Reamer?

[Shreckmeister]

Can anyone definitely say what the intended use of this machine is?  Gunsmith related?
Age?

[Dennis Glazener]

Maybe to put pressure on a hand brace/bit?
Dennis

[rich pierce]

How long is it?

[T.C.Albert]

So doesn't the handle stroke out and hit the wooden plank its mounted on?
You would have to feed the work into the turning chuck...but the rest below the chuck
though adjustable, looks to be rather fixed. Maybe a bearing reamer...light drill press..
it seems built along the lines of the old post drills with out all the auto feed gears etc...
Also, the chuck looks like it takes a particular sized bit shank, making it a bit problematical
to use these days...(no pun intended.)
tc   

[Shreckmeister]

All I have is this picture.  We're going to have to guess at the length.  Looks like a 1 size chuck that
might take those 4 sided tapered bit ends.  I think the handle WOULD stroke out so it must not
be intended to move very far.  I would say not a drill press.  Wish I had a picture of the rest of it.
My thinking is not a gunsmith tool, but might be worth a drive to see it up close.

[Jerry V Lape]

Watermelon peeler!

[blackdave]

It is a drill press - my Dad collects them and has one just like it - maybe early 20th century.

My humble opinion,

Just Dave

[Shreckmeister]

If so, then it looks like you can only drill 3-5 inches deep with it?

[okieboy]

 Rob, blackdave is right, it is a simple form of a drill. You might think of this as the more commonly see post drill stripped down to it simplest form. These were not intended for drilling very deep holes. I have seen these mounted both vertically and horizontally, though vertically makes more sense to me. The adjustable fork on the bottom end was for hold the drill table, which was a round plate of iron with a shaft about 4" long on one side to locate it between the fork tines. This drill would have been much less expensive than the tradition geared flywheel post drill, so you might think poor blacksmith or farm shop. A gunmaker could have used it, but it wasn't suitable for barrel drilling.

[Shreckmeister]

Thanks to all for the feedback.  Simple drill press.  Not too exciting. 

[Bill of the 45th]

There's one like in the wagon wheel shop at the Museum of the Appalachia.  Saw it this spring at the show.  Not sure what it was used for, but it was mounted the same way on a two legged bench.

Bill

[JWBlair]

New member here,hello.You'll find that kind of drill listed in old catalogs as a "Blacksmiths Drill".The chuck was designed for a 4 sided tapered shank bit that the Blacksmith would make himself to suit the job at hand,very simple flat bits with a point on them similiar to a modern masonry bit.

As a point of interest they are listed in the 1897 S&R Co. catalog,cost $1.50.

If you have an interest in blacksmithing tools and can locate a copy at a resonable price this is one of the better books for IDing them and there uses-

http://www.amazon.com/Blacksmiths-Farriers-Tools-Shelburne-Museum/dp/0939384078

[Acer Saccharum]

I have one of those EXACT machines.....it was in my basement, which was an old carriage building shop. The crank turn the drill, which is one of the square shank bits, and the handwheel is used to apply steady pressure of drill on the workpiece.  The threaded screw is hollow for the shaft of the handcrank drill to turn in.