"Joe" wrote: I just bought what I've always called a "hay scale". (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
It sounds like a steelyard scale (pronounced stilyerd.) I have one hanging
in the living room with a pan, holding some plants. It is constructed so
the beam can be inverted to bring different hooks into play, changing the
ratio. Yours most likely has a pan missing. You could make one or find one
from an old grocery scale. You will have to tinker with the weight, of
course, if you want it to work.