westytoploader
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 4, 2004
- Messages
- 4,485
Well...this weekend I looked at the back room and the garage and decided I needed to eliminate the clutter! So, you ask, what did a 1930's Dorby Whipper and a 1980 Shop-Vac 600C have to do with it? Because they were in pieces and I hadn't put them back together yet! Earlier this year, the Dorby's cord was getting a little ratty (and it was still being used by me) so I replaced it. The only problem was, I was missing a screw and could not put it back together right away. It sat in a box since March until yesterday, when I decided to go ahead and finish putting it together. My dad & I looked at it for a long time but couldn't figure out how to get the motor on without moving the motor bracket! It then dawned on me that there was a screw missing! Luckily I found what I needed and we put it together with no problems.
Later that night I got to work on the 1980 Shop-Vac 600. I ran the plastic parts through the dishwasher in May for a good cleaning, but unfortunately I had to break the strain relief to get the motor out of the housing. Fast-forward to September and I found some NOS Heyco 6P-4 strain reliefs (the type used on this model) online. After that it was a breeze.
While working on this machine I noticed that it and its newer counterpart, the 600C are both very well made. If you were to compare these machines with what Shop-Vac is making today, you would be VERY surprised. You just can't compare the quality of these old vacuums, which is why I am partial to metal-tank Shop-Vacs to begin with. The 600 has large handles on the lid unit that you can actually grab (later models just had a recessed lip, then no handles!), a metal tank, metal lid clips, and a sturdy toggle switch. As for performance, while both machines are 5-gallons and have only 1 peak HP, they have suction comparable to today's 16-gallon machines. I haven't had anything get stuck in the hose using either Shop-Vac, and that's happened with other 5 & 6-gallons I've used. So if you're an appliance collector and want a Shop-Vac, you're better off with a vintage model like these. Ignore the crap that's being made today; you generally have to buy a 16-gallon if you want ANY power at all; the 5-gallon machines are weaker than a Dustbuster!
Metal tank machines are still fairly easy to find, although the main problem is rust. The 600C's tank had a tiny rust hole in the bottom as well as some surface rust, so I had it professionally epoxied. The 600 was much better, so I just coated the bottom of the tank with Rust-Oleum. For a dry filter I recommend the Shop-Vac UltraWeb Cartridge, less expensive than a CleanStream but still works well ($15).
Here are the pictures of the un-finished and finished projects.
--Austin
Later that night I got to work on the 1980 Shop-Vac 600. I ran the plastic parts through the dishwasher in May for a good cleaning, but unfortunately I had to break the strain relief to get the motor out of the housing. Fast-forward to September and I found some NOS Heyco 6P-4 strain reliefs (the type used on this model) online. After that it was a breeze.
While working on this machine I noticed that it and its newer counterpart, the 600C are both very well made. If you were to compare these machines with what Shop-Vac is making today, you would be VERY surprised. You just can't compare the quality of these old vacuums, which is why I am partial to metal-tank Shop-Vacs to begin with. The 600 has large handles on the lid unit that you can actually grab (later models just had a recessed lip, then no handles!), a metal tank, metal lid clips, and a sturdy toggle switch. As for performance, while both machines are 5-gallons and have only 1 peak HP, they have suction comparable to today's 16-gallon machines. I haven't had anything get stuck in the hose using either Shop-Vac, and that's happened with other 5 & 6-gallons I've used. So if you're an appliance collector and want a Shop-Vac, you're better off with a vintage model like these. Ignore the crap that's being made today; you generally have to buy a 16-gallon if you want ANY power at all; the 5-gallon machines are weaker than a Dustbuster!
Metal tank machines are still fairly easy to find, although the main problem is rust. The 600C's tank had a tiny rust hole in the bottom as well as some surface rust, so I had it professionally epoxied. The 600 was much better, so I just coated the bottom of the tank with Rust-Oleum. For a dry filter I recommend the Shop-Vac UltraWeb Cartridge, less expensive than a CleanStream but still works well ($15).
Here are the pictures of the un-finished and finished projects.
--Austin
