it "Works well when the siding will not hold a lag screw", holds the dog 1-3/8 inches out from the sill and "Will not work without modification to the hole size for the cast iron shutter dogs." Dogs are not included.
A replacement matches only where John Wright prints the same mount and size, so compare these figures with your old dog. For installation, follow John Wright's instructions, such as the 88-254PC and 88-560 documents.
4. Pairs and the value pack
On catalog pages 12, 13 and 16 every shutter dog is printed "Sold in pairs." The 88-254PC and faux dog documents list a pair as one right-handed and one left-handed dog and say dogs "have a top and bottom".
The exception is the 088280R Shutter Dog Value Pack, "Sold as kit." Its document lists, for a pair of shutters, a right-handed and a left-handed dog (88-254 scroll dogs in the catalog), two lags, two washers, two hairpin clips, two masonry anchors, two stops, two magnets, two screws and a washer.
5. Magnetic holder, bullet catch hardware, hook and eye
The 088439 Magnetic Shutter Dog Holder Stop (sold in pairs) is used with a dog: the catalog says it prevents the dog from rotating and its magnet holds the dog against the shutter "to greatly reduce rattling in the wind".
Alternatives to shutter dogs named in the guide:
- Bullet catches (88-470, 88-475): a spring keeper on the shutter engages a bullet-shaped post screwed to a wood building surface. The product sheet gives a standoff (house to back of shutter) of about 1.5 inches for the small 88-470 and about 2 inches for the 88-475.
- Hook and eye: the hook is attached to the wood window sill and the eye to the inside of the shutter near the bottom (catalog sizes 4 to 16 inches, 088425-088428).
6. Faux shutter dogs
For 088270 (stippled) and 088271 (beveled smooth) the catalog prints "Dresses up the look of non-functional Shutters." John Wright's 088270 page says they "look like the real thing but are non-functional". A faux dog attaches to the bottom of the shutter with a screw.
John Wright shutter dogs at The Builders Supply
- 088254PC scroll with lag, 088204 scroll with post, 088250 grape with lag, 088265 English rat tail, 088270 faux, stippled
- 088435 lag bolt, 088436 post mount, 088560 sill mount set
- All John Wright products and gate, garage and exterior hardware
Not sure which dog or mount you have? Our customer support team is available Monday - Friday, 8 AM - 4 PM Central Time, at 1-888-800-7789 or [email protected].
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