Can you identify this ?

It is an uncoupler contraption... I'm looking through my resources to see if I can get you a manufacturer.

Appears to be an uncoupling track, maybe manually operated.

Bill DeBrooke posted:

Appears to be an uncoupling track, maybe manually operated.

I concur.

Homemade would be my guess, cool to have, though.

Marx made that funny looking post and claw coupler at one point.  This looks like it might have been able to trip that lever under the truck if if were raised.  That's all I got.

That is the uncoupler for Lionel 'scout' couplers.

Thanks Everyone !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Definitely a Lionel Scout contraption. Scout sets had two different couplers, one on each end of the trucks. The trucks would spin around so you could use the coupler you desired. One was a knuckle coupler and the other was of a style that would uncouple when you used the thing you have there. It did not work on the knuckle coupler. 

I'm surprised to see that this is supposedly Lionel... can someone point me to documentation that backs this piece as a Lionel piece? I thought for sure it would end up being Japanese or European...

I can't offer a citation but that uncoupler is the same as the one that came with my first Lionel set (which was a Scout set) way back in 1951.

Correction: I just checked my 1951 Lionel catalog - that piece of track is illustrated on page 7 along with the description of the Lionel Scout set.

Just a note, If any scout cars have knuckle couplers, Lionel made the clip-on knuckle coupler plate to couple with standard cars.

Scout uncoupling unit. 

I was able to find it in a Lionel catalog. Surprised I've never come across it before!

It’s a Lionel Manumatic uncoupler, used in low end Scout Sets.