What is this, really?

[Branson]

This is the third one of these I've seen on eBay in the past month.  The first was identical, and the second was blacksmith made.  It's been described as a screwdriver. It's been called a chisel.  Looks to me like some relative of a crutch screwdriver, but I've never seen one of these before.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/251187918897?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649

[OilyRascal]

It sure seems the handle end would tend to dig into your skin if used in a turning motion.  I wonder if it isn't a tool for prying up/down.  Awfully ornate for a tool around here.

[Bill Houghton]

No idea, but I love the seller's description.  He wanted any possible search terms to bring up this whatever-it-is.

"COLLECTIBLE UNUSUAL OLD VINTAGE/CAST IRON SCREWDRIVER ANTIQUE RARE FARM ODD TOOL."  Let's see, what did he leave out?

Someone should buy it and paint a very small pastoral scene on it, then put it up on eBay again.

[Branson]

>"COLLECTIBLE UNUSUAL OLD VINTAGE/CAST IRON SCREWDRIVER ANTIQUE RARE FARM ODD TOOL."  Let's see, what did he leave out?

Left out "unique" and I guess he forgot rail road.  Sure is an open bore shotgun blast.

[Branson]

It sure seems the handle end would tend to dig into your skin if used in a turning motion.

The horizontal handle is what reminded me of the crutch screwdriver -- you'd hold it differently from a regular driver to get more torque.

[johnsironsanctuary]

Could it be used for prying, splitting and pulling?  Like for chair caning?  WAG I

WAG II. A sailors tool for back weaving rope.

[scottg]

I have a feeling it isn't very old.  Maybe a local blacksmith fantasy piece or something.
 Turnscrews don't look like that.

Its totally possible its from 1722 and some object i have never sen before. But mostly, it looks recently made for the reinactor trades.
  yours Scott

[rusty]

Not from the turnscrew era.

The shank is made from hex stock, look how uniform it is. It wasn't worth wasting hex stock on making a tool until it became so cheap it didn't matter if you used hex stock or square stock....

The T part looks like somthing you should be tying a rope to....hmm

[anglesmith]

I agree with Scottg it could be very old or recently new? But don't think you could get that width and thickness at the top of the blade out that size hex bar!? If you look at at the T (under zoom)you can see that the hex gets a little bigger! I can't see evidence of a fire weld so it looks more likely that the smith would have need to have started with a bigger section bar on account of both ends (theres quite a bit of work involved to get that T looking good). I suspect that there has been some filing to dress the tool (hex)up?  I'm now starting to lean towards an earlier date, those early smith made some fancy turnscrews and other tools when they didn't want to do any woodwork!
Graeme


spelling

[Branson]

I wish I had made copies of the other two.  The second one was clearly blacksmith made, and a little crudely.  The first was just like this one.  Clearly there is some special use for these.  I had thought that the first and third ones were factory made while the other was smithed for the same and particular task.  Odd to have three of these show up in one month.

[Branson]

Curiouser and curiouser.  I checked the sold files at eBay and found this same tool, listed by the same seller, was sold in October for $26.   Buyer backed out? 

So we are looking at only two similar items, not three examples.