Can anyone identify this?

[tanda7]

Trying to help a friend identify this object/device.
Any theories would be appreciated.

[bigwull]

This has to be the most informative post that i have seen on here Don,t have a clue as to what it is...perhaps the man with the big book will know....

[KC]

My first thought was a weaving shuttle....but this is soooooo intricate.

What is the size?

[tanda7]

My first thought was a weaving shuttle....but this is soooooo intricate.

What is the size?

Compare to the ball-point pen in the photo, we have pretty much ruled out the loom shuttle theory. Too many things don't add up.
Thanks for your reply.

[tanda7]

My first thought was a weaving shuttle....but this is soooooo intricate.

What is the size?

I don't have it in my possession so I can't measure it for you, I'm trying to help a friend at a museum who sent the photos.
If it's important I can ask them for exact dimensions.

[KC]

Would help alot!  Also, any background information  you can get.  Where it was found/located/donated, etc.

[bigwull]

might be for an early compressed air delivery system..like the one,s you used to get in the big department stores in the 50,s...stuff notes inside open the hatch then whoosh...it was off like a scalded cat...

[tanda7]

Would help alot!  Also, any background information  you can get.  Where it was found/located/donated, etc.

I asked many questions after I first saw the photos. Here is the reply I got;

" The arrival of the items occurred on the floor above me and I neither saw nor spoke to the person who dropped it off. I just happened to be in the building when the transaction took place (it only lasted for perhaps 5 minutes from the muffled voices I could hear upstairs) and I was fortunate enough that the curator brought it to the basement room that I was in, showed it to me and asked for my opinion. The curator could not have gleaned much information in that short period of time anyway. I don't even know if she was aware that the object was among the donated items before the donor left.

When I asked where this object came from, all the curator could tell me was that the things dropped off were found in the attic of a house that this donor's family member was moving into. I don't know how old the house was, where it was, what other items were in the attic (aside from the vintage clothing -- and I don't even know what era those are from)."

Where?
"No idea. I'm in the Great Lakes (Erie) region. The person who physically brought the items in is probably local, but not necessarily their family member from whose house the stuff originated. I can't make that assumption."


I'll get back to as far as exact dimensions, while we are at it, do you have any other questions I should ask?

[tanda7]

might be for an early compressed air delivery system..like the one,s you used to get in the big department stores in the 50,s...stuff notes inside open the hatch then whoosh...it was off like a scalded cat...

You are not the first person to suggest that, but all the slats are removable and it still leaves some questions.
My personal theory is that it is part of an un-assembled model rocket or zeppelin. But I have not been able to confirm.

Something like this;
or this;


I hesitated to post my theory because I didn't want to influence the guesses.

[bigwull]

a projectile did cross my mind...whats the dia at its thickest point..in mm...

[tanda7]

a projectile did cross my mind...whats the dia at its thickest point..in mm...

I will contact my friend to get exact dimensions, gimme 24 hours or so. Thanks again.

[mart]

Another question,, Does any part of it turn or move ??  Ask if they would hold different parts and push, pull or turn ends ect  !!  My first thought for some strange reason was a bamboo rice planter !! Or dibble of sorts !!  Then I took a better look !!

[Rauville]

In looking at this for the first time, my first impression would be that it's a "Instructional / Teaching Aid" of some sort. I have no idea what would have been taught...maybe "Steam Boiler Operation", as it kind of resembles a boiler flue cleaner. Regardless, it's a good head teaser.

[cogar]

I agree with KC, and believe it is a “weaving shuttle” that was made to hold two (2) different colors or types of thread or yarn.

Please note via the following picture that:

If the ball-point pen is 5 ½” in length then the “shuttle” is roughly 18” long and 2 ¾” to 2 7/8” in diameter.

And my assuming that it is a shuttle, the following is only my learned opinion on its construction and use, to wit:

To hold the unit together, the dowel pin “axel” would have to be firmly attached to and extend from one “end cap”, thru the divider “partition”, to the other “end cap”.  The wood wheels would be “freely” rotating on the “axel”.

To “load” the shuttle “bobbin” the slats would be removed from the wood wheels and the “weft” thread or yarn wound around the bobbin’s “axel” …. and when the slats were replaced the end of the “weft” thread or yarn would “exit” thru the metal grommet(s).

The only way the thread or yarn could be “unwound” from the bobbin’s “axel” would be to “pull-it” in the direction of either “end cap”, which would permit the “slatted” enclosure to rotate on the “axel”.

Only one (1) of the 4 identical grooves in the “end cone” would have been used to hold the “weft” thread in place, ….. to keep it from unwinding from the bobbin, …. when the shuttle was pushed or pulled between the “warp” threads.  

Weaving is a method of fabric production in which two distinct sets of yarns or threads are interlaced at right angles to form a fabric or cloth.  The longitudinal threads are called the warp and the lateral threads are the weft (woof) or filling (threads). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weaving

[mart]

Well,, Cogar that certainly sounds right,, everything fits with the parts shown !!!