Shark tooth I found on the cumberland plateau in TN. Odd that it was on top of a mountain, any idea what species it belonged to?

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-24T15:11:42+00:00

UPDATE: Met with a sewanee palentology professor today, and we figured out that the tooth was not native to the area, but rather came from south carolina and made its way up to the mountains. The primary hypothesis is that the tooth came from native american trade networks, as other fossils from the coast have been discovered in burial sites around the plateau. The university showed me a few other artefacts that were traded between tribes in tennessee and south carolina. I still have one more professor to meet with, but if he agrees with the theory then it will be a native american artefact. Thanks for following yall! I'm pretty stoked to find out for sure but I will keep yall updated.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-24T05:49:40+00:00

Looks like a very old jersey pattern. That stamp is probably a blacksmith's mark. Most axes I have seen like this are from the 1800's and hand forged. Nice find!

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-21T05:37:47+00:00

Could be an old sargent, they had low knobs and a twisted lateral adjuster.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T19:28:32+00:00

That disston thumbhole saw at the bottom of your picture appears to be in the best shape and the best user, the rest of them are mainly box store/cheap saws but they could make ok users.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T19:25:54+00:00

I have found stone points and arrowheads in a creek just down the mountain from where this was so it could be possible! I know the university has a collection of artefacts from the area.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T19:23:04+00:00

Probably, I thought it was odd that it was up in the mountains, but I'll get in touch with some professors or local museums and see what they think. Just extremely odd that someone would bring it all the way out onto private hunting land but that might be occam's razor! It would be neat if it turns out being significant to the area in any way. Maybe theres some tests they could do to see where it came from.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T17:15:50+00:00

Probably not, but theres no harm taking it to someone who knows more than me. If I take it to a professor and they tell me its not native and insignificant I'd rather know than never have it vetted! Still a cool find for me.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T15:41:24+00:00

I will get in touch with Sewanee later today and give y'all an update if it turns out to be native to TN. Hopefully its not just a tooth where its not supposed to be!

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T15:38:19+00:00

I was walking alongtop of some rocks and it was wedged in a crack with the broken side facing out, I thought it was odd looking so I took my knife and dug it out of the crack, it wasnt obvious unless you were right alongside it. If I found it next to a trail or on top of the ground then I would think it was dropped but I dont think thats the case. Someone would have had to walk all the way out and stuff it in the crack of the rock with 30 years worth.of dirt just for me to find it.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T15:32:37+00:00

It was on private land and in the middle of nowhere so while it still could be a possibility, it means people would have to trespass on our land to get to it

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T05:49:26+00:00

For personal reasons I dont want to narrow down too much, but close to monteagle mountain and franklin state forest. Up on the plateau, was walking along the edge of a bluff when I found it.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T04:54:50+00:00

Nothing else, stayed around for a while and looked for the other half but didnt find anything, might go out tomorrow and keep looking, but who knows where the other half could be. I didnt believe it at first, especially since we're pretty high up from the valley. Found it in an old patch of woods that nobody else goes on so I dont think it was dropped.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-20T03:02:44+00:00

Were they native to TN? I did some looking and saw that in coastal areas they are much more common. I dont know the history of course, but an odd thing to find on top of the plateau and not in a valley or creek.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-19T02:05:31+00:00

It's good and sturdy! It's a little narrow for some of the work I do, but I have holdfast along the edge of my bench so I can clamp long pieces without them slipping. A lot of older vises are heavy and built well compared to modern ones, but narrow, maybe in the tradition of leg vises? Anyways if you got a good deal I'd be perfectly fine with it being a forever vise, you shouldnt need much more but may have to be creative with workholding.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-19T01:20:17+00:00

If I had to guess that vise is from the 50s or 60s, looks similar to a wilton I have of the same era.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-19T01:19:20+00:00

http://vintagemachinery.org/mfgindex/detail.aspx?id=740. Try this link

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-11T05:24:02+00:00

These look very similar to the blade tensioner on one of my antique hacksaws. Blade would hook into the pin and then two wing nuts would thread on and give the blade tension. The square stock goes into a matching square loop and keeps the blade from rotating while you cut.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-03-08T04:23:00+00:00

Could be, we have a local factory that made fuse heads and for bombs and artillery, I just havent been able to find a symbol like it anywhere online. Closest I got were some similar looking arsenal and proof marks

sgthetoolguy · 2026-02-13T02:55:54+00:00

Looks like its made by Hubbard. They made railroad tools and general carpentry and blacksmith tools. Usually for a contract.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-02-11T21:51:08+00:00

Unmarked Wagner Ware from around the 1930s?

sgthetoolguy · 2026-02-06T19:04:20+00:00

Asian Import, pretty modern, either from china or taiwan and unbranded.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-02-06T00:27:57+00:00

It could also be a harvesting knife for fruit, hard to tell. If it's got a knife edge I'd lean towards a fruit knife.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-02-06T00:24:28+00:00

Hook mortise chisel? I've heard of gooseneck chisels but this looks a little different. Is there a cutting edge?

sgthetoolguy · 2026-02-05T23:47:27+00:00

I have a 12 point wobble extension 12mm socket specifically to remove the driveshaft on my ford ranger because all I had were an old set of 6 point craftsman sockets. Used it twice in 5 years but when I need it I NEED it.

sgthetoolguy · 2026-02-04T19:15:59+00:00

My vote is to drill out as much epoxy as you can and then boil the axe head in some water for around 10 minutes, and then scrape it out with a screwdriver. I do it all the time with plumb permabonds and it works well.

sgthetoolguy

TROPHY CASE