What is it? Set 293

[Rob H.]

I might have to work late tomorrow so the answer page could be a little later than usual:

[Y?]

1670 An elevator controll box. 1672 A "step on it" type lawn edger. 1673 A measuring tape, the movement is for measuring "inside" or "outside" dimensions without error from the thickness of the hook.

Y.

[RicodJour]

1673. End tab on a tape measure. The movement is intended to allow for the tab thickness in the measurements.

Tough set this week!

R

[Steve W.]

1669 - Looks like tongs used for riveting lap joints. The tongs hold the work while the rivets are installed in the notches. 1670 - OLD Elevator control. From the days when an operator rode with you.

1671 - Part of a swedge set?

1672 - Step on lawn edger. Foot goes in the stirrup and you step down to cut the edge.

1673 - Tape measure end tab. It can move to compensate for the thickness of the tab when measuring inside dimensions.

1674 - Old pipe hanger?

[Matthew Russotto]

how.

1670: Elevator control panel from back before automatic elevators. I imagine "safety" either controls a brake or disables the motor switch. I'm not sure what the "break glass" procedure was for; possibly there was an interlock to prevent opening the door between floors and that would disable it. 1671: For hitting something round. 1672: Perhaps for laying out some sort of roofing material 1673: It's a tape measure. The tongue should move exactly its own thickness, so you get accurate results regardless of which side of the tongue you use as a reference. 1674: Boot stand

[DoN. Nichols]

1669) I would like to see this from other angles to be sure of how it works, but it looks as though if you release the retaining ring from the handles at the end and allow the handles to separate, they lever the jaws closed, which might suggest that it is for picking up something heavy and likely hot. Not likely to be a pizza, but perhaps some thing in a forge. 1670) Been years since I last saw one of these. It is the controller used with manually operated elevators by the uniformed man placed there for the purpose. Push the handle to the left and the elevator goes down, to the right and it raises. the more distant from the vertical position the faster the elevator moves. 1671) Designed to form something over a rounded surface, perhaps over the horn of an anvil.

The back of the head of this is struck with a separate hammer to apply the needed force.

1672) At a guess, designed for transporting mortar to a brick joint and then smoothing it. 1673) That is the end of a loose-leaf binder, and the tab which is operated to open and close the rings.

From what is shown, I can't tell whether it is a two-ring, three ring or one of the more elaborate ones.

1674) No real clue. Perhaps to keep a branding iron from touching the ground and loosing heat?

Now to see what others have guessed.

Enjoy, DoN.

[Rob H.]

No correct answers yet on this one, it would be difficult to guess so I'll give a hint, a pair of these were used by loggers.

Rob

[Andrew Erickson]

1669 - Multiple valve spring compressor for an engine (or compressor for springs of a similar nature); I'm guessing perhaps the two outer slots are spaced so as to be used for both valves of a single cylinder of some particularly common engine (of the era), while the middle one could be used for any engine; or perhaps the end ones were to get around tight corners. 1670 - Perhaps a fire extinguisher activation handle, say for a gasoline station. 1671 - This may be, although it seems a bit unlikely to me, a large severing mallet, for severing ropes or cables (that is, wrapping them with a coil of smaller twine or whatever to protect them). It seems rather large and a bit misshapen for that use, though; and the hammer head part would not seem to serve much of a purpose. 1672 - A foot-powered sod cutter?

1673 - The tip of a measuring tape, the part that stays hooked over the far end of whatever you're measuring until you're nearly ready to read the measurement off of it, at which point it comes free and the tape rewinds back into its case. At least, that's how mine usually works. The small amount of play in the end is supposed to be twice the thickness of the vertical nib, and auto-corrects for its thickness for taking both inside and outside measurements.

1674 - Guard for something? Half of a heavy-duty pipe hanger? Wagon boarding step? Doohicky created during blacksmith training? (I suppose I should say it's a wire fence tightener, since about half of the things I fail to recognize seem to be wire fence tighteners!)

Now to read other answers...

[Steve R.]

1670 looks like the control panel for an old elevator. Later ones had an emergency stop switch.

Steve R.