On 2007-12-15, William Noble wrote:
picture he
http://www.metalworking.com/dropbox/...haped_tool.JPG

That is a relay contact cleaner made for (and probably by) the
Bell telephone company/Western Electric.

the accompanying text file says"this tool has the number 265C stamped in
white on the body, no other markings. Brass band around cap, body and cap
seem to be bakelite or hard rubber. Strips and pins shown below the tool
are stored in the handle. All are attracted to a magnet. No maker's mark
anywhere on the tool.

The strips and pins are all coated with very fine diamond to use
as laps for renewing relay contacts. The strips look a little different
from what I've seen. Those had one end rounded to a radius which made a
half-circle of the width of the strip, and the other end was narrowed
down for perhaps 3/16" length and similarly rounded to match the
narrower width -- to get to individual contacts on newer relays, I
suspect.

I picked up several of these from an estate - if I had to guess, I'd say
they had to do with setting and cleaning telephone relays, but I figure
someone here would know what they were for and their age and maybe even
more....

Well ... I first saw them in the mid 1960s, but they could have
been in use for a lot longer than that. And the square ends instead
of rounded may mean that they are older or newer than what I've seen.

A nice tool to have if you work with relays.

Enjoy,
DoN.

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