Featured Mystery Item??? Please Help

Discussion in 'Antique Discussion' started by 808 raver, Jul 14, 2020.

  1. 808 raver

    808 raver Well-Known Member

    mystery.jpg mystery 2.jpg 3.jpg 4.jpg 5.jpg Hi all, I have a mahogany box full of 35 strange brass curves all numbered from 1-18, 2 of the same number on each apart from one (I assume 1 is missing) each curve has one with brass lugs on the ends and one without. The numbered pairs seem to have the same radii. The box and the curves seem 19thc but I haven't a clue what they were made for. I bought them from ebay and they were listed as electrical resistors but that can't be the case, any help would be greatly appreciated.
    mystery 2.jpg 3.jpg 4.jpg 5.jpg
     
    KSW, Rayo56, Figtree3 and 5 others like this.
  2. komokwa

    komokwa The Truth is out there...!

  3. 808 raver

    808 raver Well-Known Member

    Lol I had a nightmare uploading, I must be rusty :(
     
    KSW, Christmasjoy and scoutshouse like this.
  4. i need help

    i need help Moderator Moderator

    Can you show a close up of the edges and numbering?
     
    KSW, Mugzinnys, Christmasjoy and 2 others like this.
  5. 808 raver

    808 raver Well-Known Member

    I'm sorry I can't, my wife took the photos on her phone before she went to bed but the big photo can be clicked to zoom in if that's any help.
     
    KSW, Christmasjoy and scoutshouse like this.
  6. Bronwen

    Bronwen Well-Known Member

    Draftsman's tools?
     
    KSW, Fid, Mugzinnys and 3 others like this.
  7. Miscstuff

    Miscstuff Sometimesgetsitright

    KSW, Christmasjoy, 808 raver and 2 others like this.
  8. 808 raver

    808 raver Well-Known Member

    I think they must have something to do with drawing but I can't find any like it on the net
     
    KSW, Christmasjoy and Bronwen like this.
  9. 808 raver

    808 raver Well-Known Member

    They seem a bit delicate and easy to bend for that purpose, I'm really at a loss until I can find the same sort of thing with a description of what they are.
     
  10. Bronwen

    Bronwen Well-Known Member

    Try 'drafting curves'.
     
    KSW and 808 raver like this.
  11. scoutshouse

    scoutshouse Well-Known Member

    Not drafting curves, for aerospace anyway.

    Possibly scaled boat draughting. Toralky WAG.
     
    KSW, Bronwen, 808 raver and 1 other person like this.
  12. 808 raver

    808 raver Well-Known Member

    The problem with all the drafting curves is that all I have seen lay flat on the paper and are not designed to stand.
     
    KSW, scoutshouse and Bronwen like this.
  13. say_it_slowly

    say_it_slowly The worst prison is a closed heart

    I don't know but I keep thinking they would be good for moldings, ogees etc.
     
  14. Bronwen

    Bronwen Well-Known Member

    Is there some way they could be used with something like a fret saw? Or a router?
     
    KSW, scoutshouse and 808 raver like this.
  15. say_it_slowly

    say_it_slowly The worst prison is a closed heart

    Someone will probably know. I was thinking along the line of being able to check or scribe the shape. Kind of like this modern adjustable one.

    img20200715_085556.jpg
     
    KSW, scoutshouse, Bronwen and 2 others like this.
  16. antidiem

    antidiem Well-Known Member

    I'm with Misc on the WAG! Definitely looks like a wooden "scale" assembly box to house them in, too.
     
  17. 808 raver

    808 raver Well-Known Member

    I'm thinking they must have been used for some sort of curve gauge but trying to find the same design elsewhere is proving harder than I first thought.
     
    KSW, scoutshouse, antidiem and 2 others like this.
  18. 808 raver

    808 raver Well-Known Member

    I'm sure the box is original, interestingly the box might be a clue as to what they were used for. The box is very dirty and smells of coal tar, like the hands that touched it or the environment it was in had coal burning nearby?
     
  19. johnnycb09

    johnnycb09 Well-Known Member

    They look like those spacer things you see in the back of picture frames,wich are a pain to take out .
     
    KSW, scoutshouse, komokwa and 7 others like this.
  20. Rayo56

    Rayo56 Well-Known Member

Draft saved Draft deleted
Similar Threads: Mystery Item
Forum Title Date
Antique Discussion 500 year old mystery item? Jul 9, 2023
Antique Discussion Mystery Item of the Week Apr 15, 2023
Antique Discussion Mystery Item-Chinese ? Jun 10, 2022
Antique Discussion Mystery Bronze Item Mar 23, 2022
Antique Discussion Another mystery item Nov 21, 2018

Share This Page