What Is It? for 1/16/2014

And to cut the protruding nails from the hooves after driving them in.

I have a friend who was a farrier at the Grand Canyon for a season. He shod the mules.

Just a standard pair of pincers.

Ancient circumcision tool, Rev A.

don't they use that for horse trimming....... I thought it would be some type of forging pliers or tongs,

I asked a Black Smith about it........

he said he didn't know what I was talking about.

^{Reference: I believe "Black Smith" was from the movie 'Blazin Saddles"}

Vintage carpenters and shoe makers pincers...

It's used to make steers from bulls.

An emasculator..... No, because I know for a fact that she's at home right now, wondering where I am because SUPPERS GETTING COLD.

An ancient Dentist's Tool!

Re usbport 10.

I noticed the wooden floorboards straight away.

On reading your post, I went back, and yes, there's a pair of pincers on it.

We used a tool like that when working with barbed wire when fixing fences. One end could pull out staples, and the long side could be used to twist a loop in the wire.

Actually they are carpenters pliers/pincers used for pulling tacks etc.

The peculiar ends on the handles are a clue...

Carpenters Pincers

My dad had a pair.

You can still buy them new for about $7:-

One handle end is clearly for removing nails. But I'm not sure what the bulbous end is for.

Here's a good reference if you can get past the OCR (Optical Character Recognition) errors.

http://autonopedia.org/crafts-and-technology/tools/tools-and-how-to-use-them/pincers-and-pliers/

It says (about 2/3 of the way down) the use of the ball is indeterminate: possibly for swaging pipes. Hopefully Ormondotvos can enlighten us.

Tools could be classified according to different professionals who use them like general use, carpenter,blacksmith,electrician,goldsmith,plumber,AC/Ref mechanic,engine mechanic etc.This appears to be used by Black smiths.

Plier or pincher it's a device for pulling nails no matter the profession. Also called an end nipper is some professions.

Hemorrhoid remover with ancillary stimulation features.

Yes Tornado.

This could be very painful operation - especially if you catch your fingers in the jaws

Pliers for holding red hot rivets (directly from the flame) to be inserted into a riveted tank or girder.

I can't really see the handles clearly,but it could be a farrier tool,used to remove nails in horse shoes.

Does this description sound apt?

Object description

Farriers pincers, steel, with rounded jaws, one handle has a clawed end and the other has a knob end. These particular pincers would have been used to remove old horse shoes before cleaning the hoof for reshoeing. The pincers were made in Sheffield, United Kingdom, and used by Carl Wilhelm Heinrich Konemann who was a blacksmith and farrier in Fairfield in 1904. Dimensions: 215mm x 50mm. Condition: Used, with no signs of deterioration.

From this page

Sorry, not enough detail. We need the name and address of the man that manufactured them and if possible, his dog's name.

Ah yes,I remember Carl as if were yesterday.I remember when he was born,at the house down the way,delivered by the village midwife,Hilda.(Blue eyes,blonde hair, 5'1",110 lbs). He apprenticed under me till he was 14 years old, then bought his own tools from an estate sale,and opened his own shop.

The tools were made by the village blacksmith,nick named Smitty,(6ft1,250 lbs.brown eyes,bald, full beard)) but real name was Clancy,an immigrant from Ireland.

He hand forged all of his own tools,as well as many tools for others.He had a dog named Rolf,a mixed mongrel of a mutt,had one blue eye, and one brown eye, ugly as a mud fence after a heavy rain, but had a real good disposition.Never bit anyone that I know of, but it is rumored that he took a plug out of a stranger that was prowling around the shop at night.If you need more details let me know...

That's more like it. I think I knew that dog.

According to my research these are vintage carpenters and shoe makers pincers.

I bought a pair (not received yet) from Amazon for £2.18 (about $3.50) including Post and Packing. Given that I have probably used several hours removing floorboard nails with a screw driver and claw hammer over the past couple of years, this seems like a reasonable investment. I appreciate that there are better tools designed specifically for pulling nails, but, these will be more versatile.

A friend tells me that the ball is laid on top of nail heads and hit with a hammer to bury the heads under the surface. Seems reasonable.

Originally a 'pincer' or 'pincher' depending on what part of the world you are from.

Used in the early 1900's for withdrawing and cutting all types of wire nails (maybe horseshoe nails as well?) I remember my grandfather using his as a general tool as well ie wire-stripper etc..Nowadays commonly used to trim ceramic/ porcelain tiles (I own two)

We called them pinchers probably because we sometimes pinched our fingers with them!

A reasonable assumption unless the tool dates back to the Spanish Inquisition where it may have been called a 'truth finder'

Pincers for nail pulling, my dad had some in his kit and so did I until I downsized to move to the old folks home. I started to look for new ones but they don't have the shaped ends to the levers. I did find this 15/16th century model in Wiki:

49'ers style dental tool ?

Thanks for all of your guesses! Based on where these were found (cellar of an old home, mixed in with other assorted tools) they are probably carpenters' pincers/pinchers for removing nails. We've been using them for that purpose!

The farrier's tool is a good guess, but these are much too small for that application. I apologize for not showing the scale.

Maybe they are just for miniature ponies?

While that's possible, it's unlikely. I showed them to a farrier. Most farriers who trim the occasional mini just use regular-sized tools.

Sorry. I was being tongue-in-cheek. Well, I was trying. :-)

I got you. Just trying to be thorough.

We've been using them for that purpose

Now that would make for an interesting chat - things that have been 're-purposed' as tools. Inverted commas because the phrase is not familiar to most Brit ears. For instance, I carry some emery boards (those things used for filinfg nails) in my toolbox. They're great for getting in awkward places. A toothbrush can be surprisingly helpful. I'll not go on here because it's potential fun - 'what strange stuff do you have in your everyday toolkit and why ?.

I can't knock the post because I've not offered anything better, but pincer things is a bit lame. Perhaps you can liven up this forum by way of announcement. People seem to like the 'what is it' type posts. An announcement might get some more stuff for us all to puzzle over. Just a thought.

'what strange stuff do you have in your everyday toolkit and why ?.

Ordinary nail clippers which fit in my key wallet are excellent wire cutters/strippers.

Can't GA that here, but I like it. Nice one.

.

I'll see how it goes and try make some more input.

A pretty cool one I heard (possibly on CR4) was for dealing with a mangled screw-head; put an elastic band over the offending part and it gives more grip.

This is a modern version, still available, and always in my tool box. As for the reassigned tool list, I always carry a nail clipper just for pilling splinters out of my fingers.

I've just had a most disturbing thought - what bits of 'toolkit' have women repurposed to their handbags ? Nothing sexist in this because I'm hoping that more than a few people reading are female. I'm just being an ass because of the ongoing problem of 'where do all my cigarette lighters go?'. An eternel question that applies to us all.

If it's pliars as eyebrow pluckers, best keep quiet. Sorry all, I'm very much tongue in cheek, hoping that some of the female members can think of stuff to add. The briliance of CR4 is that they may already have done so.

My jesting aside (sorry if anyone doesn't get the gags), it's funny to do a re-think on what we carry in our toolkit The discussion is far from dead, but it's interesting to consider what we carry around. Half of my stuff is never used. The 'gem' is the tool that takes little space but can crack the emergency problem.

Nothing in my bag, really, but I keep some things in my car. They include a large screw driver, a tape measure, a small air compressor, a dog leash (I once caught a loose horse along the side of the road), a very small level, and a lot of horseback riding equipment.

So you have car tools in the saddle bags ?

Interesting!

I carry a small tape measure in my pocket, together with a small screwdriver, a key-fob torch and pencil (with a rubber cap)... and I use them all fairly regularly.

This is fascinating. Apart from having a slight giggle at the image of you snagging a horse with a dog leash, why the level ? I keep one of those small laser levels in my toolkit, but I can't remember when I last used it (truth be told, I only got the thing to see how long the cats would chase a red dot around the floor).

I just like things to be level. Never know when I'm going to need it! I have a level app on my phone, too...

You maybe should have kept quit - people in the office will delight in sneaking a wad of paper under the legs on one side of your desk. I would .