Athol Bench Vise Restoration

My first bench vise restoration of an Athol 614. I use electrolysis to de-rust, EZ-Weld to fill some holes in the cast iron and have a friend turn some new thrust bearings on his lathe. It was in serious need of some TLC, but is ready for another 70 years of use.
I used:
Birchwood Casey Cold Bluing

[@dalesimonds]

You’re trying to tig weld brazing rod. You need a flame to braze

[@joeshomeshop]

Unless you’re TIG brazing, which I was. You can, and I have, done both.

[@dalesimonds]

@@joeshomeshop not sure how that would work. I’m thinking melting temp for the different metals involved. I guess I never heard of tig brazing in my 40 year career

[@joeshomeshop]

@@dalesimonds This Old Tony made a video better than I have the time or desire for
th-cam.com/video/jM2_LBvzg6c/w-d-xo.htmlsi=ALU6f8-qh4k3E3yx. And then this other guy made one too, in case anyone else also never heard of TIG brazing
th-cam.com/video/nazf5gqJwfw/w-d-xo.htmlsi=uuEqUVar7pQoz6jl

[@pickletreewoodcraft7858]

It was produced post 1920 in Athol Massachusetts by Athol m&f co, Laroy starrett sued and bought Athol machine co in 1905 after a patent of his was stolen by the company and renamed it Athol m&f co in 1920, and in the early 30s was renamed to starrett. The jaws are hardened steel forge welded to the cast steel body and the version you have is a machinists vise. I inherited the same one from my grandfather and has been used by three generations of my family, I actually live in mass, about an hour from Athol. The tag is an addition from some where in Ohio I guess? I can’t help you there lol. But what you have is an incredibly robust vise, it will surely outlive us both.

[@joeshomeshop]

Thanks for the info! I knew it was post ‘20, but am really hoping to get to within a decade on when it was made. Yes, I think it was probably in a school metal shop or maybe city/county shop? I bought it in Arcanum, OH, but who knows how it got there.

[@ZeusOnDaLoose]

Nice restoration. She got another hundred years ahead of her now. 👍

[@AndyM.]

HA!! I do my channel for the same thing!!! Sure subscribers are 'kool and the gang' but it is NOT my goal! I just want, the hot young nurses, at the old folks home to wheel me up to a computer and I can see what I did when I was a young whipper snapper!!!!

[@uwould21]

Cuyahoga Valley Art Center

[@joeshomeshop]

Very possible. Their website says they've been around since 1934. Thanks for the tip!

[@laughinghyena001]

Very well done! Hope for much success with your channel!

[@peterczerwinski3374]

Awesome restore. I have a 614 also that has the Athol in large stamping on the opposite side where the two 614’s are. I just cleaned mine up, flap disk sanded it and used shellac on the bare metal parts. It is my regular workshop vise now. Also just picked up a 1940’s American Red Seal No. 64 that I will be adding to my workshop. Thing is a beast and weighs 78lbs!

[@joeshomeshop]

That sounds great, but my shop space is too small for a beast like that. If I ever get the editing done, the Columbian 504 I was restoring came out even better. Thanks for watching!

[@StabbyMcStabwood]

I've got an old 623 1/2 from my grandpa and I was thinking about restoring it, but I wasn't going to mess with any kind of paint stripping or grease scraping, I was going to sandblast it then cerakote it. Any reason why you couldn't blast one of these clean?

[@joeshomeshop]

None that I’m aware of. I have access to a sandblaster at the moment, but not when I did this. Plus, I was trying out a lot of different techniques. Sandblasting is the way to go for heavy cast iron…you can’t hurt it, and it’s very gratifying to see it clean up so quickly. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@StabbyMcStabwood]

I think he painted it black, but I'm sure he bought this thing new. She's a beauty, especially considering he did mostly wood working. Just needs the some TLC and a fresh coat of makeup.

[@GoldmansGarage]

My daily user is a 614

[@Yasirsniper]

I loved it 😍😍😍

[@1itoasif]

Millions of videos now.. not 1 for miami vice restoration

[@joeshomeshop]

I see an unexplored niche...

[@davidroosa4561]

my mind is racing with "Athol" puns

[@joeshomeshop]

No doubt. The Dad in me can hardly stand it.

[@Deadmanstools]

What did you use to paint

[@joeshomeshop]

I’m embarrassed to say it was either Krylon or Rustoleum…i used whatever I had on hand

[@AliAli-zv5ot]

👍👍💪

[@johnbauer9907]

Great job!!

[@joeshomeshop]

Thanks!

[@_BigLife_]

Nicely done

[@joeshomeshop]

Thanks!

[@rudybriskar5267]

Great job! Note: the successful restoration channels have no narration. Not the greatest background music either. Wishing you all the best growing your channel.

[@joeshomeshop]

Thanks!