[Of obscure origin.]
Possibly repr. some compound of FOOT; cf. pole-foot, the hind end of a pole which goes into the cleaves of the futchels (Knight).
One of the pieces of timber carrying or supporting the shafts, or pole, or splinter-bar of a carriage.
1794. W. Felton, Carriages (1801), I. 50. The futchels are 2 light timbers fixed in The fore axeltree bed.
1851. Illustr. Catal. Gt. Exhib., I. 260. Friction plates attached to futchells.
1853. Ure, Dict. Arts (ed. 4), II. 940. The futchel or socket for the pole of the carriage, must also be jointed to the middle of the fore-axletree bed and splinter bar.
1876. Voyle, Mil. Dict. (ed. 3.), Futchels are strong pieces of wood or iron, three in number, uniting the splinter-bar and the axle-tree bed of a gun-carriage or limber.