Hazard A Guess: Week of Feb. 19, 2009

Hello from Hazard!

We’re closing the book on Item No. 854 this week, identified as a sausage stuffer, but we wanted to give thanks to readers George Colucci of Jefferson, Ohio, and Daisy Mook of Springboro, Pa., who sent correct guesses in time for this week’s paper.

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A lone response came to the Hazard e-mail inbox just in time to make this week’s edition. Tom Strickling of New Philadelphia, Ohio, shared information on Item No. 855 that’s “not a guess, it’s a fact” for him:

“Item No. 855 is a tool used on my favorite car, the Model T Ford. The Model T has three transmission drums, each with a lined metal band that squeezes the drum when you step on the floor pedals. These bands have metal “ears” on each end. When changing bands or their linings, this tool grabs the ears and pulls them together, making the bands tight. This makes it easier to replace the transmission cover, also known as the “hog’s head.”

“The two center fingers on this tool are wider because they have to catch parts of two different ears, while the thinner outside fingers only catch one side of one ear.”

So, if Mr. Strickling is correct, Item No. 855 is a transmission band clamp.

Write in and let us know if you think he’s correct, or if you’ve got another idea for the tool’s purpose.

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Next up is a new item, No. 856, courtesy of our Hazard-ous friend Les Howell of Beach City, Ohio. Howell said he knows what the item is used for, so let us know if you do, too. We’ll give a quick hint: This item, like last week’s, may have also been found in the mechanic’s shop.

Write to: Hazard a Guess, P.O. Box 38, Salem, OH 44460; or via e-mail to: editorial@farmanddairy.com.