Balance of some sort?

[Rhoderman]

I can't seem to find much about this.  The Mechanical Mfg Co in Chicago made Railroad "bumping posts", whatever those are.

It seems like some sort of comparison scale to me, for weighing bags of something maybe.  The back has 5992 and a small T or I inside a circle.

Anybody know what this is?

Thanks,
Jim

[Aunt Phil]

Bumping posts are the structure at the end of a siding couplers bump to stop the car from rolling off the track.

What you have there appears to be a sack holder used to hold a burlap sack while it is shoveled full of grain or something similar.

[anglesmith]

Looks like a "Gambrel" hook. Used for holding up a killed animal for dressing down etc. The bush ones out here were usualy blacksmith or farm made from black iron. Maybe this one came out of a slaughter house?
Graeme

[Fins/413]

If they made railroad stuff maybe it for a RPO (railway post office),to hang mailbags, just a WAG.

[Branson]

Looks like a "Gambrel" hook. Used for holding up a killed animal for dressing down etc. The bush ones out here were usualy blacksmith or farm made from black iron. Maybe this one came out of a slaughter house?
Graeme

That's what it looks like to me, too, Graeme.  Mine's probably farm made, and the big difference is that the hooks are separate pieces. 

[rusty]

May be a good guess. In 1905 they are indexed in "The National provisioner" under various places like Bone crushers, ammonia cooling equiptment, packing house machinery,pumps, and...ewww...pigs foot splitters

They are also listed as agents for O P Hurfords Hog Hoist.

[Rhoderman]

Thanks everyone for your input.  A gambrel is what it seems to be after looking at a lot of pictures via google image search.  Still didn't see any that looked like this though.

It seems to be made of iron of some sort (magnetic) but it has very little rust on it.  It might just be very heavily galvanized.  The ring at the top is quite rusted and appears to have been welded based on the presence of slag from arc welding presumably.

I picked it up at a garage sale for a buck.  I might cut the ring off and use it for art since it won't lay flat against a wall with that ring on there.

I appreciate all the responses!

Jim