Jotul 606 restoration project

[TWoods]

Hi,

This is my latest project'.....a Jotul 606 (circa the 70s I think). I'd like to restore it for a family member as it has sat in the corner of a barn in Maine for about 25+ years (it was originally from home outside Boston before that). I think it has a beautiful design and is probably best suited for light parlor room type duty. It seems in good condition overall and is also complete. The archway design will make an interesting tear down and rebuild (i.e. it has more parts than a
simple "box" stove). Any insight is appreciated. Pics are attached. My two initial questions are below. Many thanks!!

• Any idea where I can get new burn plates state side? I see some for sale in the UK but not seeing a lot here in the U.S.
• How should I deal with what looks like a crack in the side plate just below the Mother and child motif (2nd pic)? I am not sure if this is really a crack or just casting marks since both sides have it and every 606 picture that I see online has them too.

 

[begreen]

I think that seam below the mother and child is normal. The side burn plates look like they still have some life left in them. Woodmans has some parts.

Jotul 606 | Wood Stove | Limited Available Parts

Jotul 606 Wood Stove available parts are limited too the following burn plate liner, bakelite knob, cast iron door handle, and door latch

www.woodmanspartsplus.com

Here is a reddit thread that shows the stove fully restored by a hearth.com member. It's a beauty. @D. Hermit may have some helpful guidance with your restoration.

 

[D. Hermit]

I think that seam below the mother and child is normal. The side burn plates look like they still have some life left in them. Woodmans has some parts.

Jotul 606 | Wood Stove | Limited Available Parts

Jotul 606 Wood Stove available parts are limited too the following burn plate liner, bakelite knob, cast iron door handle, and door latch

www.woodmanspartsplus.com

Here is a reddit thread that shows the stove fully restored by a hearth.com member. It's a beauty. @D. Hermit may have some helpful guidance with your restoration.

Thank you for the kind words!

So, that is technically a seam at the top of the arch on the side castings BUT it is where they can develop a hairline crack, its common. Not normally something catastrophic because its not a crack that can spread anywhere. Clean it up and see what it looks like, if you have a stove shop around that does antique work and actually has experience brazing wood stoves to touch it up.


To me, those burn plates look shot considering the bottom one looks like its in pieces haha. And they are a nightmare to fit back in all warped. They fit perfect new. Reach out and I can get you a little better deal on them if you want.

 

[peakbagger]

I have one stored in my basement, it was only used for a few months by the original owner and has sat in storage since then. I think the burn plates are interchangeable with 602 plates from the same era but D Hermit is the best resource. Do not run without them or you are asking for the side castings to crack and warp and those are definitely not available.

Do not underestimate its capacity, it was one of the higher rated Jotuls at the time for its size. D. Hermit had posted a valuable resource (and others) awhile back and I know its somewhere on the site but I cant find it so here it is again. Looking at the various test pages, the 606 was nearly double the output of a 602 and right up there with larger stoves.

The reason is why they are rare in the US, is they got a reputation for being a houseburner as improper operation and installation can turn them into a creosote maker. They were designed to be fed small loads of dry wood frequently. When they were sold, many new wood burners bought them and the importance of dry wood wasnt understood by the new owners and most people figured they could tough it out the first winter with green wood. In some rare cases they did not make it through the winter.

Since they have an extended area to radiate heat before exiting the stove, long runs of single wall pipe before tying to a masonry chimney (which was usually oversized and on an exterior wall) meant that the flue gases got too cold and creosote would form either in the pipe or the chimney. Add in using unseasoned wood and the temptation to stuff it full of green big blocks of wood before bed followed by cranking the air way down turned it into creosote machine. The importer, reportedly just decided it was not worth the bad reputation so they stopped importing them.

I would suggest that a properly sized insulated liner connected as close as possible to the outlet of the stove along with two year seasoned dry wood and proper stove technique will make this a favorite stove.

BTW, they can be installed with the exhaust through the sides instead of the back by moving the medallion around per the manual. That sometimes helps with clearances.

 

[TWoods]

Thank you for the kind words!

So, that is technically a seam at the top of the arch on the side castings BUT it is where they can develop a hairline crack, its common. Not normally something catastrophic because its not a crack that can spread anywhere. Clean it up and see what it looks like, if you have a stove shop around that does antique work and actually has experience brazing wood stoves to touch it up.


To me, those burn plates look shot considering the bottom one looks like its in pieces haha. And they are a nightmare to fit back in all warped. They fit perfect new. Reach out and I can get you a little better deal on them if you want.

Thank you for the kind words!

So, that is technically a seam at the top of the arch on the side castings BUT it is where they can develop a hairline crack, its common. Not normally something catastrophic because its not a crack that can spread anywhere. Clean it up and see what it looks like, if you have a stove shop around that does antique work and actually has experience brazing wood stoves to touch it up.


To me, those burn plates look shot considering the bottom one looks like its in pieces haha. And they are a nightmare to fit back in all warped. They fit perfect new. Reach out and I can get you a little better deal on them if you want.

Thanks D. Hermit. I will be in touch (they look short to me too). This is my spring/ summer project so hope to be in contact soon. It is such a neat stove and I am excited to get into it. I will post some pics as I progress.

cheers,

 

[D. Hermit]

cheers,

No problem, fair warning, the backorders on vintage parts can be brutal sometimes. So just dont wait until the last minute.
Cheers!

 

[TWoods]

I have one stored in my basement, it was only used for a few months by the original owner and has sat in storage since then. I think the burn plates are interchangeable with 602 plates from the same era but D Hermit is the best resource. Do not run without them or you are asking for the side castings to crack and warp and those are definitely not available.

Do not underestimate its capacity, it was one of the higher rated Jotuls at the time for its size. D. Hermit had posted a valuable resource (and others) awhile back and I know its somewhere on the site but I cant find it so here it is again. Looking at the various test pages, the 606 was nearly double the output of a 602 and right up there with larger stoves.

The reason is why they are rare in the US, is they got a reputation for being a houseburner as improper operation and installation can turn them into a creosote maker. They were designed to be fed small loads of dry wood frequently. When they were sold, many new wood burners bought them and the importance of dry wood wasnt understood by the new owners and most people figured they could tough it out the first winter with green wood. In some rare cases they did not make it through the winter.

Since they have an extended area to radiate heat before exiting the stove, long runs of single wall pipe before tying to a masonry chimney (which was usually oversized and on an exterior wall) meant that the flue gases got too cold and creosote would form either in the pipe or the chimney. Add in using unseasoned wood and the temptation to stuff it full of green big blocks of wood before bed followed by cranking the air way down turned it into creosote machine. The importer, reportedly just decided it was not worth the bad reputation so they stopped importing them.

I would suggest that a properly sized insulated liner connected as close as possible to the outlet of the stove along with two year seasoned dry wood and proper stove technique will make this a favorite stove.

BTW, they can be installed with the exhaust through the sides instead of the back by moving the medallion around per the manual. That sometimes helps with clearances

Thank you. I was unaware of the intolerance of greenwood. That makes sense. cheers,

 

[TWoods]

Update- I started the tear down. I am trying to be very careful and deliberate to avoid damaging anything (and it is still a bit too cold for full project mode). So far, so good but lots of parts. All I think I will need for replacement metal will be the new burn plates (previously pictured) and maybe the firebox top plate (looks like it's beginning to split -see first pic below). 2nd pic are the emblems out and the 3rd pic is my helper who is having as much fun as me.

Any thoughts on on best order for disassembly? Do I try to loosen the arch pieces first? Or do I tackle the front and back first? It all seems to fit in a way that suggests you tackle it all at once. Assemble will be interesting . Otherwise, seems good.

Lastly, D. Hermit (or anyone else too) - what do you think of the top plate condition - is it worthy of restoration? I am thinking "no" but I am not sure. And, yes, I'd like to talk to you about ordering parts. I'll send a message to you directly on that.

Thank you all,

T.

 

[begreen]

Looks like a great family project. Disassemble from the top down. Use a ratchet strap around the body to keep control. Same for the reassembly. It's a very simple stove so the main thing you will likely run into is frozen bolts. Soak nuts and bolts with a penetrating oil like kroil and let them soak well. Sometimes hammering on the screw head (carefully) with a wide pin will help break rusted adhesion. If one breaks, don't worry. It can be carefully drilled out, cleaned and then tapped. Get an appropriately sized bottoming tap (8mm?) and replace where necessary.

 

[TWoods]

Looks like a great family project. Disassemble from the top down. Use a ratchet strap around the body to keep control. Same for the reassembly. It's a very simple stove so the main thing you will likely run into is frozen bolts. Soak nuts and bolts with a penetrating oil like kroil and let them soak well. Sometimes hammering on the screw head (carefully) with a wide pin will help break rusted adhesion. If one breaks, don't worry. It can be carefully drilled out, cleaned and then tapped. Get an appropriately sized bottoming tap (8mm?) and replace where necessary.

Wasn't even thinking of using a strap for to dissemble .....great idea!! thanks. I ran into to 2 frozen bolt that did snap (but I think I should still be able to get out since there is a fair amount of bolt still sticking out which is lucky....soaking now). Thanks again,

T.

 

[D. Hermit]

Looks like a great family project. Disassemble from the top down. Use a ratchet strap around the body to keep control. Same for the reassembly. It's a very simple stove so the main thing you will likely run into is frozen bolts. Soak nuts and bolts with a penetrating oil like kroil and let them soak well. Sometimes hammering on the screw head (carefully) with a wide pin will help break rusted adhesion. If one breaks, don't worry. It can be carefully drilled out, cleaned and then tapped. Get an appropriately sized bottoming tap (8mm?) and replace where necessary.

Pretty much this.

This stove is put together different than the 602 which is its sister stove. The 606s have the sides sandwiching the front/back. So you gotta work on sides first. Sometimes if you can get one side out, then you can wiggle the front and back out and then continue with the other side.

But, dont forget the arches are also holding the sides together, so all those bolts have to come out first as well. Theres something like 27 bolts for the body and archway of the stove.

You will break more. And even if theres a bit sticking out, you will likely break it as well since its prolly part of the cast iron at this point. But always try, sometimes you get lucky. For the ones that do break, grind flush with flapdisc, center punch, and then you have to bottom tap with a 6mm tap.

The biggest trick is to not drill through those castings, holes were drilled exactly 10mm deep from the foundry, but a depth gauge in mm and keep track as you drill. Most of the time when you start at your 3mm hole you will actually "punch through" after you clear the broke bolt, as theres normally a couple mm of space under the bolt. Thats an ok thing, and actually helps you keep the depth at the factory spec. You would just work it out to a 5mm hole then bottom tap it. If you are not experienced with drilling/tapping, tap the first few threads with a taper tap, then switch out to the bottom tap and follow the threads you started.

As for that top plate, I would not use it. And thats something that is not made anymore, and unfortunately, the only extra one that I had I used to rebuild the gentleman's stove thats linked further up. I can still help with side plates.

Ps. I did get the direct message and will try to get to it a bit later. Shoot me a reminder if I forget about it.

 

[begreen]

Great advice. I used a drill stop on the bits to avoid going too deep. In the least, wrap some masking tape around the drill bit to indicate the proper drilling depth.