KeTos tag - Halcomb Steel Company

Ground Control

Jr. Member
Apr 19, 2017
22
49
Massachusetts
Detector(s) used
Equinox 800, AT Pro
Primary Interest:
Metal Detecting
I found this the other day detecting around an old asylum.

Ketos Tag 1.jpg

Ketos Tag 2.jpg

Initially I didn't think it was that old, but after cleaning it a little I noticed that there was writing on the back. I did a little research and found out that the Halcomb Steel Co. was a name that Crucible Industries used to go by back in the early 1900's. The earliest mention of Ketos that I can find is the late 1800's, with the last mention of Halcomb Steel Co. being in the late 1940's. So I'm guessing this tag could be dated from anytime in between that. Ketos is Halcomb's patented safety steel. The way it was treated prevented the steel from shrinking and made more intricate designs possible.

I found this brochure on ebay from back in 1929 that has emblems inside that match the front and back of the tag. So I'm guessing it's from the 20's-30's, if not earlier.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1929-KETOS-OIL-HARDENING-NON-SHRINK-TOOL-STEEL-Brochure-Catalog-HALCOMB-STEEL-CO-/401069300291?_ul=BO

Any insight would be appreciated. I tried calling the company, but I didn't catch them during business hours.
 

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Upvote 9
Super neat to see nice recoveries of all types! Hard to guess what will be under the detector coil next!:metaldetector:
 

Your post reads like you have already done the research.
So, specifically, what further 'insight' do you now seek?
Don........

Well, I try to do research on everything that I find that I'm unsure of the history on. I have no idea when exactly they produced these tags or for what purpose. Finding any other examples of these didn't turn up anything. So I guess I'm just trying to figure out more about it or if anyone's seen anything like it before.
 

a great find, you gotta like one that has potential of speaking through research. that is what some of us hope to find, something cool from the past. congrats
 

Congrats. It appears to be a pocket watch fob. Nice find.
 

The url is a little wonky, but I got it working. You're really good at finding this kind of stuff Don. Not really sure what I could do to get more effective search results when I'm researching stuff.
 

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