Yeah older tools that have cast iron bodies are more stable because of the weight, important in lathes and tools that you definitely don’t want to move around while working!

There is an amazing culture of tool restorers on YouTube that show restores, rebuilds, mods, and others. If you like old tools checkout Hand Tool Rescue (a real purist), and recently Fireball tools has a series fixing and modding an amazing 100 year old bandsaw to make it safe and easier to use.