What is this?

[C30GB]

See attached photo. This piece came with my boat when I bought it. Anyone know what it is for?

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

These Pop Quizes are Great ....................

See attached photo. This piece came with my boat when I bought it. Anyone know what it is for?

.................. as they really keep the mental gears well greased. We had a similar question to this yesterday and some of the answers were, shall we say, extremely inventive.

My first guess would be a sling shot minus the elastic band.

And here I'm going to take the liberty of offering a second guess and say it might be a plywood wrench for a gland nut (disposable, one use only) .

 

[rbmcintire]

Forked stick "divining" rods are used by some water well diggers to locate water. Walking around and using both hands on the "double" end, the "single" end gravitates down when it "senses" water underground, indicating where to dig. The pictured device, being on a sailboat, obviously isn't for water (since that's not hard to find), but likely used to find wind. Watermen on the Chesapeake have used these for centuries and also use other types for oysters, crabs and different fish species.

Rob

 

[agprice22]

It looks to me designed to prop something up, hold something up, or hold something open. It's use may become apparent after you use the boat for a while, as sailors are masters of inventing devices and tools to make sailing a vessel easier or more convenient. Does it fit on a wheel or on a tiller?

 

[agprice22]

Also, is that a small nail hole at the base? If so, can you find where it was mounted or hung?

 

[caguy]

It's a Dikfer.

 

[dziedzicmj]

possibly a support for the mast (if you store the boat with mast down)

 

[Joe]

It's a "Y". You'll know what it is when you need it, which will most likely be right after you throw it away.

 

[jrowan]

Being that the Y appears to be made of a formica type covered wood, I would assume its was made to prop up a fold down countertop extension, or possibly a boom or mast when laid down on the deck. But if it is made out of formica covered masonite then it was never designed to hold up to exterior exposure. So it was likely not designed to be iused outside of the cabin. I would not throw it away, until you figure out what it does.

 

[Kermit]

It's a tuning fork. Used for tuning the rigging. And remember, you can tune a piano but you can't tuna fish!

 

[Ralph Johnstone]

I Know I'll Regret This ....................

It's a Dikfer.

................ but what is a Dikfer.

Oh .................... I am so sorry I asked .

 

[agprice22]

No, It can't be a Dikfer! I hear you can only get one of those using form ID-10-T. Just a rumour, though!
Hmmm!

 

[Brad Woodward]

See attached photo. This piece came with my boat when I bought it. Anyone know what it is for?

Looks like it supports the boom when the sail is down. Looks too small for the mast to fit in. Is there a slot or a place to put it in on top of the cabin? But then it could be for trailoring a different boat. You know during WWII they put some dummy electronics in bombers to make the Germans spend a lot of time trying to figure out what it was.

 

[Bob S]

Looks home made. Could it attach to the emergency tiller as an extension? It's too small for the mast or boom. My first thought was a tuning fork

 

[philwsailz]

Seacock wrench.

 

[Me and Boo]

It is a fine specimen. Much better than machine made too. My guess is it is used to turn the seacock handle in the engine compartment to avoid being burned after a run.

 

[degreeoff]

Easy, if your boats a tiller, it does something there.....if no.....most likely a way to support the dining table when used as a bed base

 

[vtsailguy]

Yes, no doubt about it. It's definitely a widget.....