What the heck is this ?

[rweidig]

A customer brought this item hoping I could identify it. It is <B>Made in England</B> and is very well made. It measures about 3 inches long by 1 inch wide, and when you pull the zipper, the inside pushes up revealing 12 small plastic pieces, each numbered 1 thru 12. All the pieces are exactly the same size and thickness and fit into a finely stitched pocket for each one.
The case itself is metal which is leather clad. My customer has owned this for 20 years plus and hasn't been able to identify it.
Any help would be appreciated

 

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[jeff of pa]

altho it's only a guess from its looks, I would say some kind of Calculator. I'd investigate antique Calculators , on the search engines, & see If you can get a match. GOOD LUCK ; jeff

 

[comfyinvermont]

Don't know what it is, but I don't think it is a calculator. Most calculators would be based on 10 not 12. Since 12 is a dozen, what might come in dozen's that this could be used for. Lance

 

[histoplasmosis]

12's I would have to say some sort of ruler or measuring device. But then again its made in england and they use the metric system so I have not the foggiest.

 

[diggummup]

rweidig,what do you mean by"and fit into a finely stitched pocket for each one"?Also,are the numbered pieces permanently attached or do they pull out?

 

[kenb]

Are you sure those tabs are plastic? It looks pretty old, maybee ivory

 

[wally992]

This is another guess but it reminds of a devise I used on jobs to measure the gap in pipe joints under watershed dams which were held to strict tolerances. They had to be measured in place that required crawling inside the pipe for hundreds of feet measuring each joint gap. We used what we called a feeler gauge which was similar to what you have. I placed each piece inside the gap until the gap until it would hold no more. In other words it was an accurate and idiot proof way to measure something in a tight place. I suspect that is what you have and the protective case is to prevent wear on the measuring pieces

 

[histoplasmosis]

In the picture the pieces look to be the same thickness and why would they be number 1-12 doesn't make sense. Especially since most that stuff is in thousandsths. I dunno I forwarded pictures to the people on ebay what is it forum see if they can figure it out.

 

[jeff of pa]

I can't tell length. Is it as long as an EGG CARTON ?

 

[SnowQueen]

Just a thought, but they kind of reminded me of my Maw Maw's ivory dominoes when I read kenb's reply. ?Dominos are numbered 1-12...maybe it could be a game accessory. ?Good luck. Like a game accessory to help remind you which domino is the spinner.

 

[histoplasmosis]

Suggestions from ebay members:

Collar stays
Cribbage or Crabbage score keeper of some kind.

 

[qeylya]

I don't think it's either a calculator or a measuring device (as the numbers wrap all the way around and it would be difficult to use)

It looks like it might be some sort of tally keeper. I agree with histo, it could be for a game such as cribbage.

 

[SnowQueen]

I think it probably came as part of a set.

 

[ghost surf]

Maybe it is one of the first gap devices used for checking spark plugs and points.A term used for older cars not used now anymore?

 

[dfxdude]

It looks like part of a dice game. I made one of wood about 25 years ago. You roll two dice and you flip up any numbers that will total what you roll. The object is to get the lowest score. Do those numbers flip up or retract back into the case?

Butch on the frozen tundra of Minnesota

 

[wally992]

Seems like we have narrowed this thing down to either a measuring devise or game piece. The case being metal enclosed in leather makes me think it had some kind of industrial use. We have determined that it is rare, probably old and made in England. Can rweidig maybe get a little history from his customer on where he found this mysterious thing ?

 

[jwfmbf]

1 is not a number that you can get rolling 2 dice, so I don't think it would make sense as a game piece for this purpose.

If it were used to measure thickness I could understand a number being printed on each piece if each piece were different thickness. Since these appear to be the same thickness, the numbers do not make sense for this purpose.

It still could be part of some game, I just don't what kind of game.

The only thing that comes to me right now that has 12 "things" is a clock.

 

[Chris in BC]

twelve troy ounces to a pound!

 

[dfxdude]

Here is a link to the dice game I was talking about
http://www.cabinfever.org/shut_box.html
It says it is a popular game in the pubs of England. Someone mentioned that 1 would not be a combination with 2 dice. Incorrect. If you roll a 1 and a 4 you flip up the 1 and 4 tabs. The above link explains the rules. I made one of the wooden boxes pictured at the above link many years ago. It had a felt lined bottom where you throw the dice.
FYI...Butch

 

[wally992]

After viewing the link in the previous post and lots more sites like it I believe this item is the scoring part of a game called " Shut the Box " which was popular in British pubs and with sailors. All of these games I viewed were in a small box but I believe this could be a pocket version of the game. With this item which is only 1" x 3" and a pair of dice in your pocket you could play " Shut the? Box '. I'll try to post a picture of the game that comes in a box.