I received this from a friend as he thought it was for blacksmithing. It is nicely finished and not sloppy at all. There are seam lines all the way down from being cast. The round business end is dished a little and slightly pitted. I was thinking maybe it was used for pulling leather, but it feels comfortable when the jaws are open about an inch apart.
sure looks like a "coal tong" or "coal grabber", back in the old days that's how they'd catch a coal out of a fireplace to light their smoking pipes and cigars or light another fire. At least that's what it looks like to me......
That's exactly what it is. My grandpa used to keep those leaned up by his hearth and said they were his grandfathers. I saw him use them to light a handrolled cigarette many times. Wish I could have hung on to them but who knows where they are now.
Oh, nice. Thanks for the responses. I just searched using "coal tongs" and it came up with "ember tongs". There were fancier versions made with brass and all. I guess I will need to find a spot to hang them around the stove to enjoy them. I love old tools like this.
I'm the same way, Jon. I've got TONS of antique pots, pans, ladles, skimmers, spatulas, and other hand-wrought cooking utensils from the 1700's. I need to get that forge up and running so I can make some matching hangers to put under the mantle to show some of that stuff off. One time around 5 years back, I was watching ebay for dug relics. A guy in upper Michigan did a lot of searching for Indian and colonial relics, and sold them on the 'net. Well one time he found what was a proverbial "needle in the haystack"......a super small set of hand-forged iron ember tongs......they fit in the palm of your hand, and were intricately scrolled and decorated. After some research, it was found that they would have been owned by a high-ranking British officer during the French & Indian War era.......they sold for several thousand dollars!!
Amazing collection you have there I'm sure Scott. I have some nice what I believe are English beech wood planes that need some forged brackets to put up on the wall. I may have to consult Thistle on those two.
I am a podiatrist and years ago I set out an old shoe last on the counter in my main treatment room as a conversation piece. Most families had a set in their homes during the Great Depression and WWII. They repaired their own shoes because they couldn't afford to replace them or pay someone to repair them. Patients saw that orphan shoe last and started bringing in ones they had lying around the house, passed down from parents and grandparents. The collection just grew itself. I didn't set out to build this collection.
Smaller coal tongs are early -mid 19th century,hand forged with bridle joint.Got these for less than $30 from a ebay seller in NE Penna back 6-7 years ago.Been buying from him since 2005,5-6 times a year I still get a small thing or two.Mostly he has vintage woodworking tools,occasionally tools for working metal,stone & leather - but he also specializes in original vintage hand forged items,that he finds locally (lives at Nesquehoning in the Slate Belt region) & on his travels up into New England. Larger 27" poker with "hook" is hand forged also,with that classic twist loop handle.Found that for a buck or two (ah those were the days! ) at a local farm estate auction in a box of odds & ends back in the mid '80's!
Small hand forged Cooper's Adz.For cutting bevel on ends of barrel staves for the head to fit past.Also the hammer head part could be used with a hoop driver (beech or hickory wedge either by itself or inside iron sleeve) to drive down barrel hoops.Also knocking things apart for repair etc.
Nice collection. My great-grandfather was a cobbler in NJ back in the early 1900. I have a few of those small tack hammers I've picked up over the years. Here is a piece I made with a wooden shoe last and annealed copper plates. Kind of an artsy-fartsy look to it. Just something different. Folks don't know what to make of it.
