Thursday, March 31, 2011

Set 382

For first time visitors I recommend this archive for some of my best posts.




2203. 6-1/2" long:
































2204. Approximately 48" long:





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2205. 8" long:

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2206. Around 24" tall, take a look at Neatorama for more guesses and a chance to win a T-shirt:





























2207. About 54" tall:


























2208. 19" long:

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Answers:



2203. A Stellarscope, a star locator that uses microfiche star maps:































2204. An axle gage, with a scale for indicating the deflection of the spindle, patent number 243,670:





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2205. A seeding device for grapefruit, patent number 1,454,311:

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2206. A truth window, an opening in a wall surface that was created to reveal the layers or components within the wall. In the example seen below it shows that the walls are actually made from straw bales. More examples of truth windows can be seen here. Straw is the hollow stems of wheat or other grains, it is typically used for bedding or mulch and is less nutritious than hay which is comprised of nutritional grasses like alfalfa and clover that are then cut, dried, and used as feed for farm animals.



























2207. A fanning mill that was used to clean seeds, it was hand cranked to get the fan up to a decent speed, then the seeds were dumped in the top, fed down across screen shaker tables, allowing the breeze to blow the chaff out, with the cleaned seeds falling out the bottom.



























2208. A pre-Civil War branding iron holder for use by cowboys, made by the Columbus Iron Works Co., Columbus, Georgia:

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Update:
Someone sent me the answer for the item below that was posted here a few months ago.



2127. A plumber's container for holding grease, rosin, and flour, all were necessary for the soldering process of assembling the joints of lead pipe. A similar grease and rosin box can be seen on this page.

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I own a lot of different tool books but the one that I use first as a reference is the Dictionary of American Hand Tools: A Pictorial Synopsis (Schiffer Book for Collectors)
It has over 4,500 images and is a great book for learning about about a wide variety of tools. This book gets my highest recommendation.

I've decided to become an Amazon affiliate to help pay for the costs of finding and purchasing items to post here. Please consider purchasing books through my links if you are interested in them, there is no additional cost for the buyer and a small percentage will be paid to my account.






To submit photos, send them to the address in my profile.















Last week's set is seen below, click here to view the entire post.








More discussion and comments on these photos can be found at the newsgroup rec.puzzles.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Set 381

For first time visitors I recommend this archive for some of my best posts.




2197. 11" tall:

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2198. Approximately 18" long as seen below, take a look at Neatorama for more guesses on this device and a chance to win a T-shirt:



The metal piece can slide up into the wooden part, numbers on it range from 15 to 25:
































2199.

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2200. 10" long:





























2201. The base is around 3" wide:

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These photos were sent in by Christopher Young.
























2202. 5-1/4" long:





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Answers:



2197. This is some kind of grain meter, haven't been able to verify exactly how it was used.

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2198. A measuring instrument for fitting a horse collar, a collar is a part of a harness that is designed to distribute the load around a horse's neck and shoulders when pulling a wagon or plow. Text on it reads "Buck Brand, Collars and Gloves."



































2199. A roller proof press, used to make a trial print in order to check the composition of type while it was in the galley, and before it was sent to press. The heavy iron cylinder was guided by rails to roll at type height across a bed of type. For more information see pages 47-49 here.

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2200. An Eagle 19th Hole Putting Cup, it automatically returns the ball, the knob on the top controls the distance that the ball travels when it is returned.





























2201. A hardware store display stand for a power drill:




These photos were sent in by Christopher Young.
























2202. A Traveler Alarm:





















To submit photos, send them to the address in my profile.















Last week's set is seen below, click here to view the entire post.








More discussion and comments on these photos can be found at the newsgroup rec.puzzles.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Set 380

For first time visitors I recommend this archive for some of my best posts.


The first three items in this set were sent in by visitors.

2191. 2-1/2" long:

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2192. 15" long:

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2193. 3" long:


























2194. 15" long:

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2195. 14" long x 9-1/2" high, take a look at Neatorama for more guesses on this device and a chance to win a T-shirt:

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2196. The red part is 2" long:

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Answers:


2191. An opener for beer or soft drink cans:

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2192. A keyhole saw, any shape can be sawed into the center of a piece of wood by first drilling a hole and then using this saw, patent number 1,240,173, a modern day keyhole saw can be seen here and the similar compass saw on this page.

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2193. A mariner's loadstone compass, it was hung by a string in use, loadstones were first used on ships as a compass back in the 12th century.


























2194. A wooden dealer shoe for holding cards in a casino:

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2195. A cattle stanchion for use when milking a cow or during a veterinary procedure, patent number 1,552,948:

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2196. A blank firing adaptor for an M16, it mounts onto the end of the barrel and when blanks are fired it forces pressure back down the gas tube which operates the bolt to eject and chamber another round. Text on it reads "Assy 8448767 19204".

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To submit photos, send them to the address in my profile.















Last week's set is seen below, click here to view the entire post.








More discussion and comments on these photos can be found at the newsgroup rec.puzzles.