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Ball Bros. Patent Sardine Tongs

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Author	Topic: Ball Bros. Patent Sardine Tongs
Brent Posts: 1507 Registered: May 99	posted 06-04-2007 05:54 PM [IMG] Hello all, Here is an interesting pair of mechanical silverplate sardine tongs. The mechanism has three pivoting hinges, and is controlled by the large hoop-shaped spring at the top. It does work, but in use the arms tend to pull unevenly and skew, so it really doesn't offer much advantage over a simple yoke type design. Aside from the oddity factor, does anyone have any information on Ball Bros.? The PATENT stamp seems to imply the existence of a US patent, but the other marks seem more like English platers' marks. The only Ball Brothers I know of founded the famous canning jar company up the road in Muncie, IN. It is tempting to think that this might have been an offshoot of the canning business, but I do not know any more. Any ideas? Brent IP: Logged
doc Posts: 728 Registered: Jul 2003	posted 06-06-2007 11:49 AM There was a Ball Bros. maker in Birmingham, England in business at the turn of the 20th century. I do not have any source that identifies their mark, but I was able to find an auction listing with online with a pair of plated candlesticks attributed to them, c. 1899 (no photo of the marks). IP: Logged
Brent Posts: 1507 Registered: May 99	posted 06-06-2007 10:29 PM Thanks, Doc! You probably have found the right Ball Brothers. I wonder if they did obtain a US patent for their invention? Brent IP: Logged
dragonflywink Posts: 993 Registered: Dec 2002	posted 06-07-2007 07:09 AM Why couldn't it be a British patent? ~Cheryl IP: Logged

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