What are these?

[Bazza]

Any one got any idea of what these are?

[img]

[Tim Lamb]

In message [e-mail], Bazza [e-mail] writes

Don't know but on a vermin trap supplier site.....

[Bazza]

No, it's nothing to do with traps. It's just that I don't know any other way of showing an image.

That aside , there's nowt wrong with vermin traps. Is there?

[Andy Burns]

Well, since you ask ... the squirrel on your youtube video didn't exactly seem to have a quick painless death.

[tabbypurr]

Live catch boxes don't cause any suffering as long as they're not neglected. Makes it hard to justify such practices. So yes, there's plenty wrong with them.

[Tim Lamb]

Not on this farm..

[Another John]

[returning to the topic, after the first 5 responses] I've no idea, but they look to me like they'd be very useful for quickly securing a string used for levelling or drawing out a shape on the ground.

J.

[Dave W]

If you said how you came by them it might help the search.

[newshound]

This is starting to bother me. I've seen something similar before. My first thought was a bit like yours, they remind me a bit of the pegs that are used to hold the guide string in bricklaying. I have a somewhat similar forged device with features so that you can coil up a spare length of line on it. I think this was probably one of a pair used by gardeners, laying out vegetables. But these are obviously very specifically engineered to do a job. The last wooden one is a bit different, with the turned down section with a slot in it.

What about materials? Is the third one down perspex (meaning it has no great age), or glass? The second from the left in the bottom row looks as though it might be ivory.

[newshound]

Google images fails totally, even cutting out one item to post.

[Marland]

Pegs to hold nets over rabbit holes to catch them when they run out when you put a ferret into a Warren is a possibility.

GH

[Jon Fairbairn]

They look almost like tuning pegs for some unusual musical instrument. I?ve seen an instrument with pegs a bit like that, but I can?t remember what it was called.

[Chris Hogg]

I'd go with something for a musical instrument too. They're obviously carefully made, and from a range of materials (wood, steel, perspex? and possibly even ivory). They look like hammers for striking something: piano? I don't think so. The fact that there are two hammerheads on each item suggests a double strike action: forwards and then backwards. Different sizes for different notes being sounded? Perhaps ringing a bell to summon a maid or butler in a Victorian stately home? Or hand bell clappers? Can't explain why they're 'spiked' though. How big are they? They look roughly 8-12 ", but could be 2-3'.

You could try asking on a music group, or even take them into a shop selling musical instruments, preferably not one just specialising in electric guitars.

[dkol]

I wouldn't, essentially because of the very clear spike on the end opposite the knobs. There is no good reason for that with a musical instrument, but is if the thing is pushed into relatively soft dirt.

They're obviously

No reason for two heads, or the spike on the other end.

Or hand bell clappers? Can't explain why they're

Yeah, that's the main problem.

How big are they? They look roughly 8-12 ", but could

[dkol]

There also has to be a reason why the knobs are all tapered.