MetalworkingFun Forum

Here is a shop press project that has been ongoing for the last 17 years or so. I started it cutting and punching all the metal. Then i got side tracked with my train bridges so it sat for about 15 years in the corner. Then one night my daughter came home and said they wanted 80 bucks to press a new wheel bearing in her car. I jumped up and said wait a few hours i will do it. So i went to my lathe and made up the split block to hold the jack and proceded to weld up the frame. Then next day it was done. The orig 6T jack worked fine as long as my torch was handy to heat up some of the parts but i thought 12T would be better. I really didn't want to stress the frame with a 20T since the reason i started this press i forgot long ago. So move ahead 2 years i had bought a 12T jack and had the split blocks made to hold it to the top of the press i just needed to swap it all out. Since this was a long weekend and its too cold to feed the fish i headed to the garage. Just had to drill some new mounting holes and make some clamps with my shaper to hold the base of the jack to the plate and its done again. Now i am working on some more quick change tooling for smaller shafts since i am doing some bearing salvage. More pics of that to come.
Another feature of this press is its going to double as a hoist frame to lift my 2 bigger lathes on their feet. The press bed and bottom plate are bolted in so i can remove them with the jack. Then i can straddle my lathe bed and with a 1/2T chain hoist attached to the top of the press frame i can safely lift my heavy parts. Enjoy. ???? just ask...Bob

Very nice Bob,
The quick change pins for different jobs is great!
Something I keep threatening to do to my HF press.

Jerry.

Just drill a 1" hole in some stock and make a handle that is threaded in the side to hold the tooling in. It only took me a few years to design :).
Tomorrow i am going to make a bracket to have this little jewel on the side...Bob

Nice job on the press Bob, and yup that arbor press needs a good home.

Nice work Bob.

I keep thinking about building a new one, as the one I have has been a little small on some of the jobs I have needed to do on it. I plan to make a larger one and cut the current one down to mount on a bench for small stuff. Quick change tooling is also on the list, as I often spend more time looking for something suitable to do the job than it takes to actually do the job (nothing new there!!!)

(11-26-2012, 07:38 AM)Mayhem Wrote: [ -> ]I often spend more time looking for something suitable to do the job than it takes to actually do the job (nothing new there!!!)

No argument here, 'cept I also spend a good deal of time looking for suitable material.
I often give in and cut a piece off a 10 ft. length and within minutes (or seconds) find a piece only an inch or 2 longer than what I needed.

Here is a bearing splitter i made today from some 1" thick 4"x4" hot rolled steel. Just drilled a 3/4" hole in the center and cut a dish with the lathe. Then cut in half and deburred. Worked great. Even painted it with some of my seceret clear lacquer. Then i made a place to keep all of my 1" dia tooling from some angle with 1" holes punched in it. Waiting for that clear to dry to stick my tooling in...Bob

Nice tools Bob! I really do need to get a shop press.

Ed

Bob,
Nice
Oh, and beautifully painted

DaveH

Nice, a bearing splitter can't be beat for convenience!!