what the heck is this thing?

It looks vaguely like a catch that might be used to hold open a door or window.

Or old fashioned ice box latch or something?

-%2..."

Table leaf latch? (underside of a table)

Looks like that arm from the pivot on the left to the latch on the right is supposed to be straight, and if it were it'd be like the door latches on the back of a truck. Could it have been on something that met a horrible fate?

I was thinkaing mabee a shutter latch???

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I don't think any of the suggestions yet are close. The item is about 9 inches long (the rule in the photo is 6 inch), it has a pulley for 1/2 inch rope or wire, and the two curved slots (one of which has the latch assembly) are also 1/2 inch. It has not been bent from the shape in which it was originally cast, there are no name or numbers in the casting. Lifting the handle opens the latch. There is a stainless steel wire spring to actuate the latch. The pulley shaft is also 1/2 inch.

I am reasonably sure that this was dropped over something to be used to hoist something else. Being brass makes me think either nautical or where sparking is a problem - the pulley itself is plain steel as is the bolt that forms the pulley axle is also plain steel. if there were two

1/2 inch bars separated by about an inch and parallel to each other, this would drop over the lower bar and then clip onto the upper bar and the pulley center would be under the bars and in line with them.

But, what was it FOR???

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Ahh, your photo did not show the pulley. Perhaps the "pulley" is meant to ride on an overhead rail for transporting parts, sort of like these meat hooks:

On 2/21/2013 1:53 AM, . wrote: ...

Well, to give anybody a chance other than the remote possibility that somebody just happens by that has another one you need to provide pictures that show the relevant stuff, and preferably in larger format as well...as the others, I presumed the size was much smaller than that given that the markings on the scale are illegible and there are no other hints as to size, even, what more the additional features.

We might have let it go if you had shot the backside, too. Ten demerits.

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A truly cool tool! It appears to be a handle of some sort. I wish you'd provided a pic of the backside, too.

SWAG: When you're jumping into reactors, it was used to grab the control line on each control rod to remove it from the reactor assembly for replacement.

On second thought, that's just a WAG. ;)

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ok, here are more photos - one of you guys must have seen one of these somewhere

Surely someone knows....

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I still think it's some sort of control cable handle, but have no idea what it pulled. It's a temporary handle for something. The spring keeps the catch closed, right?

Maybe it's an old lineman's cable puller of some sort. Cable car conductor's tool, for a brake or something?

Can the line be laced on the pulley in a way that it could be used as a brake?

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I don't think so, the band of brass that goes across the pulley looks more like it's for strength and to keep it from tangling. there is no wear or smoothing on the brass suggesting use as a brake.

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Y'know, looking at that again, I wonder if it's a pulley to allow a 15 or 55 gallon drum to tip to various pouring angles.

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so, if it were such a thing, are you thinking it clamps on the rim of the drum? I keep thinking it goes overhead on a pair of bars or rope, but since I don't know what it is, there is no particular reason to believe that is right

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Right. But having the hinged catch on the outside would have made me think more of that idea, so it could work on drums with lids, too.

Why "a pair"?

Nope. We's all guessing so far.