What was my paint scraper originally made to do?

[EatenByLimestone]

It has an acid etch saying WWR Scientific. They appear to sell lab equipment now. It was my Grandfather’s, he was a tool and die maker of that helps narrow it down. The blade is spring steel and the etch says it’s stainless. The thin steel makes it a wonderful paint scraper, but I doubt that’s what it was made to do. It’ll pop a paint chip off like nobody’s business!

 

[johneh]

Over the years that type of knife has had many uses the two that come to mind are
a cake knife used to spread cake icing. The other painters (artists) use them as a pallet knife
just off the top of my head

 

[bigealta]

Yeah palette knife for painters, but those usually have a bend in them.
And those would be way to soft/flexible to be a good paint scraper.

 

[bigealta]

Straight Palette Knife 11.5cm/4.5"

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Cranked Palette Knife 11.5cm/4.5"

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[stoveliker]

Google image search with your image (it automatically selected the tool itself rather than your hand):

It lists kitchen (butter)/spatula purposes, joint tooling knife, dentist/medial spatula, hairline waxing ;p etc.
In case it works, here's the link from which I took the screenshot below (it would allow you to scroll down in the list on the right side):

Google Lens

lens.google.com

 

[bigealta]

Maybe it's a stirrer for lab fluids.

 

[begreen]

Looks like a laboratory spatula. I remember using a tool like that for measuring out dry ingredients in chemistry class.

 

[PaulOinMA]

Here's mine. Frosting/icing spreader. Really a dry chemical spatula, as mentioned.

I was a Yale chemistry grad student 40 years ago. The two chemistry buildings are next to Kline Biology Tower (KBT). A friend had to go to the KBT stockroom to get something ours didn't carry. Went with him. KBT had a cafeteria on the top floor where I could get a coffee.

There was box of these on the stockroom counter labeled "free." I picked up a couple and handed one to Bruce. "What do I want this for?" I replied, "it's a frosting spreader."

 

[PaulOinMA]

At KAF: https://www.kingarthurbaking.com/search?query=spatula#all_indices

Less expensive at all the restaurant supply places I have bookmarked.

Baking & Icing Spatulas

These spatulas for baking are the perfect utensils for spreading icing, whipped cream, and other toppings onto cakes, cookies, and pastries. Each baking spatula features a long, thin, and flexible blade that allows bakers to apply spreads smoothly. Y

www.webstaurantstore.com

 

[weee123]

I use things like that to smooth out caulk on duct work and architectural sheetmetal. Works great

 

[PaulOinMA]

This is pretty funny. I mentioned my friend Bruce from grad school.

He was in his lab at J&J (Johnson & Johnson) in NJ in the 1990s. A colleague walked by his lab, backed up, and looked in, "you know. You look just like Salman Rushdie."

Bruce thought, "great. Of all the people to look like, I have to look like someone half the world is trying to find and kill."

My wife and I moved to MA in 2003. Bruce came up to visit us in June 2004. Picture from Salem, MA. Damn, I need to get back to that weight.