Gilchrist's Rotary Unknown Tool

[GaryD]

Any Ideas on what this thing is?  Guessing there may be parts missing.

[rusty]

Assuming it is Gilchrist of New Jersey, they made bar utensils, ice chippers, lemon squeezers, ice cream tools, and drink mixers. My first guess would be something along the lines of a drink mixer.......(There are numerous patents, some of which have style similarities to that thing, but i don't see anything that really matches it, ......)

[Papaw]

IF the bottom of the cup is open, could it be for reinserting wine corks?

[GaryD]

The top of the opening is about 3 1/2 inches diameter, the bottom is 2 1/2 inch--the black part.  Maybe some kind of bottle lid sealer or opener?

[Aunt Phil]

Has considerable similarity to a tin can lid sealer.

[Billman49]

Mechanism similar to a bar mounted corkscrew - my best guess is an lemon juice press or an ice crusher...

Didn't find an image for this but found one for a previous What's-it..

link: http://icetoolcollections.com/14patentedtools1905thru1935.htm

Gilchrist patented various bar corkscrews in 1904 and 1907... link: http://www.andreburgos.com/corkscr/cork3.htm

[GaryD]

Thanks for all the responses!  I noticed that the mechanism turns counter clockwise as it draws near?  Maybe opening something?

[Billman49]

Does the head rotate, go up and down, or both?? Does the crank revolve fully, or just a to and fro motion (like the bar corksrew??)??

[GaryD]

The head rotates at the same time the black cup like holder draws closer.  The handle will turn about 3/4 turn-back and forth.  The black cup holder thing will move up and down about 3 or 4 inches.

[rusty]

On a different tact...There was another Gilchrist that made canning jars, some with weird lids that were pressure fit (Eg you squeeze all the air out by filling the jar to the top and squishing the lid on). I am wondering if this might be the machine for doing the squeezing...a little rotation would help even off the top of the jar, and the travel would be small, and you would want a round foot that presses on the lid , but fits inside the screw ring....

I can not find a picture of such a machine tho....(for that matter, all I found on Gilchrist Jar co is a few photos of old jars)

[Bus]

The Gilchrist fruit jars took a zinc screw on lid. Some had a porcelain "pickle pusher" to keep the product under the fluid level. I don't see how a jar would fit in this device. It also looks a littler newer than a turn of the century jar.

Is there an opening in the bottom of the lower piece or is it solid?

[GaryD]

It is open--see pictures