Doohickey?

[letterboy]

yeah a couple guys found some UXO on a FOB in Iraq . . . it was covered in dirt . . . to clean it off they starting smacking it against a wall . . . needless to say the one guy lost an arm . . .

 

[dpbishop]

I think that is a vane from an old tow-behind knot meter (Taffrail Log). Here's a link to some examples:TAFFRAIL SPEED AND DISTANCE LOGS

 

[wb5plj]

gizmos have moving parts, it can't be a gizmo

 

[Teamcasa]

It is a harpoon log.
From; SHONAS WRECKS

 

[MikeDiver]

Thanks for the replys. Never would have figured that one out
on my own. I guess we might have found some boat or barge
remnants. This calls for a little more exploration.

 

[300bar]

It is a harpoon log.
From; SHONAS WRECKS

Actualy,it's a (HARPOON) trailer log.Aka chiplog or shiplog.It was used for measuring shipsspeed in the pre GPS day's.
Log - LoveToKnow 1911 just scoll down to halfway the page Fig.3
Nice find btw.

 

[nannymouse]

Ok, you can hit it with a hammer now!

 

[letterboy]

I would use a big sledge, they work better

 

[MikeDiver]

No hammers for me, But I do believe we'll hit that site a few more times to see what other "treasures" it holds.

 

[wb5plj]

It did have a moving part, it was a gizmo. that is cool. Amassing how accurate these things appear to have been for how they worked. I wouldn't have expected hardly any accuracy if some one just told me about the idea. Absolutely cool, I love learning new things.