Mystery solved!

[tshiker]

This must be why so many chisels are found without their handles!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/vtg-Old-Antique-...~oAAOSwFNZW04WI

[C. in Indy]

I'll let my wife know that at least one other person is as obsessive about old tool auctions as myself !

[Bill_Houghton]

I bet the handle, which looks like it was in brand new condition, was cheaper than a plumb bob when some young carpenter was starting out, or when a homeowner with kids and therefore no money needed one. Pretty clever, although I also bet it was marginal as a plumb bob - not enough weight to settle to plumb quickly. But needs must.

[Mike Brady]

$5.53 for a vintage chisel handle

[Downwindtracker2]

Plumb bobs were not expensive, the Stanley ones were cheap. Even the brass Hercules?? didn't cost a fortune.

[Arlin Eastman]

I never heard someone calling a chisel handle "Primitive" To me that is an outright lye and it is not a plumbob either.

To many dumb people out there just looking for money.

Arlin

[EatenByLimestone]

I've used a nut on a string a few times. Its close enough for rough carpentry.

[tshiker]

I went to a vocational school for carpentry and had a classmate who made and sold 50 caliber bullets as plumb bobs. Ever kid in class had at least one!

[Bibliophile 13]

It's amazing what some older folks would do to save a nickel back then. For a lot of people, the mindset that the Great Depression created never disappeared. I genuinely admire the frugality and creativity of such people, but occasionally they took thrift to almost silly levels--and this is one good example.