The existential endtime pleasures of watching silent restoration videos

It is perhaps in the spirit of our anxious, rickety age that antique tool, machinery, and toy restoration videos are becoming increasingly popular. There is something oddly comforting and therapeutic…

It is perhaps in the spirit of our anxious, rickety age that antique tool, machinery, and toy restoration videos are becoming increasingly popular. There is something oddly comforting and therapeutic about seeing the old, the forgotten, the previously reliable (now seized with rust and neglect) being lovingly restored to life.

These videos are simple, quiet (usually with no spoken narrative), and most of the restoration process is carefully shown, from disassembly to cleaning, sanding, repainting to re-assembly and testing. This is a world in which time, Evapo-Rust, a wire wheel, and some rattle-cans of enamel paint can repair the past to near show room luster.

I can't get enough. And for makers, there are lots of great repair and restoration tips embedded in these videos. Here are a few of my favorite channels.

1940s Metal Lathe [Restoration]
Watch this video on YouTube.

Massive Tap & Die Set ~ RESTORATION ~ Honoring a previous Craftsman's Tool Set
Watch this video on YouTube.

I Bought a Faulty STEAM ENGINE for Restoration. Can I Get It Running Again?
Watch this video on YouTube.

Can This Tonka Truck Be Restored? Impossible Restoration! Watch Till The End!
Watch this video on YouTube.