Can anyone tell me what this is?

This tool was given to my boyfriend and we are wondering what it is and what it is used for. We believe it is some sort of prying tool but are not sure. Would appreciate any help.

Thanks

 

Welcome, Carolina. This doesn't ring any bells with me, but it might be helpful to others for you to give dimensions and to show this from the side so we can see the shape and length of the 4 points at the bottom of the metal bar.

 

I've usually seen them with painting stuff and assumed a can opener

 

Here are a few more pictures

 

Measurements

 

some form of grabbing hook..

 

Hi,
Reminds me of a stretching tool for wall to wall carpeting.
greg

 

My ol' man says it's a can opener, too, Terry.

 

My first thought was ice scraper.

 

Would be useful in interrogations.

 

Welcome!

 

I think it's a wood gouging tool used to begin the process of removing wood to make a bowl or even a solid wood canoe.

 

Agree with Terry and Gila, that it's a paint can opener.

 

I'm comfortable with that as long as the paint cans to be opened have square lids.

 

This tool is ergonomically incorrect for optimizing the arm motion to open a modern paint can with typical round spring-edge lid. I don't have a reference, but I know the flat-blade screwdriver existed long before the paint cans with lids as just described. I think that type of paint can was designed to be opened with a flat-blade screwdriver of appropriate size. The large screwdriver with say a 1/2 inch wide blade is ergonomically nearly ideal for opening say a one-gallon drum-shaped paint can. I don't know of of anything that works better.

Let's look for other possible uses of the green-handled claw thing.

 

I concur..

also...it seems too rugged for just that application..

 

RANT.....they made a hundred million of these and they are clogging up my search !!!!!!

 

Sorry to disagree at least in part.
I am not familiar with the tool in the photo, and also am not familiar with the history of paint-can design. However, I've done a lot of painting, and I can say with confidence that a flat-blade screwdriver is a very poor tool for opening standard paint cans, and I do know something that works far better. A screwdriver tends to damage and distort the rounded rim of the lid, and often results in a lid which is hard to open in the future.
I would never open a gallon paint can with a screwdriver except in an emergency. I always use a standard paint-can opener.
There are specific tools intended to open paint cans, without the risk of damaging the lid; they have an offset blade designed to pry without distorting the rim, and the offset is similar though not identical to that found on the tool pictured in this thread.
Photos of paint-can openers: http://www.bing.com/images/search?q...nt+can+opener&qpvt=paint+can+opener&FORM=IGRE