TJ Smith Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 (edited) Got it far enough along to test. This is a picture of a 2x2 3 inches long being crushed. I have applied all the pressure my 5 hp 30 gal compressor can put out and It held up. It does have some flex on the base. I can't see any movement in the beam but the base has some. I used 4 inch channel for the base , 2 pieces side by side. not firm enough. The slide moves up and down without any binding. I did change out the top anvil bolts to grade 8. I think it will work as a lighter press and be fine for small billets of damascus. need to fabricate some dies and a control. I am going to try it with air on constant and open and close the bypass valve to move the anvil up or down. Take care TJ Edited March 26, 2009 by TJ Smith TJ Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Stephens Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Cool design. Much simpler than the other mini-presses I've seen. Have you considered welding the anvil to the Ibeam instead of bolting it? A sheared bolt with that kind of force behind it would probably leave a big hole in whatever (or whoever) it hit. I'm not an engineer, so I'm speaking from pure paranoia here. --Dave -----------------------------------------------"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly." -- Theodore Roosevelthttp://stephensforge.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TJ Smith Posted March 26, 2009 Author Share Posted March 26, 2009 Cool design. Much simpler than the other mini-presses I've seen. Have you considered welding the anvil to the Ibeam instead of bolting it? A sheared bolt with that kind of force behind it would probably leave a big hole in whatever (or whoever) it hit. I'm not an engineer, so I'm speaking from pure paranoia here. --Dave Yes I did consider welding the upper anvil to the I beam. I have 3 different positions that are higher or give more gap so I can use the press for drifting shaft holes for hawk handles, or hand axes, or a wedge design for making feather damascus. or whatever. Actually my bolting is a lot better than my welding. Thanks for the comment TJ TJ Smith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ken Kelley Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Looks good, TJ! Be sure to update when you build your dies and get around to squishing some hot steel. Dave, Paranoia is good for you when you are building gadgets like this. I am a big fan of overbuilding wherever possible. Metal is good...more metal is better. Inefficient from an engineering standpoint I know, but good for my peace of mind. Besides, I'm not an engineer so it doesn't bother me much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt Bower Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 That's a compact little design. Pretty cool if it all holds together for the long(ish) term. Why not bolt and weld? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TCKW Posted April 2, 2009 Share Posted April 2, 2009 I wouldn't worry too much about the bolts going flying. They're in shear, not tension (well, except for being tightened). Any failure should result in the broken piece just tumbling to the ground since there is no force normal to the shear plane that would send it flying. Now, depending on the travel speed of that ram, the whole anvil and slide could come flying off the top of the rail. If one bolt breaks, they're all going to break. Taylor Coleman Knife Works "Trust, but verify." - Ronald Wilson Reagan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Doug Lester Posted April 2, 2009 Share Posted April 2, 2009 How is the air hose attached to the jack? Could you show a picture of the connection? Doug Lester HELP...I'm a twenty year old trapped in the body of an old man!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Madigan Posted April 9, 2009 Share Posted April 9, 2009 (edited) I could have saved ..... a buttload of money on steel if I had gone with an open frame design. Oh well. Thats cool. What are you doing for die holders? That is the weak point of my h-frame press. Edited April 9, 2009 by toxonix Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike messner Posted April 9, 2009 Share Posted April 9, 2009 JT' I have the HF jack but have not started on the frame yet. I would like to know how yours works out because I have enough metal laying aroud to build one like it. A nice video of you building some billets with would be great. {hint, hint} thanks for posting, Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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