Kozzy Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 A local farmer when cleaning out his old barn ran across this tool sitting in the old forge. Obviously, it's a piercing tool of some kind--but the back of the head doesn't have any hammer marks or wear. It's not particularly hardened, either: At best a low mid-hard toward soft. That implies to me that it wasn't for piercing metal when forging but you never know. Leather harness punch usually hit with a rawhide mallet? Heck, it might be obvious to someone with more tools in their toybox than me. I'd just like to be able to give a more definitive answer than "pointy thingie which would hurt bad if your Brother decided to test it on you" Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Looks like a power hammer tool. Leather punches are hallow piece of tubing with a beveled and sharpened edge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kozzy Posted August 21, 2017 Author Share Posted August 21, 2017 By "forge" in this case, I mean shoeing forge at the farm. No possible way there was a power hammer (the 80 year old farmer would have remembered that). Also, this particular farmer didn't acquire any of the tools when the only shop in the county with a power hammer went out. He's cleaning out old junk from his Dad's days there and the family has had the farm for 100+ years. I agree that leather punches are generally tubular--but something to pierce leather was the only thing I could thing of that was farm related for such a tool. They ran a lot of mules and did do a lot of basic harness work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Something to break up coal? Nothing jumps out at me though, maybe a use will come to you. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kozzy Posted August 21, 2017 Author Share Posted August 21, 2017 Just now, Frosty said: Something to break up coal? Nothing jumps out at me though, maybe a use will come to you. Frosty The Lucky. That's an interesting thought. The lump coal that people used in their furnaces around here was quite large and I can see a farmer using that in his shoeing forge and needing to bust the pieces. Explains the lack of any hammer marks on the back of the head too. He said point was a bit mashed and he "resharpened" it a bit before he brought it in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 How big is it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kozzy Posted August 21, 2017 Author Share Posted August 21, 2017 Sorry--I forgot to add that the tiles in the first picture are 12" square so the overall length is 16-1/4". And sorry if my earlier response to you sounded snotty at all. That was not my intention. My only intention was to express that a power hammer was unlikely and I was still grasping at straws with no good ideas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Didn't seem snotty to me. Exchanging information dosnt always require all the extra niceties of language and manners. Maybe hanging out with horses has just twisted my perception of what good manners are? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 9 minutes ago, Kozzy said: Sorry--I forgot to add that the tiles in the first picture are 12" square so the overall length is 16-1/4". And sorry if my earlier response to you sounded snotty at all. That was not my intention. My only intention was to express that a power hammer was unlikely and I was still grasping at straws with no good ideas. Snotty?! Brevity isn't snotty it's just not wasting words to no good purpose. Please don't let the recent threads make you over sensitive, even when you're ticked off you're a pretty nice guy. You'd have to abuse a: child, lady, horse or dog to offend Charles. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 That about sums It up, Jerry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farmall Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Could it be to break open barrels or hogsheads? Or simply a handheld splitting wedge held by one person while another struck it to split wood Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThomasPowers Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Looks handy for making bottle openers.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frosty Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 3 hours ago, Charles R. Stevens said: That about sums It up, Jerry. I just calls em like I sees em Charles. I've watched you take some pretty pointed abuse here and keep an even keel. Like gentling down a rank horse. Brother you're going to have to ornery up a little to make Curmudgeon. Frosty The Lucky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles R. Stevens Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 Let the pin heads keep bashing the good peaple I know from IFI. Then I will get rank. I hate to fight, Jerry. I only have one mode, and that's win when I fight, it is not a game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Turley Posted August 21, 2017 Share Posted August 21, 2017 With a longer handle, I'd try to dig up some goat-head roots we have around here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lou L Posted August 22, 2017 Share Posted August 22, 2017 This looks like something @ThomasPowers plans on making in order to confuse the bejeesus out of future metalworkers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BubbaNash Posted August 22, 2017 Share Posted August 22, 2017 I dont know if im stating the obvious, but it looks like a metal punch on a handle. possibly meant for widening a hole after one is made. Its not too far fetched that it could be a specific tool he made because he needed it. Farmers tend to make a tool instead of going to the hardware store to buy something. Just a thought Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave51B Posted August 22, 2017 Share Posted August 22, 2017 I'm going to "guess" ice breaker for stock tanks.... Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JHCC Posted August 22, 2017 Share Posted August 22, 2017 1 hour ago, BubbaNash said: possibly meant for widening a hole after one is made We're certainly generating reams of speculations.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kozzy Posted August 22, 2017 Author Share Posted August 22, 2017 46 minutes ago, Dave51B said: I'm going to "guess" ice breaker for stock tanks.... Dave That's a good one too--and follows the KISS principal well. In the first photo, you can see the last 6" of the "handle" has been squared off which to me, implies there might have been a wood handle at one time over that section. However, the end of that is simply hardy-cut and I don't see any provision to keep a handle on there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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