The Lanfair's patent was awarded on August 13, 1895 under No. 544,411 and was assigned to Goodell Brothers Company.  It included a design for a hand drill and several important parts that constituted this drill.  It was one of the most important patents, secured by Goodell Brothers Co.  Some patented parts of the drill were easily adoptable to other products that the company planned to produce.  Herbert D. Lanfair described his invention as follows:

"My invention is an improvement in drills chiefly for use of woodworking mechanics.  It has for its object to provide a drill mechanism which will easy to operate and multiply the revolutions of the drill-bit with reference to those of the crank.

It consists essentially, first, of an improved chuck for the drill wherein the drill-holding jaws are separated by springs and held in place by housing interiorly screw-threaded and adapted to engage a hollow screw-threaded spindle.  It consists, secondly, of an improved drilling holder or handle for the drill wherein a screw-bolt running through said holder centrally connects with a disk-plate at one end and the frame of the drill at the opposite end, the purpose of said construction being to strengthen the said handle and thus improve its usefulness."

The importance of this patent was long lasting for the future of the company.  The chuck patented here was produced for over five decades by Goodell-Pratt Co. and later by Millers Falls Co. and for many more years after that by many chuck makers in this and other countries. 

Another design, a friction plate or gear guide, used to control pressure on a main gear against a pinion, was used on many hand drills in Goodell-Pratt's line and continued by Millers Falls Co. after 1931.  Other improvements were used on dozens of drills, made by both, Goodell-Pratt and Millers Falls Co.

Interestingly, in the Hammacher, Schlemmer & Co. catalog, the Goodell's tools were placed next to Millers Falls Co. tools, but all the Goodell's tools have a heading - "Goodell's".  Millers Falls tools don't have any designation for the company and were simply marked as "Hand Drill", "Breast Drill", etc.  Apparently, Mr. Pratt had strong and convincing arguments for Hammacher, Schlemmer & Co.

Another important tool shown in the same catalog is the  Breast Drill No. 6 and its variation, No. 7.  It was an important publicity for the Goodells, since it showed a 2-speed drill with their own speed-changer design. 

At the time it was a new design for breast drills.  Up to this point, change of speed in drills was done by removing the main gear wheel and placing it in the opposite socket that provided engagement for the second teeth layout on the gear-wheel.

This new design was authored by both Goodell brothers.  Just like in the past, they joined their talents to do the work for the company. 

The patent was awarded on March 31, 1896, received  No. 557,328 and was assigned to Goodell Brothers Company.  It was another breakthrough patent for Goodell Brothers Company and later for Goodell-Pratt Company. 

The authors describe their invention as an improvement that...

"...consists in the main of metallic frame, and adjustable breast-piece on one end of said frame, a chuck for a bit on the opposite end of same and between said extremes, a system of gear-wheels shiftable by means of a clutch to increase or reduce the motion of the drill with reference to the motion of the driving-crank and certain circular racks which engage the said gear-wheels, all of which will be hereinafter fully described and shown."

The concept of a two speed drill wasn't new, but the use of a clutch and shifter to manipulate speed change was a different and new approach.  The implementation of this patent served the Goodell Brothers well in the future development.

One of the tools incorporating the elements of this patent was a Hand Drill No. 5-1/2 - one of the most popular drills of the first half of the 20th century.  The Metal Worker, a weekly journal, published one of the first reviews of the drill in October 31, 1896:

"Goodell Hand Drill No. 5-1/2.

"Goodell Brothers Co., Greenfield Mass., are offering their No. 5-1/2 hand drill, herewith shown. The frame is of malleable iron, japanned; the gears are all cut teeth and the handle is of polished hardwood with a screw cap.

The chuck is three-jawed with a capacity from 0 to 3/8 inch, and is provided with a nickel plated knurled nut.  A feature of the drill is the two-speed device, the speed being quickly changed by aid of the nut at F and S.

The slow speed, it is remarked, will be found particularly desirable on large work, a fact that bicycle repairers will appreciate.  No drills (bits) are furnished with the tool."

Interesting circumstances surrounded the release of this drill.  In 1895 Millers Falls Co. released their second version of a “new” hand drill No. 2. The announcement came on June 20, 1895 in the Chicago Journal of Commerce and Metal Industries:

“Millers Falls Company, 93 Reade Street, New York and Millers Falls, Mass., have made improvement in their No. 2 hand drill, as here shown.  Among the improvements is the addition of an extra handle, to be attached when it is desired to use the drill in the manner of breast drill. The handle is threaded on the end and is screwed into the frame on the side opposite the regular handle.

The pattern of the chuck has also been changed and is now arranged to carry three jaws instead of two, as heretofore. The advantage gained in holding and centering the points is emphasized by the company. Similar chucks are now used on their Nos. 1 and 5 hand drills.”

As I previously noted,  Herbert D. Lanfair, the Goodell brothers' nephew, was employed by Millers Falls Co. until 1895, when Henry E. Goodell and William M Pratt lured him to join Goodell Brothers Co.  Most likely he was the one, who provided Henry E. with reliable information on upcoming release of a new drill by Millers Falls Co. and it is feasible to assume that this information was one of the motivators for such a rapid development of new tools at Goodell Brothers Co.  The release of hand drill No. 5-1/2 was likely a competitive response to the Millers Falls Co.'s No. 2 drill release.

Today some of the No. 5-1/2 drills receive a facelift and return to the "close to original" functionality.  Although the drill in the photograph was made about fifteen years after the first drills of 1896, its basic construction is the same.