Unidentified Bench Mount Hand Crank Tool

[OilyRascal]

I would like assistance with obtaining information on this bench mounted hand crank tool briefly discussed in another thread.  I wanted to bring it into it's own thread to get more in detail.

It was found at my grandparent's place in a pile of stuff that was mostly farming implements (outside on the ground).   The latest information I have is from my father:

I believe this is an old shake out machine. It had two vials with glass inserts on top that was used to shake out bs&w (bottom sediments & water) on crude oil samples

Like another pic of it, most of it looks like a hand crank grinder, but.

OK, think I have it, on the hand crank grinder item.  If you think of clamping it to a table or bench, the shaft points up, right?   there is a drive pin thru the shaft, so something can sit down over the taper, locking it on better to spin.  I have seen one similar recently in an antique shop.  Essentially it is the spinner for a centrifuge.  The missing part is a small frame work, cast, or made of steel rod, fits tightly over the shaft, locks on the pin, the part is about the size of a pie plate.  On the outer edge of the "pie plate",   are 3-4 or 6 cups, each the size of a baby bottle, when the crank is turned it starts spinning, like an amusement park ride.  In the cups you pour fresh cows milk.  Once it is spun for a little bit, the cream separates from the milk to the bottom of the cups.  Unhook the cups, pour out the milk, then scoop out the cream, to get the percentage of butterfat in the milk.  Why?  because whole milk is bought and paid for on the percentage of butterfat/cream.   The richer the better.  Bigger dairies all had one, plus the farmers wife could get cream for her cooking right away.   Why its in the shop?   May somebody was adapting it to check crude oil percentages?   Thats my take.

[anglesmith]

I would agree with John K, milk testing centritfuge is the likley answer. The other possiblity is a cream seperator, but they were usually larger floor mounted units and I have never seen a clamp on one over here, but then dairy equip.. is not my thing. One thing about all seperators I have seen is that they are VERY highly geared, the big ones take quite an effort to get them going! and the final speed is fast.
Graeme

[john k]

For oil or for milk, the spinner part would look similar to this.   Only in this case the gears and crank are on top, rather than on the bottom.   I recently saw one in an antique shop with glass bottles, gear case on the bottom, in cast iron, with many brass parts.  I don't think it needed clamping down, weighed over 50 lbs.  The disconnect on the handle, the push in part that allows free wheeling, would allow the spinning bottles to slowly come to a halt, so as to not disturb the separated fluids.

[Billman49]

I still have the page open for the CENCO catalogue - see http://www.scribd.com/doc/45793288/Central-Scientific-Company-CENCO-Catalog-C-218-1918 page 134 model 2524

[OilyRascal]

WOW - handed to us on a platter - Thanks, Bill.  You seriously just "happened" to have that catalog open?  I'm always trying to "sharpen my saw", so pardon if I'm curious how it got from "looks like a centrifuge" to "right here in this 1918 CENCO catalog".

It is a hand crank centrifuge.  Now the question for me is for what purpose did they have it there.  I'm upset my family was so cheap and had the low-end $11 model - but then again I don't want to think about how long a person would work for $11 in wages in 1918.

John - I never doubted your wisdom :)

[Billman49]

Hi

A query on the French Outils Anciens website about a CENCO inclined plane on ebay led me to the CENCO catalogue. Whilst browsing it I came across a wooden faced cast iron mallet, and posted a picture in response to a query ref a hide faced mallet here on this forum... I still had the window open, so searched 'centrifuge' and copied and posted the image I found onto this page.... Coincidence???

Ref what is it doing on a farm - I guess a multitude of possible uses - e.g. separating cream from milk to assess cream content.... Last time I used one was in the science lab at school some 50 years ago...

Farmers are also notorious for buying things at estate sales 'just in case' (like me) - nine times out of ten it just sits in the back of the shed gathering dust.... It would possibly make a good bobbin winder - maybe the farmer's wife spun her own wool...

Regards

Bob (aka Bill)

[OilyRascal]

Thank you for that explanation, Bob.   My apology for butchering your name.  I'm still learning given names and often default to the screenname when I'm not clear.