Do You Know What This Is And It's Use ?

[donny48]

http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=14mt8co&s=9#.WvggyiAh06Q
Can anyone recognise this object ? You can judge its size by the Tesco carrier bag, I have not got the object just the photo at present.

[vulcan42]

I think it might be an early piece of machinery to insert bullets into the casings. The handle on the left pulls the spring back and tensions it, the bullet goes into the recess on the right and when the spring is released the bullet is forced into the casing. The part that holds the casing is missing.

[donny48]

One of my thoughts was, if the oobject was cocked then the barbed wire of the trenches was wrapped round the curly,pig tail then any movement of the wire could trigger it and cause some sort of alarm.

[dannyk13]

vulcan, I think that in placing the bullet casing in that receptacle would cause the gunpowder to fall out.I have seen film of women in wartime factories fitting the bullet into its case and this work was done with the casing upright.

[mallyh]

my first thought was an early coffee machine. but it looks like the bottom of some type of sewing machine for leather or shoes .

[Zacs-Master]

Cobblers, Mallyh.

[mallyh]

well that's the last you will hear from me lol x

[Togo]

Haha Mally…..a "last" post. :))

[Zacs-Master]

Damn. Missed the apostrophe and the ?

[ABSpareEditor]

Hey Donny48, we have made this a 'Sticky' in How it Works. We hope you get to the bottom of this!

[Zacs-Master]

Oooph. The mention of ‘bottom’ and that loaded spring.....sickly feeling.

[vulcan42]

you don't mean a suppository depositor? egad!

[donny48]

Thank you, ABSpareEditor
Zacs and Vulcan, like the punchline of a very old joke "For all the good they did me I might as well shoved them up my ****"

[naomi24]

I'm pleased this has been made a sticky. I do love a mystery - and I love more a mystery solved. Intriguing isn't it.

[donny48]

I found this that supports my barbed wire theory
[IMG]http://i65.tinypic.com/2djb87b.jpg[/IMG]
Given as a WW! "Booby Trap" Picket found at Verdun.

[donny48]

I think this will link better
http://i65.tinypic.com/2djb87b.jpg

[jno]

that's http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=2djb87b&s=9

Maybe you should try the Spanish Inquisition museum - it looks like an instrument of torture to me