Yellow brass but what is it?

[cudamark]

I found this item at an old dump site, I've scraped it a bit to I.D. the metal. Looks to be yellow brass both on the straps and the "half barrel" in the middle. I can't tell how the two are attached to each other. The straps don't appear to have been cut, but, if they were, the ends were filed as there are no rough edges. As you can see, one side is hinged and the other isn't. No I.D. marks that I can see anywhere. Any ideas??

 

Amazon Forum Fav 👍

Cry Of The Eagle: History And Legends Of The Cherokee Indians And Their Buried Treasure - Grab it through Amazon!

[ARC]

Its an old strap hinge...
My guess anyway.

Looks so familiar...
Like off an old "tea caddy" or something...
Is half barrel wood ? it appears so.

 

[relic nut]

Looks like some kind of float for carb or fuel sending unit. Just a guess. Is it heavy? Is half barrel solid?

 

[cudamark]

The half barrel is solid yellow brass, just like the straps. Actually, now that I inspect it a bit closer, the strap appears to be copper. Must have been the lighting when I first scraped the edge of the strap. The half barrel is definitely yellow brass though.

 

[cudamark]

Here's a few photos of it after being cleaned up a bit. The straps overlap each other on the back side of the barrel. The ends of the straps have what looks to be the remnants of solder where it was attached.

 

[Ant]

My guess is a buckle latch.