Thread: guess the tool!

dunno what they are called but it looks very much like a tool used for lifting eh rail lines wile replacing the sleepers. A wooden handle would be placed threw the holes long enough so that there is no bending of the back.

Originally Posted by weisyboy

dunno what they are called but it looks very much like a tool used for lifting eh rail lines wile replacing the sleepers. A wooden handle would be placed threw the holes long enough so that there is no bending of the back.

too flimsy for that I reckon. A little rudder?

size might not be clear from the photos, but it's too flimsy for anything too heavy...
the pole comes in from below the hook, not above, note the flange on the eye.


Cheers
Michael

my father just saw the pic and reckons they had one similar that was sharpened and would whack it into the ends of sleepers to lift them these were more pointy but it could have been worn down?

how big is it?

it dosent look to flimsy to me

those dog holes are 19mm. Hasn't been worn down. too flimsy to lift rails. the pole comes through the small eye first so it is not used for leverage.

Cheers
Michael

I am taking a stab in the dark here but would it be used by a train station master and he would have a message bag hanging from the hook and when a train went passed the engineer or train driver would be able grab it from the hook. (I hope i explained it clearly enough)

Originally Posted by WoodJunky

I am taking a stab in the dark here but would it be used by a train station master and he would have a message bag hanging from the hook and when a train went passed the engineer or train driver would be able grab it from the hook. (I hope i explained it clearly enough)

Sounds plausible. OH&S might have trouble with it these days.

Originally Posted by WoodJunky

I am taking a stab in the dark here but would it be used by a train station master and he would have a message bag hanging from the hook and when a train went passed the engineer or train driver would be able grab it from the hook. (I hope i explained it clearly enough)

Yes, very plausible. I just remember the days of the stationmaster passing keys with hoops of cane to the driver.

Cheers
Michael

It's a single fledged noodle wobbler.

Originally Posted by Eli

It's a single fledged noodle wobbler.

Maybe!

Time for another photo to clarify things a bit. All the steel is <= 4mm gauge.

Cheers
Michael

Obviously a "holder-upper" of some sort.

i know what it is ,it somthing to put somthing on so it wont get lost.lloyd.

Originally Posted by tea lady

Obviously a "holder-upper" of some sort.

I had thought of using to lift a bucket of tools onto the roof. Yep, I agree with you TL, a holder-upper, or a lifter-upper, but the original purpose eludes me.
I had also thought of use in the corner store where things might have been kept on hooks up out of the way. 1001 uses, a really general purpose tool.

Cheers
Michael

Originally Posted by mic-d

Funny what you dig up looking for something else
Sorry to say I actually don't know the original purpose of this tool so if no-one else knows don't expect an answer from me..
This tools was at home for as long as I can remember. May have come from my stepfathers side who was a dairy farmer and general carrier or from my dad's side who was a fettler on the railways, or none of those.
All I'll say is it's obvious the hook goes on the end of a pole...

have a go...
Cheers
Michael

My guess is that it would have been used to hoist mail bags up on a pole for collection by a passing train. It looks too fragile to lift heavy stuff, and the fact that it has no point and is gently curved makes me think that it would have been gentle on a leather-handled mailbag. Then again, it could be something that the grim reaper left behind....