What is this used for? Pliers?

[Glenn]

Do you know what these plyers were used for? Garey Ford

[T-Gold]

Looks like some kind of leather punch to me.

[HWooldridge]

...or perhaps some sort of riveting tool.

[Ralph]

I know nothing, but I would tend to agree with Tyler.
Most likely some sort of leather punch.

But the curious thing is that the die looks to be interchangable. It has a retaining spring over the top. But does not look too strong to me.

[Ed Thomas]

You'll get at least somebody that's seen and used these if you publish it on the practical machinist board. The traffic on there is unconscious.

http://www.practicalmachinist.com/

[Strine]

Is it something for marking animal ears? But it looks like the two prongs go on either side of the little round anvil. Maybe the prongs held another piece? Could it be a tram conductors thingy for punching tickets. On Melbourne trams the 'connies' had their own shape, be it a star, a heart a diamond etc I think there were lots of different ones "Tickets please"

Got it. It's something somebody made years ago when he had nothing else to do, thinking one day someone is going to ask what on earth do these pliers do. Then he hid them in the bottom of a tool box. That's him in the background finally having a giggle.

[Glenn]

YOU GOT IT !!

We threw this up as a question during the Blueprint reading and (I am sorry I forgot the name) recognized it as a tool to install ear tags on cows.

Thanks for having at go at identifing the tool.
Any more out there that need identified ? Post them.

[sandpile]

They look some what like the first BRUCELLOISES(SP) TAGGING PLIERS, First meaning the first I ever saw. GOVERNMENT AND STATE vets used them.

You first made a hole slipped the tag in through the hole and used the pliers to press the end through a slit in the tag, then bent the tag over on its self. The tag was metal and had an identifing number on the tag.

Chuck