Today my “Antique Group” met and Kathy brought this interesting item. She thought they might be sugar snippers. From afar I suggested tiny melon ballers, or even grape ballers they were so small. Upon examination, I really think, and a few other concur, that they were a mold for lead bullets. Any other guesses?
Open View of item. It is approximately 6″ long, maybe a little longer.
Notice the little hole when they are shut. I think this was for pouring the lead into the instrument. Was the number “85” the size?
Back of item. No hole for mold ~ right? Any other guesses or knowledge of what this really is? Am I right in my assumption? Anybody know?
From Axer to Ziegler 
well i’m guessing because of the welding marks on the top it would be a mold for something, but then again molds wouldn’t have releases like that…i don’t know.
I think it’s a mold to make lead bullets.
I agree with you that it’s probably a mold to make lead bullets. But the first thing that popped into my mind was that it was some kind of dental torture device! Yikes!
It is a mould to make lead bullets. The cutter in the handles section id for clipping off the excess lead (“sprue”) so that the finished ball will be round without a tail of lead hanging off of it. The number 85 means several things…could be 85 balls to the pound, or serial numbered to match a gun. However, without any doubt whatsoever, that’s an old bullet mould..probably somewhere in the second half of the 19th century, Value is minimal unless it is marked with some famous company on it.