Tool ID "Lee Splicer"
 

Posted on the Garage Journal as well. Maybe a fiber optic cable splicer?

I unscrewed the little fixture on the end for some pics to reveal the detail.

Mystery solved. Aircraft cable splicer from the 40s.

Neat looking tool, wonder if it will work to splice the cord on my blind ?

It might; but someone smarter than me (that pool seems to keep growing) would have to do it. I found out WHAT it does; just haven't figured out HOW it does it.

My guess would have been a fixture for adding thimbles to wire cable. I learned how to do that while in A&P school a long time ago. That would preload the cable around the thimble so you could install it tight. Lots of fun to use, think of shanking hands with a porcupine over and over again. Being chrome that was probably commercial grade and pretty pricey in the day.