Shutter Hinges Explained: Strap, New York Style, Acme Mortise, Clark's Tip and Bermuda

This page explains five shutter hinge types made by John Wright Company (strap; New York style; Acme, Lull & Porter; Clark's Tip; Bermuda), their pintles, and the offset and throw figures in item names, as John Wright's documents describe them. For door hinges, see door hinge types.

Offset and throw: John Wright's definitions

John Wright's Shutter Hardware Installation Details guide (reprinted as pages 17-20 of the Hardware Catalog) defines offset as "the distance between where the hinge mounts and where the pivoting action takes place" and throw as "the sum of the offsets of the hinge and the mounting hardware." Both the hinge and the pintle have offset; throw is normally twice the offset of the hinge and is measured with the hinge open.

Throw lets the shutter swing clear of a wall or trim that sticks out past the casing. The guide's method: "To find your minimum required throw, measure the distance from where the hinge will mount to the house to the outermost face of any trim or casing. Remember to add at least 1/2 an inch for a ventilation gap."

Strap hinges

The guide describes "a strap with a gudgeon (circular fitting) that mounts to the shutter and a pintle (pin fitting) that mounts to the house." The standard cast iron pintle is screwed to a wood surface; a lag pintle is optional. John Wright's pages for the 088625 12" strap hinge and the 088632 pintle give a 7/16 inch pin, 1-5/8 inch tall. Our titles carry the offset, as on John Wright's current pages: 1" (088638), 1.5" (088625), 2.5" (088627), minimal .375" (088628).

New York style (L-style) shutter hinges

New York style hinges "are similar in function to strap hinges but work as a right- and left-handed pair", the guide says, and come with different offsets: 088510 New York Style 1 (1.5"), 088512 Style 2 (2.25"), 088535 (.75") and the 088514 New Construction set. The 88-514 sheet says new construction hinges "feature minimal offset so that the closed shutter is further from the building" and gives a hinge offset "minimal at 0.375 inches", a 1.875 inch pintle offset (pintle 088527) and 2.25 inches of throw. The 088510 and 088514 sets have .375 inch pintle pins. For tall or heavy shutters, John Wright's 088510 page recommends a mid range hinge (88-513).

Acme, Lull & Porter mortise shutter hinges

Acme, Lull & Porter (ALP) hinges are "mortised into the edge of the shutter and window casing" (guide; John Wright's 2023 sheet, 88-372 to 378PCR). A once-patented design helps lock the hinge open; the shutter is lifted slightly to close and can be removed without tools. The pintle half mounts to the window with the pintle pointing up, and offset "is measured from the casing or shutter edge to the center of the pin."

The hinges come in left- and right-handed pairs marked "L" or "R"; the marks "refer to a frame of reference from inside the window" and are reversed when seen from outside. The 2023 sheet says the size "will depend on amount of throw that you need, the amount of wood trim that is available for mounting, and the size of the shutters." Sizes on the 2023 sheet, in inches:

John Wright's pages for the 088372PC (#3) and 088378PC (#00) say screws are not included; the catalog lists screw sets 088370 (#3 to #1) and 088371 (#0 and #00). The #3 page gives "up to 25 lbs" of shutter weight, calculated "using 2 hinges per shutter" for a shutter up to 24 inches wide and 60 inches high; the #00 page gives "up to 80 lbs", also with 2 hinges, for a shutter no more than 26 by 65 inches.

Clark's Tip surface hinges

The guide says Clark's Tip hinges "are nearly identical in operation to Acme, Lull & Porter hinges but are surface-mounted", commonly used when not enough wood is exposed for an edge-mount hinge. John Wright's 88-321/-323 sheet measures offset from the shutter face to the center of the pin, uses the same L and R marks, and lists 1.25 inches of throw for 88-321 and 3.25 inches for 88-323 (our 088321PC and 088323PC).

Bermuda hinges

Bermuda hinges are surface-mounted at the top of the shutter. They work in left- and right-handed pairs, but one John Wright hinge can serve either hand "by simply flipping the mounting base" (088520 page). A shutter stay, a long hook-and-eye assembly such as the 088429 24" stay, holds the shutter open at an angle "no greater than sixty degrees from the building", the guide recommends. The Bermuda hinge instructions note: "Bermuda hinges do not secure the shutters in the closed position."

Pintles, lag mounts and jamb pintles

Offsets and pin diameters as printed on each item's John Wright page, in inches:

• Strap hinge pintles: 088632 (1.5"); our titles also list 1", 1.875" and 2.5" versions.
• Lag pintle mounts: lags "can be installed directly in wood with a pilot hole or in brick and other masonry using readily-available 'lag shield' anchors" (guide). John Wright designed 088438 for strap hinges 88-625 to -627 and 088465 for New York style hinges; lag shield anchor: 088225.
• Jamb pintles (088467L, 088467R) "can be surface-mounted or mortised on wood side jambs of windows or surface mounted on a masonry opening" (88-467L/-467R sheet).
• The catalog describes 088528 as "for narrow brick molding" and 088529 as reversible.
• John Wright's New York pintle pages (for example 088518) call for adapter 88900 (our 088900) with strap hinges 88-625 to -628.

For mounting, mortising and anchoring, follow John Wright's guide and the instruction sheet for your item.

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