What is this small tool?

[J.C.]

I thought it might have been for stamping, but the letters don't protrude past the knurling and the left hand side of the tool is higher than the right... so stamping would be a little hard.The sides don't move independently and the letter rollers don't move substantially.

The letters go (starting at a random point):

C F J Z S I U
A Y E L W K H
A Y E L W K H
A Y E L W K H
P O N X V T R

Can't figure out a pattern with the letters. They all spin individually. Came in a box full of Moore and Wright and L.S.Starrett metrology stuff, but that could be a red herring.

Any ideas?

 

[Jason280]

I don't seen how it could be a stamp, the letters are imposed the wrong way....

 

[J.C.]

Well that's darn obvious in retrospect... haha.

 

[Old Man Roger]

Since there are more ''A's'' at the beginning of each row and more ''H's'' at the end, I googled 7 letter words that begin with ''A'' and end with ''H''. Maybe it will give some clue as to what it's purpose is?

abolish abroach absinth acaleph aggadah agoroth anguish autarch
azimuth

 

[J.C.]

I do rather like some of those words.

The order of letters may be somewhat misleading, too... it's a continuous roll, I just picked a random place to mark the start of the letter sequence.

 

[rooster4321]

Combination lock?

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[rlitman]

Combination lock?

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That's my guess too.

 

[Old Man Roger]

I do rather like some of those words.

The order of letters may be somewhat misleading, too... it's a continuous roll, I just picked a random place to mark the start of the letter sequence.

Oh ok! Give me the all the letters on the first roller

and then all the letters on the last roller

. There are only 5 rollers..lol I guess I should have looked closer at the picture.​

 

[J.C.]

First is C F J Z S I U

Last is P O N X V T R

 

[J.C.]

Interesting idea about a lock... I can't see a mechanism by which the rollers would actuate anything, though - the sides are solid metal as far as I can tell and the tube along the opposite end to the rollers is a C shape of rolled metal that you can see into - doesn't appear to come off or open. I could be wrong...

Mind you, that's better than any idea I have come up with yet.

 

[Old Man Roger]

Maybe this wont help as much..lol There were far less options with the ''A and ''H'' Below is just the C and P- C and O- C and N

Cutup
Crump
Croup
Crisp
Crimp
Creep
Cramp
Clump
Cloop
Clomp
Cleep
Clasp
Clamp
Chump
Chomp
Chirp
Chimp
Chelp
Cheep
Cheap
Champ
Carap

cacao
cameo
campo
canso
canto
carbo
cargo
casco
cello
cento
chaco
chemo
chiao
chico
chimo
chino
chiro
choco
choko
cholo
cisco
claro
cocco
combo
commo
compo
condo
congo
conto
convo
corno
corso
credo
cuffo
curio
cusso
cutto
cyano
cyclo
cabin
cairn
cajon
cajun
caman
canon
capon
caxon
chain
churn
clean
clown
coden
codon
cogon
cohen
coign
colin
colon
conin
copen
cotan
coven
covin
cowan
cozen
croon
crown
cumin
cutin

 

[Old Man Roger]

Interesting idea about a lock... I can't see a mechanism by which the rollers would actuate anything, though - the sides are solid metal as far as I can tell and the tube along the opposite end to the rollers is a C shape of rolled metal that you can see into - doesn't appear to come off or open. I could be wrong...

Mind you, that's better than any idea I have come up with yet.

Does the rod at the bottom look as if it could rotate on one end?

 

[wrenchguy]

'ol timey telegraph codes???

 

[gungatim]

Does the rod at the bottom look as if it could rotate on one end?

was thinking something similar, like a small padlock, rotate the letters and one end rotates off the rod after releasing. I have a trailer coupler like that is similar, but you use a key to unthread the barrel (where the letters would be).

maybe if you turn the letters it unthreads like that.

 

[Old Man Roger]

was thinking something similar, like a small padlock, rotate the letters and one end rotates off the rod after releasing. I have a trailer coupler like that is similar, but you use a key to unthread the barrel (where the letters would be).

maybe if you turn the letters it unthreads like that.

That's the direction I was going, once people starting saying a combination lock.

 

[Sevenhills1952]

Can you tell us more about it? It looks old and I'm thinking lock also. I'm thinking one side swivels when open.

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[Chucktin]

Alphabet Lock pulls up an "18th Century Alphabet Lock" on eBay so the idea is not new. I'd clean it up some more with DW40 and see if you can find a seam in one of the cheek pieces.

 

[shoot summ]

Looks like a lock to me.

 

[Caddybill]

https://www.antiquesnavigator.com/d-774343/antique-brass-alphabet-combination-lock-padlock.html

 

[Old Man Roger]

https://www.antiquesnavigator.com/d-774343/antique-brass-alphabet-combination-lock-padlock.html

Good find. Looks like it pulls straight apart.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Vintage-Sm...026451?hash=item3d85287613:g:8NkAAOSw6fpbZYhz

 

[ttpete]

You can probably open it by putting tension on it and feeling for detents when wheels are rotated.

 

[The Cobbler]

just got to figure out the combo now!

 

[Legion Prime]

just got to figure out the combo now!

Well don't worry, there's only 16,807 possible combinations.

 

[Old Man Roger]

You can probably open it by putting tension on it and feeling for detents when wheels are rotated.

Like the old bicycle combination chain locks. You could wiggle the wheels and feel when they were on the right number.

 

[MarlynOC]

coding from WWII? somewhere along lines of enigma?

 

[ttpete]

Like the old bicycle combination chain locks. You could wiggle the wheels and feel when they were on the right number.

It's probably not precision enough to be unpickable. You have to try all of the wheels the first time around and when you find it, don't turn that wheel again. Move on to the other three and do the same over and over.

 

[6PTsocket]

coding from WWII? somewhere along lines of enigma?

It took an early computer at Blechly Park to crack Enigma. In true GJ fashion you would need stepper motors to rotate the dials and try all the combinations. That's how they cracked Enigma.

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[anndel]

Part of a combination lock +100

 

[Legion Prime]

It took an early computer at Blechly Park to crack Enigma. In true GJ fashion you would need stepper motors to rotate the dials and try all the combinations. That's how they cracked Enigma.

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That must have been the later modified kriegsmarine enigma, the enigma was broken by Polish army intelligence.

 

[ttpete]

That must have been the later modified kriegsmarine enigma, the enigma was broken by Polish army intelligence.

The Bombes were used for all decrypts for reasons of speed. They needed info ASAP for it to be useful. NCR built a lot of the devices for both the Brits and us. The fourth wheel on the Kriegsmarine unit was actually a moveable reflector. It didn't cycle with the 3 other wheels.

 

[6PTsocket]

I just saw that mentioned in a documentary. They said that the Poles did preliminary work and turned what they had over to the English as they were being invaded. They then destroyed all records of their work so the Germans woukd not find out what rhey were up to. The man credited with cracking Enigma is Alan Turing.

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