Big iron day. I mean BIG!

[Dirty Digger Doug]

So there used to be a house at the front of my property from about 1865 - 1950. I have found lots of stuff in the yard. Well since we don't have much of a winter here in Michigan I got the itch to go detect the old home site one more time. I went over a 9 on the nox 800 and followed it about four feet. Thought it was some old wire. Then it hit this. About broke myself in two trying to get this out of the ground. Thing weighs at least 60 pounds solid iron. Anyone know what this is?

 

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[sibbley]

That's definitely some big iron! Feel like it looks familiar, but I have no idea what it is.

 

[zerohundred]

A large tool of some type.

 

[iAmMike]

Wow, that thing is huge! I'd be upset about lugging it back to the car. It's neat, but I don't know what it is either.

 

[DWerk]

Nice that you have enough green ground to dig, not far north of you and we still have 4-6 in. of snow on the ground. Should be cleared out this week with warmer weather. No idea what that big iron is.. If your near the river could be something that was associated with past logging or barges on the Grand.

 

[Nathan W]

That's insane. I could see an ogre swinging it in battle lol. Have no idea probably something from a mill

 

[mindcrime1988]

Maybe some type of railroad implement?

 

[luke_00]

It reminds me of a debarking spud, but I've never seen one made entirely of iron. It's really cool, whatever it is!

 

[Digger RJ]

So there used to be a house at the front of my property from about 1865 - 1950. I have found lots of stuff in the yard. Well since we don't have much of a winter here in Michigan I got the itch to go detect the old home site one more time. I went over a 9 on the nox 800 and followed it about four feet. Thought it was some old wire. Then it hit this. About broke myself in two trying to get this out of the ground. Thing weighs at least 60 pounds solid iron. Anyone know what this is?

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Nice!!! Congrats!!!

 

[Whynotnow?]

That's insane. I could see an ogre swinging it in battle lol. Have no idea probably something from a mill

My vote is definitely for ogre weapon.

 

[robertk]

It looks like a long-handled billhook.

 

[sprailroad]

Maybe some type of railroad implement?

Nothing I had ever used or seen.

 

[UnderMiner]

I have something similar, I always called it a bush axe, maybe the landowner had been chopping down some of the shrubs and forgot it outside and it got lost.

 

[bottlecap4u]

really interesting, hope someone can identify that thing, its positively mid-evil looking.

 

[ToddsPoint]

I’ll go with mindcrime and guess railroad related.

 

[Blackfoot58]

I’d guess a prying tool designed for a very specific job. But no idea what job.

 

[Almy]

Tractor tire bead breaking tool?

 

[devldog]

I go with a railroad tool too. You know a lot of William Tecumseh Sherman's boys tore up miles and miles of our railroad tracks in the South in 1864 prying up the tracks and heating the iron rails on fires and twisting the heated iron tracks around trees creating what was to become known as a "Sherman Bow Tie". I wonder if this could be a prying tool to remove or replace old railroad track? Just a thought. Nice find.

 

[The Rebel]

That's crazy. I'll be interested to see what it turns out to be.

 

[ToddsPoint]

I go with a railroad tool too. You know a lot of William Tecumseh Sherman's boys tore up miles and miles of our railroad tracks in the South in 1864 prying up the tracks and heating the iron rails on fires and twisting the heated iron tracks around trees creating what was to become known as a "Sherman Bow Tie". I wonder if this could be a prying tool to remove or replace old railroad track? Just a thought. Nice find.

I was reading about destroying rails in the civil war. The rails that were heated and wrapped around a tree were fixable by the confederates. Heat and bend back straight. A Union officer then figured out how to destroy them permanently by not bending but by heating and then twisting them. Possibly a tool for doing that?