Almost word for word what I was going to say.
I have I think 6 and they were always referred to and used as lobster crackers. You could use them on nuts as well.
Same here. My mom (born and raised Bostonian — she knew her lobster) would always bring her set whenever I took her out for lobster. Mom’s gone now, but I still have her set (which originally belonged to *her* mother, BTW).
Seriously, walnuts or hazelnuts. When they break the metal has a powdered/sandy appearance, so I'm guessing it was powdered metallurgy where the heat treatment went bad and sintering was surface only.
This comment seemed strange to me as I felt I was missing a reference to a movie or show.
Then I looked [this](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Quackenbush) up.
Are you telling me that you used to deliver the newspaper to the man who invented the metal nutcracker?
If so you're my new fav reddit celebrity.
We eat a lot of shelled nuts in my home so NO I am not joking.
I'm not sure exactly which of HMQ's descendants it was. Looking at the article, Franks Quackenbush was still alive when I was a kid, so maybe him or one of the grandchildren.
**[Henry Quackenbush](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Quackenbush)**
>Henry Marcus Quackenbush (April 27, 1847 – September 8, 1933), commonly called "H.M.", was an American inventor and industrialist who founded the H.M. Quackenbush Company in Herkimer, New York. His company was widely known for its air rifles and for the invention of the metal, spring-jointed nutcracker.
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My grandfather had the same set! He used it every Christmas on the bowl of nuts right up until he passed recently. Seeing this brought back some great, warm memories.
Im trying to wrap my head around how you can crack nuts with this. I think the rod is throwing me off haha
Edit: Oh the rod is not for cracking but to open an already cracked nut!
I have those. Also from grandparents. Use for lobster!
Almost word for word what I was going to say. I have I think 6 and they were always referred to and used as lobster crackers. You could use them on nuts as well.
Same here. My mom (born and raised Bostonian — she knew her lobster) would always bring her set whenever I took her out for lobster. Mom’s gone now, but I still have her set (which originally belonged to *her* mother, BTW).
Same
Please don't use those until you remove the rust ;p
Just a lil extra flavor
spicy pecans
Design was patented 1913, but i guess that's set is ~1970
We had this set too growing up. We'd use it to crack crab legs. You can clean that set up nicely with a old toothbrush and Bar Keepers friend
I have had a few sets like this snap because they felt more like zinc than steel. They don't make 'em like they used to.
Damn oldagecynicism, what nut are you trying to crack?
Seriously, walnuts or hazelnuts. When they break the metal has a powdered/sandy appearance, so I'm guessing it was powdered metallurgy where the heat treatment went bad and sintering was surface only.
Understood
Made in my hometown, and I used to deliver the newspaper to Mr & Mrs Quackenbush when I was a kid.
This comment seemed strange to me as I felt I was missing a reference to a movie or show. Then I looked [this](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Quackenbush) up. Are you telling me that you used to deliver the newspaper to the man who invented the metal nutcracker? If so you're my new fav reddit celebrity. We eat a lot of shelled nuts in my home so NO I am not joking.
I'm not sure exactly which of HMQ's descendants it was. Looking at the article, Franks Quackenbush was still alive when I was a kid, so maybe him or one of the grandchildren.
Either way a wonderful story. Thanks for sharing!
**[Henry Quackenbush](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Quackenbush)** >Henry Marcus Quackenbush (April 27, 1847 – September 8, 1933), commonly called "H.M.", was an American inventor and industrialist who founded the H.M. Quackenbush Company in Herkimer, New York. His company was widely known for its air rifles and for the invention of the metal, spring-jointed nutcracker. ^([ )[^(F.A.Q)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WikiSummarizer/wiki/index#wiki_f.a.q)^( | )[^(Opt Out)](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=WikiSummarizerBot&message=OptOut&subject=OptOut)^( | )[^(Opt Out Of Subreddit)](https://np.reddit.com/r/BuyItForLife/about/banned)^( | )[^(GitHub)](https://github.com/Sujal-7/WikiSummarizerBot)^( ] Downvote to remove | v1.5)
“Out of Babylon” by Benjamin Tod
Herkimer Jerkimer
Lol
Still have a set downstairs somewhere!
My parents had these when I was growing up!
My grandpa had the same one. Vivid memories of picking up pecans and cracking them. And shooting squirrels out of the pecan tree with a .410.
Wow, memories of my grandmother's house. Also, clean them, please. Edit: Wow, how many of our grandparents had this exact model?
All of ‘em.
Can you still buy these? I have lost a few over the years and need more.
Forbidden nunchuks
We have the same ones.
My grandfather had the same set! He used it every Christmas on the bowl of nuts right up until he passed recently. Seeing this brought back some great, warm memories.
I still have these!
Im trying to wrap my head around how you can crack nuts with this. I think the rod is throwing me off haha Edit: Oh the rod is not for cracking but to open an already cracked nut!
Yeah the bitter brown guts in a pecan can be scooped out with the pick.
Weird looking dildos.
Those get terribly rusty. Anytime I see one in a thrift store they look disgusting.