Athol Machine Company 5" vise, one rugged bugger

[s219]

Very nice! I have actually been to Athol,Mass one time. Old-school New England manufacturing town.

 

[Garandman]

Very cool. Nothing like made in Mass and old. My girlfriend says I'm acting like a kid at Christmas about the vise, hey what can I say.

At the beginning of the Civil War, two thirds of hardware and industrial parts and machines were made in New England. 12% of all the cotton cloth in the world was made in Lowell alone.

After the war steam power started to become more competitive and eventually lower cost than water power. Then Massachusetts and other New England states passed restrictive child labor laws that prevented children from working more than 14 hours a day (!), so the textile plants started moving closer to the cotton supply [the "Lowell System" did not use child laborers so it wasn't as big a problem as the woolen mills]. Even then, United Shoe Machinery had such a dominant position that the Federal Government sued them as a monopoly.

I worked in an industrial pattern shop in the 1980's and most of the wood working equipment was built in MA. We're talking wood lathes with 5' diameter, big bandsaws and the like. Love to have some of it but they are expensive to move and take up a lot of space.

 

[Walkin Horse]

This thread made me look at my vise. I remember when my dad bought it from a guy about 45 years ago. It says on the side 404 1/2 the little vise belonged to my FIL.

 

[Happy Gilmore]

This thread made me look at my vise. I remember when my dad bought it from a guy about 45 years ago. It says on the side 404 1/2 the little vise belonged to my FIL.

Very nice

 

[Walkin Horse]

Thanks. I hope you enjoy and use yours as much as I have mine.

 

[tcreeley]

My father in law was a machinist 30 years for GE in Lynn Mass. Closed up shop since. Starrett Tool in Athol made many of his precision tool/calipers/micorometers etc. . Used to be a family business since 1880. Don't know if still in business. Gone the way of all manufacturing in New England- cheap labor led them south, to Mexico, to asia. We used to have a solid Millers Falls (Millers Fall, MA - bought by porter cable) skillsaw that we had rebuilt by the company 3x. I let it go in 2010 because it only had a 7" blade and my 10" industrial BD was more usedul. But it was purchased in 1959 or so and saw a lot of use. Great quality - all aluminum.

Athol was a mill manufacturing town. Now it is an ebay special town. Sad commentary on the US.

 

[Happy Gilmore]

Thanks. I hope you enjoy and use yours as much as I have mine.

thank you, I'm sure I will

 

[300UGUY]

I thought Starrett was still in business. I have bought a lot from those guys, since I was in the metrology biz for gm. My dad has 2 Starrett vise's. I need to get one of those...

 

[Red Horse]

I took the girlfriend to a local animal/related items auction this evening, she actually wanted to go. I found my diamond in the rough sitting on the floor next to a bunch of junk. It was an Athol Machine Co. 683 5" vise. I tried not to act to excited about it, but carefully checked it over, straight jaws, locks up tight, no cracks or repairs and built like a tank. I picked it up for $35.00 + 10% buyers premium. Got it home and weighed it at 75lbs. Made in the good ole' USA, not too far away in Athol, Mass. Patent date of 1912 on it.




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Nice- Here is mine. Paid 50 bucks at that antique/junk shop that is the old railroad station on Rt 2 In Irving Ma. Nothing like that good old made in USA iron. As with a lot of things, when it comes to forgings, foundaries etc you can partially blame our EPA for putting so many of these industries out of business. In addition of course to slave labor in the third world!

 

[Happy Gilmore]

Very nice Red Horse! Nothing better than a quality item for short money.