Star Press

[Bcorso85]

Hey Guys,

A while back I bought a 10 ton hydraulic press from Harbor Frieght. I'd like to convert it over to air operated, pneumatic, from manual.

What do I need to buy? Something affordable. Any suggestions? The purpose would be mostly star and comet plates.

 

Or is this even necessary? I've never used a press before so I'm in the dark pretty much. Is hand cranking the pump acceptable for a star plate?

[mikeee]

You will need a pressure to force gauge to monitor how much pressure you are applying to your tooling and comps. You will also need to decide if and how you will modify the hydraulic press to accept a standard hydraulic cylinder to work with the air operated pneumatic assist system. Most of the harbor freight presses use a bottle jack ram, which will require some sort of adapter plate to hold the conventional hydraulic cylinder. The harbor freight presses also need to be stiffened up with cross bracing or weld the corner with braces to keep the press square. If you can grab the press by frame and wiggle it back and forth you will see how much play is in the frame. This can cause problems while pressing rocket motors and comets and stars when the top and bottoms don't align properly. These presses come in handy for plenty of small

jobs and processes for pyro...............however once you use a press designed for pressing motors and comets etc you will understand the difference with the different models. Comes down to how much money you care to spend and how many items you need to press in an hour/day/week. There are several tutorials on building a Pyro press or modifying an arbor press for Pyro applications. The other concern is how long of a ram do you need and how much working space you have for your Pyro tooling to make your motors,comets,stars etc. Larger rocket motors need plenty of room for tooling and long rammers. The other question is stand pneumatic hydraulic pump system or air over hydraulic pneumatic system. I have a portable 12VDC powered pneumatic hydraulic pump system on my Firesmith press. This allows me to use the press at remote shoot sites using a car battery to power the press. You will need 120V power or a generator to run other types of powered presses. There is no one easy solution for a Pyro press unless you do a lot of modifications to a cheap press and spend the money to automate it.

Edited September 18, 2015 by mikeee

[Bcorso85]

Thanks Mike. Honestly, it sounds like I should just purchase the appropriate press, modeled for pyro. This will be used 95% star plates.

Very detailed. and thank you.

[mikeee]

You can also make a pressure to force gauge with one of the small hydraulic rams that harbor freight and other suppliers sell. There are several tutorials that explain the modification process. Or you can purchase one from Wolter Tools or FireSmith tools. Caleb could also make one for you if you want to give him a shout. He has a mill and lathe which speeds up the process for making the pressure force gauge. A drill press and thread tapping tools are mainly what you will need to modify and make the gauge along with some hydraulic fittings and gauge. If you are careful with your tooling and HF press it will get you by for a while. There is a mail order discount surplus supply company in Lincoln Ne that sells the Hydraulic pump assemblies for converting a press, you can also find them on the Grainger website.

Edited September 18, 2015 by mikeee

[schroedinger]

On the other hand you can skip the PtoF gauge and just buy a cylinder witch that comes from the factory with a port for attaching a gauge. This saves you a lot of work.

 

If you are ready to buy a press, the firesmith presses xome with everything you need and are on sale until 9/25/15.

[Bcorso85]

Thanks guys. I saw the firesmith press. It's just more than I"m comfortable spending. They look great and I'd be happy to buy one! I was clicking around and I'm starting to think about just making a cheap table top press. Just like on skylighter's tutorial. But for pressing up to 1/2 stars 99% of the time. Ricket use would be almost none.

[Bcorso85]

How many tons of pressure should I be generally needing?

[Bcorso85]

• http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41XhwTd3e5L._SX38_SY50_CR,0,0,38,50_.jpg

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• http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41XhwTd3e5L.jpg

  Is this okay for star plates? Even if I need to press the plate a few times to make sure all stars are compressed correctly?​

[mikeee]

This press has a welded solid frame and the cylinder is setup correctly for an easy conversion

for an air/over or electric powered hydraulic pump. You also have the pressure gauge which will

indicate the pressure/force being applied to your tooling/comp. This will work fine for star plates

and small comets. We have several club members that have presses this size and they work fine

for what you want to use it for. Small enough to move around when needed is a plus.

[ddewees]

that Baleigh is nice, but too short for rockets. I know you said you were using it for star plates and comets, but you never know if you'll want to make a 3lb rocket some day. They are a lot of fun.

 

I almost bought that Baleigh, they even sent me a free hat when I inquired about it.

 

The Dake 10 ton bench top press is only 300 dollars from Amazon, and free shipping if you have prime. That's an awesome affordable machine, and the one I had gotten first.

 

Actually it's only $280 right now... and has everything you need.

 

http://www.amazon.com/Dake-Manual-Utility-Hydraulic-Capacity/dp/B00DWB1MTM

Edited September 19, 2015 by ddewees

[calebkessinger]

Here is a video of a modified dake.

That press right there with my modifications shown is 700 + shipping

I put an electric pump on it yesterday. Gonna give it a workout next week at MFF

Edited September 19, 2015 by calebkessinger

[schroedinger]

For star plates that press good and for rockets up to 1 lb.

[Bcorso85]

Excellent. Thanks everyone.