What is it? Set 317

[Rob H.]

The New Years Eve edition of 'What is it?' has been posted:

['lektric dan]

At an educated guess, 1813 is a hydraulic lifter - a part of the valve train in an engine.

[Bill]

1815: Appears to have a (pipe) collet in it. So my guess is that it might be used to raise or support pipe via the rope.

Bill

[Bill]

Oops, I meant couplet (pipe connector), not collet.

[Peter DiVergilio]

At an educated guess, 1813 is a hydraulic lifter - a part of the valve train in an engine. The piece sticking out of the lifter is upside down - the depression should face up.

[Roy Smith]

1813 -- This may be cheating, but I googled "HL 1846" and followed a few links. There's a photo at which kind of looks like this, so I'm going to guess it's a hydraulic cam lifter. Here's a better picture of a similar item: -- I was going to guess a blank for milling custom switchplates, but it's too short.

[Ed Huntress]

1813 - Hydraulic lifter from an older (or older-design) engine.

[Jesse]

1813: Hydraulic lifter

1815: some sort of tie up for an animal

1816: Gambrel Used to spread open the cavity of a slaughterd pig, Also used to hang them by.

[Jim Stewart]

[Rob H.]

Thanks to everyone who provided this answer, looks like it is correct.

Rob

[Cecil]

1814 indicates gallons of gasoline delivered from an old-fashioned pump. There's a decent picture at in the picture titled "Farm gasoline pumps and cans". It's in the tallest pump, inside the glass at the top.

Back in the bad old days, people wanted to *see* their gasoline measured out. The station operator would pump gasoline up into the glass and then drain it into the container or car or whatever.

[Andrew Erickson]

1813 - Possibly a (deactivated) fuze for some munition 1814 - Dipstick for a tank of wonder bubble fluid? Mail or key holder for a modest apartment building? 1815 - Doohicky that's part of a guy wire system for e.g. telephone poles--possibly to allow two lines extending to two parts of the pole to be attached to one single stake? If so, it was presumably intended to be used with metal cable rather than rope as shown. 1816 - Possibly a temporary runner that could be strapped to a large heavy thing (like a log) prior to dragging it around. It also looks somewhat like a window prop, to hold old (non-counterweighted) double-hung windows open, but the small range of adjustment and long overall length make that seem unlikely. 1817 - Some sort of garment hanger or holder or former, perhaps -- maybe for keeping a hat in proper shape during storage or transport. 1818 - Paperweight? (My first thought was an electrical box coverplate, but there are no visible holes for the mounting screws.)

[Steve W.]

1813 - Hydraulic valve lifter. Looks to be from a small block. Top photo shows it assembled incorrectly though. The push rod seat is upside down and the inner piston retainer clip is missing. 1814 - Something similar is used at the local dam to keep track of the opening of the gate. 1815 - Well it's a mix of parts. The large iron part looks like a cable choker clamp used in logging. The piece in the middle looks like a pipe nipple. The original part would be a slightly tapered swagged end on the cable. 1816 - Looks like the item I use when butchering animals. Used to hold the hindquarters apart by cutting slits for it to go through between the tendons. 1817 - If it was set up just a bit different I would say it was a marching music holder. 1818 - Looks like a decorative cover.

[Lee Michaels]

used to make chokers for logging. These were put around logs to drag them to where they would be loaded onto trucks.

But it is hooked up to a rope with some strange thing attached to the end of the rope. Which makes sense. You would not be able to attach the original end peice onto a fiber rope that was designed to go onto cable (wire rope).

Wild guess, a home made rope to move cattle. They have big enough neck that the metal part probably wouldn't hurt them.

[DoN. Nichols]

Anyway -- posting from rec.crafts.metalworking as always:

1813) This looks like a hydraulic valve lifter to me. Not sure what model of automobile engine it belongs in, but that is what I believe it to be. 1814) Now this is an interesting thing. It almost looks like a pendulum with rests for weights at various points along its length. Not sure why, however, other than to get a wide range of possible times. 1815) Looks like part of something designed for testing the breaking stress of rope or line. More details about the shiny metal piece might help. And the suggestion is that the darker part is not metal? It looks like forged steel to me. 1816) Something to spread a load out over two ropes for balanced pulling? 1817) Looks as though it clamps something (a bag perhaps) between the spring-loaded wood piece and the metal rod, and it hangs over something of fairly large diameter -- perhaps a beam in a barn, or a tree limb. Not sure what the "something" might be though. 1818) My guess for this is that it is a wall mounted light switch, based on the size and the beveled edges. I would guess that this is an electronic sensor -- you tap it once to turn it on, and tap it again to turn it off.

I wonder whether it is available in all ranks and suits? If so, then it might be used to actually input playing a game.

Now to see what others have suggested.

Enjoy, DoN.

[Bill McKee]

1813 is a hydrulic valve lifter from an automotive engine. Or a truck engine. 1818 looks like either a tile or trivet.

[Rob H.]

Nope, neither one of those.

Rob

[Rob H.]

Looks like I didn't word that very well, I changed it to read "The large metal part is about 5" long".

Rob

[Rob H.]

Also used to hang them by.

This is correct.

Thought I would try something different and just put the answers at the bottom of the original post, also, after the last answer is a photo of ten previously posted items for you to test your memory::

[Lee Michaels]

"Rob H." wrote

rope. It must been an old application, like horse or oxen logging.

I made these over forty years ago. We used molten zinc to hold the buttons on the end of the cable. A well made choker broke before the button came off. I understand they are swaged on the cable now.

Any idea how the button was connected to the rope? This is definitely the weak point. Like I said, maybe for horse drawn logs. Hook up any kind of machinery to it, it will break or the button will come off.

By the way, growing up in logging community, I am very familiar with chokers. It was the bottom rung of the ladder in logging, the choker setter. It was also the leading cause of death and amputations in logging at that time.