The VISES of Garage Journal

[autopts]

I won this Athol 717 5" vise in a Auction. But after un-bolting it from the 4 x 4 and flipping it over I found it was welded on the mounting tabs. Well rule # 1, go preview the auction before bidding. I Won the Vise for $35, and it will go with the Golden pile. I was hoping to have a nice vise that did not need much work to restore. Anyone seen a Athol 717, Can't find any info on them. It was under water for a couple of days in the town of Lyons Colorado during the Colorado floods.

Wow, that vise I think has a lot of life left in it. The jaws seem to align up very nicely. That would make for the perfect user vise despite that repair which is nothing. As it sits, its nicer then what many of us use I think. I suspect Fred (bl00) to come across and fill in the empty blanks on this 717 athol you were lucky enough to land.

 

[zoomieport]

Gentlemen, I need a little help here...
Does anyone have a source for the old jaw screws with the "steep pitch head", I believe it's 30 degree pitch at the head... Like for older Craftsman vices as example.
Let me know, thank you in advance!
ZOOM

 

[bl00]

I suspect Fred (bl00) to come across and fill in the empty blanks on this 717 athol you were lucky enough to land.

I got nuthin'. Athols have never interested me for some reason, so haven't looked for info.

 

[wxm]

Gentlemen, I need a little help here...
Does anyone have a source for the old jaw screws with the "steep pitch head", I believe it's 30 degree pitch at the head... Like for older Craftsman vices as example.
Let me know, thank you in advance!
ZOOM

Are these what you want? http://www.viseparts.com/category_s/81.htm

 

[zoomieport]

Well... I was in Holland Michigan today on business and decided, what the heck, stop by YOST and see if they'll show me around...
I was met by Ryan (one of the owners, I did not realize they are family owned...), whom I and several other members have talked to on the phone, and I've got to tell you, he is a great guy, very cool dude! I didn't even get into my crazy explination of why I was there... And he said "want to take a tour?"
And away we went...

 

[zoomieport]

Here are a few of the pictures i took, with permission of course...

 

[zoomieport]

And a few more pictures...

 

[zoomieport]

And a few more pictures...

What a great day, thanks Ryan!!!

ZOOM

 

[oldldh]

It does this old heart good to see something still manufactured in this country...

Yost makes some heavy duty clampers...

Thanks for the look inside...

 

[zoomieport]

Are these what you want? http://www.viseparts.com/category_s/81.htm

Yes, I believe they are!

Thank you very much!!!

ZOOM

 

[mtnwkr]

Very cool. Thanks for sharing Zoom!

 

[balane]

Wow zoomie, that's like... the best post I've seen in this thread. Way to go.

I didn't see it, do they cast these on property?

 

[zoomieport]

It does this old heart good to see something still manufactured in this country...

Yost makes some heavy duty clampers...

Thanks for the look inside...

Very cool. Thanks for sharing Zoom!

Wow zoomie, that's like... the best post I've seen in this thread. Way to go.

I didn't see it, do they cast these on property?

He just took me through the offices, warehouses and the finishing areas. I did not see a "casting area", but there was a LOT of the building I didn't see, so I'm not sure... However, I don't think so, I should have asked. I will next time I stop in, I'll be back, lol! I was so stunned at the 4 warehouses full of vises and the AWESOME vintage machinery there, I kind of got wrapped up in the sheer volume of vises and finishing processes and I kind of lost my head a little, lol!
ZOOM

 

[toomanytoyzz]

He just took me through the offices, warehouses and the finishing areas. I did not see a "casting area", but there was a LOT of the building I didn't see, so I'm not sure... However, I don't think so, I should have asked. I will next time I stop in, I'll be back, lol! I was so stunned at the 4 warehouses full of vises and the AWESOME vintage machinery there, I kind of got wrapped up in the sheer volume of vises and finishing processes and I kind of lost my head a little, lol!
ZOOM

Did they have any virgin mammoth relics in the offices or in a showroom? Definitely somewhere I'd love to check out. Thanks for posting!!

 

[jakemac]

....................., I kind of got wrapped up in the sheer volume of vises and finishing processes and I kind of lost my head a little, lol!
ZOOM

You also forgot to ask if you could grab a few jaw screws while you were there.

 

[zoomieport]

Did they have any virgin mammoth relics in the offices or in a showroom? Definitely somewhere I'd love to check out. Thanks for posting!!

No, they've changed hands and locations at least 3 times (meadeville, muskegon and holland) so they don't really have any old relics. But Ryan did say the he reads this page and through that and members calling him for info, he is now very interested in the history of the company prior to his family purchasing it. In fact he said he had to stop reading the thread at work because he would get engrossed in the forum and not get any work done, lol!

You also forgot to ask if you could grab a few jaw screws while you were there.

Yes, I did forget! I think it was right after I saw a 4'x4'x4' box of 8" swivel bases, I kinda lost my mind!

ZOOM

 

[north]

Thanks for the pics zoomieport. Loved the 'old' atmosphere.

 

[EOC_Jason]

That is so awesome zoomie, thanks for sharing....

At first I thought maybe it was Nick's Garage... J/K!!!

 

[cclfn]

Zoom

WTG great thread

I am thinking you should buy one of each current production Yost and save them for your great grand kids.

I keep going back to the pictures with the pallets of vises, of course being a grown man they didn't bother me

Thanks,

Wes

 

[JasonJ]

My new vise.... I was actually looking for a bench grinder on CL and when the guy sent moe the pic, this vise was in their background. I asked him about it and it was for sale as well. Best part is, he even delivered it. guess he needed the money.

Craftsman model 5196 / 4" jaws

 

[oldldh]

I'm looking all over the place for a 5197/5198, and 5196 FALLS into your lap...

I hate you!!!

That 5196 weighs 60 lbs!!!

 

[thundermug]

Wow, Yost looks like the kind of place I'd like to work at.

 

[JasonJ]

Well it's not what you are looking for. I just found a Wilton model 645 two weeks ago (non-bullet) and figured I was done vise shopping until this popped up. I'll post more pics tonight, having trouble attaching more than one file at a time on the iPad.

 

[zoomieport]

Well it's not what you are looking for. I just found a Wilton model 645 two weeks ago (non-bullet) and figured I was done vise shopping until this popped up. I'll post more pics tonight, having trouble attaching more than one file at a time on the iPad.

Reduce the size of the photo to about 900x900 pixels. They'll pop right up.

 

[bigcaddy]

My new vise.... I was actually looking for a bench grinder on CL and when the guy sent moe the pic, this vise was in their background. I asked him about it and it was for sale as well. Best part is, he even delivered it. guess he needed the money.

Craftsman model 5196 / 4" jaws

Nice looking vise. I, along with many other on here, rank it as one of the best looking vises ever made.

They are built like little Sherman tanks but have the lines and style of a Rolls-Royce. An excellent catch

 

[fullthrottle24]

I have to agree love the Craftsman 5196. Here is mine. I had to have my brother in law grab this one from Florida for me. Had to wait 6 months to get my hands on it. Dated 10/54. Made it past the 20 year guarantee and then some.

 

[Fyrme]

One I just finished up.....

 

[balane]

Very nice job Fyrme. Looks brand new.

 

[JasonJ]

I have to agree love the Craftsman 5196. Here is mine. I had to have my brother in law grab this one from Florida for me. Had to wait 6 months to get my hands on it. Dated 10/54. Made it past the 20 year guarantee and then some.

Where are the date codes stamped at?

More pics...

 

[fullthrottle24]

Where are the date codes stamped at?

The date code can be found on top of slide near the static jaw.

 

[oldldh]

Jason---

Your 5196 comes from a good bloodline...

The red vise is a "Properly" restored 5196...

The next two are photos of a 5196 in almost pristine "new" condition...this vise sold on Ebay for more than $ 265.00/including freight...I was in on the bidding, but it exceeded my budget

The last photo, with the universal measuring devise, is a 4 1/2"/77 lb/5197 that belongs to a member of this board who will not let it go...I'm preparing the voodoo doll for its pins...very soon...

Helluva nice vise, you lucked up on...watch your back!!!!

 

[va.grouseman]

Zoomie. I pulled up Yost history, and it says they they only have 5 to 9 employees. Is that true or are those old statistics? Seems like a small crew to produce so many vises.
Here's the link. http://www.manta.com/c/mmqytyw/yost-manufacturing-co

 

[EOC_Jason]

Wow, Yost looks like the kind of place I'd like to work at.

... and they could even pay most of us in vises... lol....

 

[kazlx]

Rescued this dainty little lady from the trash today. I was at a small auto shop and the guy said he was going to get rid of it because it was too heavy. I asked him what I wanted and he said to just take it and get it out of the yard. It's got to be at least 100lbs. Hollands #16. FWIW that's the bed of my Tundra.

 

[oldldh]

Free!!!

You really ****!!!

Nice score, now "Properly" restore that wee beastie, and post lots of pictures of the process!!!

You really ****...

You really ****...

You really ****...

 

[ADSR]

Rescued this dainty little lady from the trash today. I was at a small auto shop and the guy said he was going to get rid of it because it was too heavy. I asked him what I wanted and he said to just take it and get it out of the yard. It's got to be at least 100lbs. Hollands #16. FWIW that's the bed of my Tundra.

WTF?? he was going to trash it?

nice score, buddy.

 

[KMScott]

Kevin,
The picture of the Athol has been bugging me and I finally figured out why. The knob on the front, that the handle passes through, is the shape of one that had a method of disengaging from the screw. Check the link below to see what I'm talking about. The odd part is that this type of Athol had a handle that didn't pass through the knob like your's does. Anyway, maybe it'll turn out to be an unusual model.
http://robertsprojects.blogspot.com/...thol-vise.html

-Fred

bl00
You are awesome, you was right, look at what was under the weld near the ball by the handle, just like you thought. Looks like a clutch activated handle, I still have more weld to remove but this vise will be fun when it is repaired. The previous owner not only welded the sliding sleeve but also at the end where a thumb screw should be if you are not interested in a clutch activated handle, I'll have to set it up in my knee mill to remove that weld. There should be a spring under the ball end to keep the teeth engaged, then you just pull on the handle to re position it where you want it. I can see this type of action will not handle much abuse, maybe that is why it was welded. Also the threads are Buttress, A buttress thread is designed to take heavy loads. The second Athol I seen using Buttress threads.

I do not own a machine lathe so I had to remove the weld with my surface grinder and a Suburban Master Grind spin fixture.


Thanks Fred for bringing this to my attention, I would have never guessed what was under the weld.

 

[autopts]

And a few more pictures...

What a great day, thanks Ryan!!!

ZOOM

Hey zoom, is it true that its about a 2-3 man shop? Thanks for the photos

 

[KMScott]

Zoomie
Just went through your pic's of the Yost factory, enjoyed seeing the old machinery, vise parts and well everything you snapped a picture of. I would have been curious if they make their own jaws, and how they cut their serrations. Thanks for taking time to post all the pictures.

JasonJ
Really nice Craftsman vise. I like how the 50 series looks and want one real bad.

That Hollands # 16 that kazlx picked up from the trash is a once in a life time find.

Great day on the vises of GJ thread.

 

[zoomieport]

Kevin, I knew you were going to ask that!
As far as how many employees, I'm not sure. It's not a huge operation, but there is a lot of square footage, I would say you are on the right track, 10 or less, not sure...
But Ryan said I could stop by anytime, so I'm making a list for next time, so I can find out next time I'm in town. I'm there every couple of weeks, maybe I'll take him to lunch and we can chat more. I didn't want to keep him too long, since I kind of appeared out of nowhere on him, lol! He was a very gracious host!
Next time I'm going to see if I can get more pictures of the cool old machinery too, they've got some Cool Tools. Thanks!
ZOOM