A shackle is a U shaped piece of iron closed with a pin across the jaws. It is used for securing anchors to their cables, joining lengths of chain cables and so on. This type of shackle is the same size and shape as an ordinary link of the cable and fits into the snugs of the cable holder when verring or weighing. This Kenter type, chain joining link or shackle would commonly be used with anchor chain in the marine industry for applications such as anchors, moorings and ballast. It is a versatile link that can be opened and closed by removing and re-inserting the taper pin and lead plug, allowing for easy joining and detaching lengths of chain, and for repairing damaged links in chain.This is an example of ship's maritime hardware used in Victoria in the 19500s.Half of a chain joining shackle or joining link, Kenter type , painted blue. Often used as a marine anchor chain link. A complete shackle would comprise an oval shaped loop of thick metal and central metal chock comprises three pieces; two half oval pieces with shaped ends. The pieces are joined by a taper pin diagonally through holes in each piece, then fixed firmly by a lead plug in a hole near the head of the pin. This object is missing its other half, plus the chock and the tapered locking pin.flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, shackle, joining link, chain joining shackle, anchor chain joining link, marine chain joining link, kenter type chain joining link, marine hardware, kenter chain joining shackle

This Kenter type , chain joining link or shackle would commonly be used with anchor chain in the marine industry for applications such as anchors, moorings and ballast. It is a versatile link that can be opened and closed by removing and re-inserting the taper pin and lead plug, allowing for easy joining and detaching lengths of chain, and for repairing damaged links in chain.Chain joining shackle or joining link, Kenter type , used as a marine anchor chain link. The oval shaped loop of thick metal and central metal chock comprises three pieces; two half oval pieces with shaped ends. The pieces are joined by a taper pin diagonally through holes in each piece, then fixed firmly by a lead plug in a hole near the head of the pin. flagstaff hill, warrnambool, shipwrecked-coast, flagstaff-hill, flagstaff-hill-maritime-museum, maritime-museum, shipwreck-coast, flagstaff-hill-maritime-village, shackle, chain joining shackle, joining link, anchor chain joining link, marine chain joining link, kenter type chain joining link, marine hardware

Chains are available in a variety of link shapes and sizes. They have many uses on sailing vessels, such as part of anchoring systems or loading cargo onboard the ships. A link called a shackle is used as a quick and flexible way to join two pieces of chain. Sometimes the shackle needs a tool to remove it. A shackle punch like this one will do the job. A modern term for a similar tool, that also has a handle, is a ‘breakdown’ tool. It is designed for aligning and driving pins in and for removing bolts, rivets and pins. This shackle punch has a handle with six flat sides that prevent it from rolling around when stored. It has a fine shank that tapers down to the end. The tool is placed on the join of the shackle, and then the end of that handle is hit with a hammer until the join breaks apart. The shipwright’s tools on display in the Great Circle Gallery are connected to the maritime history of Victoria through their past owner, user and donor, Laurie Dilks. Laurie began his career as a shipwright in the mid-1900s, following in the wake of the skilled carpenters who have over many centuries used their craft to build and maintain marine vessels and their fittings. You can see Laurie’s inscription on the tool called a ‘bevel’. Laurie worked for Ports and Harbours, Melbourne, for over 50 years, beginning in the early 1960s. He and a fellow shipwright inscribed their names on a wheelhouse they built in 1965; the inscription was discovered many decades later during a repair of the plumbing. Many decades later Laurie worked on the Yarra moving barges up and down the river and was fondly given the title ‘Riverboat Man’ His interest in maritime history led him to volunteer with the Maritime Trust of Australia’s project to restore and preserve the historic WWII 1942 Corvette, the minesweeper HMAS Castlemaine, which is a sister ship to the HMAS Warrnambool J202. Laurie Dilks donated two handmade displays of some of his tools in the late 1970s to early-1980s. The varnished timber boards displayed the tools below together with brass plaques. During the upgrade of the Great Circle Gallery Laurie’s tools were transferred to the new display you see there today. He also donated tools to Queenscliffe Maritime Museum and Clunes Museum.The shipwright’s tools on display in the Great Circle Gallery are connected to the maritime history of Victoria through their past owner, user and donor, Laurie Dilks. Laurie began his career as a shipwright at Ports and Harbours in Melbourne in the mid-1900s, following in the wake of the skilled carpenters who have over many centuries used their craft to build and maintain marine vessels and their fittings.A shackle punch; a metal tool with six flat sides on the handle and the shank tapers inwards to a rouded point. It once belonged to shipwright Laurie Dinks.flagstaff hill, warrnambool, great ocean road, shipwreck coast, maritime museum, maritime village, shipwright, carpenter, shipbuilding, ship repairs, hand tool, equipment, ship maintenance, cooper, tool, marine technology, shackle punch, breakdown tool, chains, links, laurie dilks, l dilks, port and harbours melbourne