Hello from Hazard!
We had many readers respond on Item No. 1206. Charlie Hall said it is a parachute ripcord handle, specifically for a T-10 chest type reserve chute.
Charlie said he was a sport parachutist during the late 1960s and early 1970s. “The main canopy was a modified T-10 and the chest reserve chute had a ripcord handle like Item No. 1206. I packed my own main chute but the reserved chute was inspected, packed and sealed by a license parachute rigger.”
Many of you agreed with Charlie including: Wesley Hall, of Lisbon, Ohio; Tom Biery, Amherst, Ohio; Rick Flemming (“Oh, the stories I’ll bet that handle could tell,” Rick said.); Mark Montgomery; and David Pizzoferrato, Richmond, Ohio.
Joyce Hann, of Glen Allen, Virginia, said it is a handle to open a coal chute.
Willis Brubaker, Wooster, Ohio, submitted Item No. 1206.
Ken Burkholder, Sterling, Ohio, submitted Item No. 1207. The interior has a spool which is divided into two sections by a wooden ridge. Fine wire is wound around both sides of the spool. Brass “connectors” are attached to the wire. The handle can be changed to operate right or left handed.
Ken bought it at a flea market years ago thinking it was fishing equipment.
Do you know what the item is and how it is used? Email us at editorial@farmanddairy.com; or by mail to: Hazard a Guess, c/o Farm and Dairy, P.O. Box 38, Salem, OH 44460.
From an educated guess it looks to me like a measuring tape that you rewind manually. I used one similar that wasn’t as old when I worked for en elderly man installing basketball court tiles in Tampa Bay. He said it was his wife’s father’s and it still works great!!