✅ SOLVED Printing device?

[cudamark]

This thing is about 3 1/4" in diameter, and seems to be made of pot metal/pewter/cast aluminum. On one side, It has numbers 1-12 like a clock, and 1956 in the middle. The other side also has numbers 1-12, with a dash, and then 56 too, but, these numbers are backwards/reversed like for a printing plate. What do you suppose this was used for? Printing just the month and year (I presume 1956) seems a bit odd. Did it fit some sort of machine? I don't see any attachment point on it, and the shape seems strange for a printing plate.

 

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[pepperj]

This thing is about 3 1/4" in diameter, and seems to be made of pot metal/pewter/cast aluminum. On one side, It has numbers 1-12 like a clock, and 1956 in the middle. The other side also has numbers 1-12, with a dash, and then 56 too, but, these numbers are backwards/reversed like for a printing plate. What do you suppose this was used for? Printing just the month and year (I presume 1956) seems a bit odd. Did it fit some sort of machine? I don't see any attachment point on it, and the shape seems strange for a printing plate.

It's a date stamp for batteries.

 

[cudamark]

Cool, thanks! How was it used? I can't imagine being able to hit it with a hammer without breaking it. I guess if all you're doing is imprinting the date in the lead battery terminal, you could do it if you were real careful.

 

[pepperj]

Cool, thanks! How was it used? I can't imagine being able to hit it with a hammer without breaking it. I guess if all you're doing is imprinting the date in the lead battery terminal, you could do it if you were real careful.

Those are my questions also. Unless the plastic was branded somehow with heat.

 

[Clay Diggins]

Those are my questions also. Unless the plastic was branded somehow with heat.

You are close. The battery tops were branded with the date they were charged with acid. It was easy because just a little heat was needed and no force.

All the way up until the early 1960's pretty much all batteries were a hard rubber box that was sealed by filling the battery box with hot tar after the plates were inserted. The top of the battery surface was the cooled mass of hot tar. These batteries are commonly known as "tar top batteries". Sticky but effective. Press the warmed date and maker stamps into the soft tar surface and you have a completed battery.

Tar top batteries were sold right into the 1970's even though injection molded plastic cases were available in the early 1960's. Tar is cheap! But it's also very heavy.

Here's a page about rebuilding these tar top batteries. Pretty good pictures about 90% of the way down the page that shows filling the battery with "sealing compound" (tar).

Battery - 15 - Rebuilding The Battery

From the above article:

Marking the Battery​

You should have a set of stencil letters and mark every battery you rebuild or repair. Stamp "POS," "P," or "+" on positive terminal and "NEG," "N," or on negative terminal. Then stamp your initials, the date that you finished rebuilding the battery, and the date that battery left the factory, on the top of the connectors..

 

[pepperj]

You are close. The battery tops were branded with the date they were charged with acid. It was easy because just a little heat was needed and no force.

All the way up until the early 1960's pretty much all batteries were a hard rubber box that was sealed by filling the battery box with hot tar after the plates were inserted. The top of the battery surface was the cooled mass of hot tar. These batteries are commonly known as "tar top batteries". Sticky but effective. Press the warmed date and maker stamps into the soft tar surface and you have a completed battery.

Tar top batteries were sold right into the 1970's even though injection molded plastic cases were available in the early 1960's. Tar is cheap! But it's also very heavy.

Here's a page about rebuilding these tar top batteries. Pretty good pictures about 90% of the way down the page that shows filling the battery with "sealing compound" (tar).

Battery - 15 - Rebuilding The Battery

Great link Thanks
Brings back memories of going to the rebuilder, and getting my batteries.
There was the regular and then the Busy-Bee specials built with extra plates and care, and more $$$.

 

[cudamark]

You are close. The battery tops were branded with the date they were charged with acid. It was easy because just a little heat was needed and no force.

All the way up until the early 1960's pretty much all batteries were a hard rubber box that was sealed by filling the battery box with hot tar after the plates were inserted. The top of the battery surface was the cooled mass of hot tar. These batteries are commonly known as "tar top batteries". Sticky but effective. Press the warmed date and maker stamps into the soft tar surface and you have a completed battery.

Tar top batteries were sold right into the 1970's even though injection molded plastic cases were available in the early 1960's. Tar is cheap! But it's also very heavy.

Here's a page about rebuilding these tar top batteries. Pretty good pictures about 90% of the way down the page that shows filling the battery with "sealing compound" (tar).

Battery - 15 - Rebuilding The Battery

From the above article:

Marking the Battery​

According to what I see in the rebuilding guide you posted, they say to stamp the month/year into the the cell connectors. Access to those has gone away in today's batteries.

 

[Clay Diggins]

According to what I see in the rebuilding guide you posted, they say to stamp the month/year into the the cell connectors. Access to those has gone away in today's batteries.

Yeah that's only going to work on tar top batteries.

Since the only batteries available in 1956 were tar top batteries I'm pretty sure the OP's item would have been a well used tool.