This month's item is a tire measuring wheel (not to be confused with a tire marker). This one was made by Wiley & Russell Mfg. Co., established in 1872. In 1912, Wiley & Russell was acquired by Greenfield Tap & Die Corp. The Wiley & Russell name, and all its tools and machinery not related to thread-cutting, were discontinued after 1916. We took this month's answer from The Dictionary of American Hand Tools: A Pictorial Synopsis, by Alvin Sellens. To learn more about the book and how to order it, check out our Resources page.

Tire wheels were used to measure the length of flat strap required to make a new wagon tire. The wheel was measured by rolling a measuring wheel around the outside surface and counting the revolutions. The process was then repeated on a straight length of wagon tire iron. (An additional amount was added to account for bending and welding.) Most of the commercially made tire wheels were calibrated in inches and were equipped with a moveable pointer. The pointer could be set to the number of inches required to complete revolutions. Homemade measuring wheels generally had only one scribe line to mark the starting point of the measurement. Common commercial wheels were 24 inches in diameter and were made of either iron or brass. Homemade varieties made of iron or wood were common.