nater Posted May 23, 2012 Posted May 23, 2012 (edited) After driving to 5 different hardware stores to get the last few parts I needed, I was able to finish my press this afternoon. After much debate, I cloned the press Ned writes about on Skylighter. I used a 12-ton air / hydraulic jack from Harbor Freight. After taking a long time and breaking several bits drilling the small holes to mount the jack to the bottom plate, I ended up having a machine shop drill the rest of the holes and weld a plate onto the jack. I think the total cost was around $250. It ended up being heavier than I hoped in the beginning, but it assembles quickly so transportation to events should not be a big issue. Someone is bringing me a piece of Lexan for the blast shield. I want to put vinyl caps on the ends of the four supports to protect whatever surface I place the press on. I am also thinking about tapping the jack for a gauge. Edited May 23, 2012 by nater
warthog Posted May 23, 2012 Posted May 23, 2012 Nice! They sure did put that together for you quickly. Looks like a great job too. I'm green with envy!
nater Posted May 23, 2012 Author Posted May 23, 2012 Actually, I was able to walk in, order the steel and wait for it to be cut before I left and the machine shop turned around my job by the next day. It took longer to prime and paint the steel than anything else. Even then, I got got impatient and put one layer of color on top of the prime. It isn't as pretty as it could be, but should be perfectly functional. I pressed a nozzle to test my PtoF gauge, but won't get to build anything for another couple of weeks.
warthog Posted May 23, 2012 Posted May 23, 2012 I see, I do that all the time with paint, I never am able to wait for the darn stuff to dry before I want to put the next coat on it. I like it though and I hope it works for you Are god as it looks. I'd like to make something similar eventually.
dagabu Posted May 23, 2012 Posted May 23, 2012 I like it though and I hope it works for you Are god as it looks. Sweet! Now THAT is a compliment! -dag
nater Posted May 23, 2012 Author Posted May 23, 2012 Sweet! Now THAT is a compliment! -dag It sure is. I can't live up to that though, those shoes are too big to fill.
dagabu Posted May 23, 2012 Posted May 23, 2012 (edited) Not at all, he made you a demi-god (small g) so if you can conjure up lightening or phase in and out, you would fit the bill. After all, you build magic frames that make tubes filled with flame... I am impressed -dag Edited May 23, 2012 by dagabu
nater Posted May 24, 2012 Author Posted May 24, 2012 Haven't mastered conjuring up lightning yet. I do make magic flying machines, and have healed people with my potions. So maybe Warthog is on the right track! Seriously, I can't wait to try out this press. Hopefully it is the missing element with some of the trouble I have had with my rockets. The last batch of fuel I made worked great with pressed SBRs, but CATO'ed with rammed 1/2" core burners. I have 4 small batches of fuel to compare flights with different kinds of charcoal and milling vs. screen mixing. With the press, I can guarantee they are built the same way. I wish I could say I could get consistent results hand ramming them. I feel like I'm missing a skill by not being able to get good results this way.
dagabu Posted May 24, 2012 Posted May 24, 2012 Haven't mastered conjuring up lightning yet. I do make magic flying machines, and have healed people with my potions. So maybe Warthog is on the right track! Seriously, I can't wait to try out this press. Hopefully it is the missing element with some of the trouble I have had with my rockets. The last batch of fuel I made worked great with pressed SBRs, but CATO'ed with rammed 1/2" core burners. I have 4 small batches of fuel to compare flights with different kinds of charcoal and milling vs. screen mixing. With the press, I can guarantee they are built the same way. I wish I could say I could get consistent results hand ramming them. I feel like I'm missing a skill by not being able to get good results this way. Dont be too hard on yourself, I was pounding rockets with a buddy a few years ago and both of our first rockets flew fine but the rest all CATO'd. Shoot! I thought about it for a second and them got a handful of 10p nails and a 4x4. I told my buddy to pound ten nails and I took video. We reviewed the video... Guess what happened...? -dag
marks265 Posted May 24, 2012 Posted May 24, 2012 Nater, If I were you, since you have a P2F, I would not even mess with tapping the jack unless you need the length of space that the P2F takes up. If you did need more space you could use rod coupling nuts to add extra length and then have room to press 6 pounders! You did a really good job on it. Mark
nater Posted May 24, 2012 Author Posted May 24, 2012 Thanks Mark For the moment, I don't think I will be making 6lb rockets. They take quite a bit of fuel as well as a large shoot site. I don't want to rule anything out though, I might have room for them without any other modifications too. The main reason I was thinking of tapping the jack for a gauge was to eliminate one more thing that is loose on the press. As fun as building tools can be, I think it will be a while before I tackle that. The PtoF seems to work just fine.
FrankRizzo Posted May 26, 2012 Posted May 26, 2012 Nater, Unless you've got a nice well-anchored bench vise and a large pipe wrench, it's a bear of a project to unscrew/disassemble the jack. I'd keep using the P2F.
dagabu Posted May 26, 2012 Posted May 26, 2012 Nater, Unless you've got a nice well-anchored bench vise and a large pipe wrench, it's a bear of a project to unscrew/disassemble the jack. I'd keep using the P2F. Agreed, I have a #50 bench vice and a 24" long pipe wrench and I still had to hammer the back strap of the wrench to break it free. A little heat on the base would help loosen it up but the o-rings concern me. -dag
nater Posted August 6, 2012 Author Posted August 6, 2012 I finally got around to making a blast shield. Now I will be legal for PGI.
oXo Posted August 8, 2012 Posted August 8, 2012 (edited) Hello nater nice little project. I am just wondering what the stack of jubilee clips is for and what type of guage block is below those. I am about to make or buy a press and have been looking at 10ton workshop bench presses, would it not be simpler to just buy one of those? Thanks. Edited August 8, 2012 by oXo
graumann Posted August 8, 2012 Posted August 8, 2012 (edited) I assume you are referring to the top picture? I'm guessing the clips are being used as a tube support. As for just buying one, if you have the space and funds that would be the better way to go. I made a 6000kg press in this style (albeit without the p2f gauge which I would dearly love), total cost was about $80 in parts & machining. Edited August 8, 2012 by graumann
nater Posted August 8, 2012 Author Posted August 8, 2012 I had to look up the term "jubilee clip", it wasn't a term I had heard before. Yes, they are used with a section of PVC as a tube support. The steel plates on the very top and bottom are 3/4" cold roll. The spacers and the plate that is sitting on top of the jack are 1/2" cold roll. As for building vs buying, it would have been much easier and cheaper to buy a press. However, I could not find one that had everything I wanted. Mainly, being easily portable. I can assemble and break this press down in under 10 minutes. Broken down, it takes up little space and rides easily in the trunk of my car with other things that I need to take to club events. Aluminum would have been lighter, but would have cost a bit more. I have heard complaints of the cheap presses from Harbor Freight twisting while pressing causing spindles to be bent. I don't anticipate this to be a problem with this design. I never added up receipts, but I think I have about $300 in this press for the parts and labor. Ultimately, I would like a press like Ben Smith sells and Dagabu cloned out of steel, with a few other modifications. There is no better way to press anything with lots of increments and a dual acting pneumatic cylinder. That will happen someday, but it is lower on my list of expensive tools.
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