Set 329

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1885. 7" long:






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1886. 8" tall:








































1887. This was sent in by a visitor:
























1888. An unidentified device that was submitted by a visitor who found it on the side of a road:



It's just less than 2" long:




























1889. Around 5-1/2" tall:






























1890. 72" long, take a look at Neatorama for more guesses on this tool and a chance to win a T-shirt:





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Answers:


1885. A mechanical speed indicator, the numbers indicated on the dials are used to calculate the RPM when the point is placed against a rotating shaft for a suitable number of seconds:

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1886. No verifiable answer yet for this device:
































1887. This is most likely either a tamper for sand, dirt, etc., or a ramrod for a cannon:
























1888. A valve used to adjust the velocity that paintballs come out of the gun.




























1889. This is the mechanism from inside of a collapsible top hat:





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1890. A hand operated ice plow, used for finishing out the groove made by a horse drawn ice plow. After the ice plow had made grooves in the ice, an ice saw was used to finish the cut.

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I posted this ice saw a few years ago, it's 5'-7" long:



In some parts of the country it's known as an ice knife.




















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.








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

Set 328

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



1879. Approximately 3-1/2" long:

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1880. 9-1/2" long, sent in by a visitor who is looking to identify this tool:

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1881. Around 11" tall:
























1882. 6-1/4" long, another unidentified item that was submitted by a visitor, it was found in a crop field in South Dakota, there appears to have been a canvas strap attached to it:




























1883. 36" tall:



























1884. About 5" long:

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Answers:


1879. These are golf tees, the ball is placed on the circle of wire:

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1880. Haven't been able to verify any of the suggestions for this tool:

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1881. A piercing fire hose nozzle, it could be used to pierce a wall, ceiling, airplane skin or other similar surface:
























1882. A hose and ladder strap hook, used to carry or hold a fire hose, it could be hooked onto a ladder to make climbing easier:




























1883. A chimney pot from England, c. 1850:



























1884. A 3H aircraft safety gun, this was used to apply temporary fasteners to sheet metal prior to riveting so that the metal wouldn't get out of alignment, similar to Cleco fasteners, scroll down at this link to see Cleco fasteners in use:

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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.








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

Set 327

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



1873. Approximately 3-1/2" long:

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1874. 9" long:

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1875. This device was sent in by a visitor who is looking to identify it:

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1876. About 11" long, take a look at Neatorama for more guesses on this one and a chance to win a T-shirt:

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1877. The idea here is to describe who would have used these items, the tool at the top is 11" long:

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1878. Around 30" diameter:

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Answers:

1873. A watchmaker's uprighting tool for setting up escapements in full plate watches, made by Hardinge Bros., Chicago, Illinois.

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1874. An Alaska Ice Chipper:

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1875. Someone sent me the answer for this one, it's a device that monitors the ticking of a watch so you can adjust it quickly, for use at a watch shop or factory. You put the watch on the holders and the electrical apparatus keeps time and determines whether the watch is ticking fast or slow. This way you don't have to take a day or week trying to adjust it.

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1876. An anti-theft automobile wheel lock, it was attached to one of the old spoke tires, patent number D57,729.

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1877. These are all safecracker's tools that were confiscated by the police in the early 1900s. According to this site:

For gunpowder (black powder) to be charged into a mechanism such as this would require that a hole be drilled through the door plate. This would have been done using either a belly brace or a ratchet drill.

This was not always necessary however as in the early days the keylocks were capacious enough to accept enough black powder, which, being detonated in such a confined space could remove the lock cap and bolt allowing the boltwork to be withdrawn.

The two tools at the top of the photo are for blowing black powder into the keyhole or drilled hole, the item with the lens is some type of light, not sure what the device at the bottom left is for, looks to be some kind of heater.


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1878. A Sound Dome by Brown Innovations, if you stand under it you can hear the audio but if you step a few feet away you will notice that the sound does not travel far, these are typically used in museums with video presentation or other displays.

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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.








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