Taking the extra time to not just come up with a solution but making it ascetically pleasing. Nice job. I have a lot of tools but no lathe. Now I'm wishing for one.
I like the way you do these videos, for a hobbyist, you do real nice work. Everything you say is to the point and informative. no wasted words, unlike a lot of guys who really must love the sound of their own voice...
Dude! The title of this is “Make Improvements to the Harbor Freight 20 Ton Press...”, you should have taken a few more episodes and call it: “How to make your own USA made 20 Ton Press with dual adjustable pistons”!!! Lol. Solid work man, solid!
Thanks. In case you missed them, there were also a couple of other videos with improvements and one where I looked at how much force the press could actually produce. Happy New Year.
Nice job! Clever use of the extra ram. Most times I've seen slip on adaptors for different apps of the standard bar. You still may use them, but having that screw in the old ram is priceless. Again, Nice Job!
@@DudleyToolwright If you look at some of my older fabrication videos, you'll see that my shop is half again, if not twice the size of yours, with about 1/4 the space... ;)
I've watched every video on bottle jacks, and this is the first that actually shows the details of how they're put together. Thank you for that. It's easy to sit on this side of the video, and comment. But I seriously doubt the lifting shaft could tolerate the forces if it were cast iron. It's great to know how that thing is made. My press consists of a bottle jack and a very big section of I-beam. One of these days I've got to put a press together. These videos have provided some great ideas.
I never mind comments, they always provide food for thought regardless, so don't stop. I think you are correct about the strength issues with cast iron. What got me thinking in that direction was the bottom press in piece, which looked like cast iron and was. At the time I thought the whole assembly was a single piece of material. In hindsight, I probably should have known better. I was expecting some sort of case or through hardened shaft, but what I found was, at least to my ignorant self, surprising. Thanks for keeping me thinking.
I like your innovation , I have a similar press I've modified as well . Some folk do not understand why go to all this, but something is learned every time you think out of the box , and oft times it's far better than want is currently available . My innovation is providing the capacity to open 2 ways ,rather than having only one .
Thanks. I agree completely. It was fun and a learning experience, especially since I have gotten a ton of constructive feedback from the community. I appreciate it all.
This is such great stuff! I've been waiting for this press to go on sale and tomorrow is the day so I'll be using some of your great ideas. I really appreciate all of your videos and can't wait to get to work on this project. Thanks!
Man I never comment on any videos. But i read a lot of comments. It's awesome you take the time to reply to comments. And receive constructive criticism openly. Keep being rad!
Good useful mods. My HF 20 ton press came with the round stock welded in crooked and I didn't unbox it till well after the 90 day warranty. So I need to make a straight ram.
I bought a really big pipe wrench to rebuild my floor jack. If I had to do it again I might try a strap wrench made to take a tee handle. ABOM repairs hydraulic cylinders it looks like you need an in at a hydraulics store to get the good prices. Ah, you mention Abom. I agree with dismounting lathe chucks onto a board and have seen some nice custom ones that prevent rolling and position the chuck near its final height. I like the idea of clamping a bar in the chuck as a handle to move and position it.
We have a huge drill press looks like it was made in the 1930s has that art deco style to it, we need a motor for it to get it going. We have many industrial tool's heavy duty machine's that we got from old timers that are no longer needing then. They see my brother's and I are always building are working on stuff. I guess they feel like there tool's are going to a good home that will get used. I have many nephew's and there friend's that like building thing's to.
I had a project i needed to crimp the ends of pipe. I think it was 125 pipes crimped both ends. I turn on the air motor full time and just opened and close valve. It worked well. Thanks for sharing
On my press the channels that form the work table were tall enough to cover a set of pin holes in the uprights . I drilled two holes to accommodate an extra set of pins so it is supported at four points rather than just two . An older press I have has deformed holes in the uprights due to repeated heavy use .
I like all of your ideas. I bought 20T HF press a few years ago that came in orange. I like your color much more. The number one thing that bothered me was those two black springs that lift everything back in place when finished. I think the main issue was mine were not tightened enough and stretched with time, so I was always practicing arm curls to get the unit back up. Finally, I replaced them with a cable and weight system. I should make a video of it, but here is what I did: I used 3 OH garage door cable pulleys (3") on each side. That style of pulleys have ball bearings. For each side: I ran thin steel cable from the top horizontals (drilling and inserting a bolt between them to attach the cable end), down to a pulley on the "press bar", then straight back up to a 2nd pulley above the top horizontals. The cable stays between the two top horizontals. There is a 3rd pulley cantilevered to the side of the press. Two wide sheet-metal "angle irons" sit above and are bolted to the top horizontals, sandwiching pulleys 2 & 3 for their support. So the cable path goes down, up, horizontal, then finally hangs down to a suspended weight. My weights are scrap iron, each weighing 20 lbs which is overkill because of the multiplication factor with the press bar pulley. It all works very smooth and always pulls the bottle jack up tight.
Neat solution. No matter what I come up with and no matter how long I have thought about a problem, someone else always seems to come up with a unique solution I had not thought of. Very nice and thanks for sharing.
@@DudleyToolwright If video makes this easier to understand, search for 'Harbor Freight Shop Press Pulley', (ruclips.net/video/3y3MQRTYtY0/видео.html). It is an unpolished quickie video.
Great shop walk through, I also believe in constant shop upgrades. Your ideas work Dudley. The only problem I had was time, now I have to quit my job to catch up.
Your down right impressive for a hobby guy. I suppose the biggest thing is having the right tools but everything your doing seems really quite well done. Great job!
Very good improvement, I own the orange version of that jack . So many times I feel I can improve it but fight the little time I have in my shop to do anything about it. Thanks for sharing
Every time you makes an improvement, please send me the piece, I should have a full press in about 10 more episodes? Fantastic Loved it...whens Part 3?
Thanks. I am afraid that as a manual machinist these parts would have to be too expensive to be worth it for the consumer. If I ever decide to make a batch, I will let you know. The other problem is that Harbor Freight constantly changes their products, often having multiple SKUs for a single item, like this press. If I made parts for one, they might very well not fit another.
Some people clamp their chuck on a shaft/broomstick to provide a good handle. I have also seen wood blocks with side stops like wheel chocks to prevent rolling. Rolling the chuck off onto your foot is a BIG consideration along with denting the ways. Thanks for sharing!
I built my press and i added the ability to thread a large thread into the bottom with a design like the one you showed in the beginning to so i did not have to destroy a jack to have this adjustable feature. I can mount different pushing shapes just by screwing the next attachment in.. I also added a means to raise and lower the press support by adding a houst and cable so i don't have to play with the support which weighs then try to load the height pins .
Very nice. I considered making the threaded portion myself, but I already had the spare jack and I was not sure if I could pull of ACME threads, especially the internal ones, easily.
I believe you can buy a acme tap / die to make the threads or you can bore out the center of you punch and braze or weld a thread that you buy into the hole. They sell big nut and threads that could be used . Just suggestion!
First time watching your videos, enjoyed the lathe work. I have the parts for an older press, this gets me some things to think about. I've been welding for over 30 years, you are doing fine. The biggest thing is every time you weld you get better. Thank you for the great work. Btw my daughter set me up to subscribe and I will in a second. thanks
Thanks for the sub and the words of encouragement. I have a long way to go before I make decent tig welds. I am completely self taught from books and vids. Every once in a while I get a straight clean bead, but that would be the exception. Thanks for the kind words though. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts.
@@DudleyToolwright Remember keep your metal clean, never use anything other than acetone to clean the metal, Fosgene (sp) gas is a real threat to the welder, look it up. the other thing take your time with your puddles, keep your tip sharp or rounded depending how you like it. Leave your gun tip in the weld until all gas has left at the end of your bead. and remember to breath while you weld. Self taught is not a bad thing, shows desire. Get a scrap piece of metal and practice making your welds. You will get it .
Thanks for the tips and the encouragement. By the way, for unknown reasons YouTunbe's spam filter keeps moving your posts to the spam folder which is why I missed it when you posted it. Very strange. Thanks again.
@@DudleyToolwright well my downfall is computers, I got something on my apple computer yesterday, thought they fixed it, oh well , hope this works thanks for the information
@@joegarage6132 why to bread while welding ? I am not a professional welder too, and I hold my breath to save the lungs and heart from inhaling the gasses or even dust from the process.
I love how you use tools, to make things for your tools, so that you don't have to use other tools to adjust your tools. (thinking about the knobs for the springs there :). Really great videos, thanks for posting them.
Considering the design limits of the 20 ton press I am wondering if limiting the input pressure to the air over jack to 90 psi would de-rate it to around 17 tons?...oh yes I did drill those extra column holes and that came out well
Thank you, I try, but remember, I am not an expert and if you see something questionable, don't hesitate to call me on it. I always learn a lot from the comments, good or bad.
I added a winch with cables crossing over the top of the Press connecting to the handles on each side. I used a bearing w/long bolt across the top of the Press (this is used as cable guides.) The purpose of this set up is to raise/lower the table. This makes it easier when you have a heavy item on the table.
@@DudleyToolwright That is great to know. Man I just wish youtube, and all these Videos would have been around 25 - 30 years ago, and I would be a lot further down the Machining road. now. Lol Keep up the good work.
His sign-off is an homage to The Red Green Show, a Canadian TV program that ended up on the Canadian version of BBC, the CBC. Red Green, the host and main character, would always end the program by saying: "Keep your stick on the ice". A hockey reference that a hippie dude might translate as: "Peace out, bro".
I'm interested to know what the ID was on the bottle jack ram and if it would have been possible to just slide it over the existing piece that was provided by the manufacturer? Might be an easier way for those of us that don't have machines to make all of the machining changes that you made.
I appreciate the question. I always try to reply to every comment. It has been several years since I made these mods and I did not keep the original fixed ram and crosspiece. As I recall they were very similar in diameter, but I am not entirely sure. I really like your approach to the solution. You definitely could reduce the diameter of the fixed shaft to fit inside the one I removed from the jack that came with the press. It would require a large lathe of removal and then it would need to be rewelded to the crosspiece. I suppose with a bunch of effort you could manually reduce the diameter. Your approach is a novel one. A bigger problem for me to comment is that Harbor Freight changes their product manufacturers all the time and often has multiple SKUs for current products, so I have no idea if my observations currently apply. On a positive note they seem to be incrementally improving their tools.
On my application drilling additional 21mm holes on the 2 column uprights inline and halfway between the existing 4.5" center holes would allow adjustment for my 2 sets of dies,,has anyone drilled holes in that manner, any ideas of structural results,,?
I don't know, but I understand the idea. I think the designed hole spacing was chosen based on ram travel length so that you could get full range coverage. I would carefully consider doing anything that potentially makes the column weaker. After doing my pressure testing of this hydraulic press, Harbor Freight seems to have had, at least some parts, made without much of any safety margin. When testing the press at full capacity (20Tons) the top bar of the press deformed permanently. Failures in high PSI environments can be catastrophic, so please be careful.
You mention that Harbor freight did not do a careful job machining the jack ram. It looks like you use a 4 jaw independent chuck . Why did you not indicate the ram while installing it in the 4 jaw chuck? Or, is the ram slightly bent from pressing stuff?
You make a good point. I was just facing off the face, but it could have ended up crooked in the jaws with the final face not perpendicular to the shaft axis. I should have.
I considered it, but the materials would have been more than the whole press (if I had purchased them from my local supplier). Besides, I was curious to see if I could take a very affordable unit and make it something like the more expensive brands. Thanks for your thoughts.
I've watched videos of people adding casters. I was going to add casters, to my Harbor Freight 20 ton press. But I’m concerned. Seems like a bad idea. wouldn't that force the bottom angle feet to break once your pressing? I suppose that isn't an issue when doing some light pressing. You're a pro. thanks for your videos.
The forces during pressing should all stay internal to the frame. The wheels allow the mobility I need in a shop as tiny as mine. I have done tests to measure full output pressure with no issues, except for bending the frame. They under built my version of the press.
Would it have been cheaper/easier to machine your own presser shaft, cut the acme thread, etc, rather than sacrifice a working jack? For support, would it make sense to cut a small cup in the base plate? So the shaft is supported on the end by the cup and the two wall thicknesses....
Interesting take. I will have to think more about your suggestions. Thanks. I had zero used for another spare jack, so I was not worried about killing the one I salvaged. However, it would have been an interesting project making a presser shaft as you suggest. Cool.
the newer versions of this have boxed steel on the push bar instead of c-channel, there's a plate under the jack itself, and the top where the ram sits is a ring instead of the two fold channel from front to back. there's some improvements that can be made with the new model, but not as many need to be done.
Nice vid, thanks! On the piston shaft, I’m not sure why you thought it would be cast iron, as cast iron brittle and could shatter under the imperfectly unbalanced loads in a job which was not set up perfectly (most of them ;-). It needs to be incompressible and resistant to bending, while not fracturing.. so it needs tough and strong. Cast iron is hard (so it make a good end cap) but could shatter when bent. IMHO of course .
You make some excellent points. I was factoring in the fact that these tools were sold by Harbor Freight, who used to sell theses presses with cast iron press plates. There are a surprising number of comments talking about catastrophic failures.
There's plenty of room for improvement on these Chinese, Taiwanese made equipment. They tend to use cheap, re-cycled steel which are softer and full of other elements. We are seeing a trend towards these kinds of re-engineering lately and this clip is one of the best. My 1950's British made press is mechanical and I will be converting to hydraulic soon. Thanks for posting, enjoyed watching.
Thank you for the kind words. I appreciate all comments, but I must say that favorable reviews or people commenting that I helped in some small way are my favorite. If you end up making a video of your update project, let me know. I would love to watch.
Like I stated in another video, I made D shaped handles from 1/16" x 1" flat for the cradle shafts to make them easier to work with and installed a cable winch & pulleys to move the cradle up & down much easier, particularly useful when adjusting with a work piece in the press. Otherwise, excellent ideas.
I was considering this mod, except I don't have a lathe. So then I thought about buying one from harbor fright, but then I began to wonder how many videos and mods I'd have to go through to make that operational. By the time you get done with all the mods on one of these presses, I'm about to believe it'd just be best to buy a quality one and be done. On the other hand, wouldn't it have just been easier to cut off the shaft on the press and attach the second jack upside down?
I get your take, but the equivalent high quality 20 ton press goes for $3-5k. It would be a whole lot better, but quite expensive. Flipping a jack upside down is a really good idea, but in order for it to work you have to take it apart to modify it so that the hydraulic fluid pick up comes from the other side of the reservoir. Definitely doable.
@@DudleyToolwright Actually my thought was just being able to screw the shaft out in order to take up the slack in certain situations and save a whole bunch of pumping.
Great machine work! I don't have the tools or skill to do anything like this. I do have 1 little idea for your shop press. On the very top of the press I installed 2 broom spring clips to hold the handle for the jack so it wouldn't stick out, or get misplaced.
I too have some press upgrades currently going on. Never gave much thought to that pusher pin ram thing. I may have to address that, since I'm upping mine to a 30 ton air/over hydraulic, with additional gussets, boxed in supports etc.
If you are making a video, I would love to see your take on improving this press. I did consider going to a 30 tone jack, but was not comfortable with Harbor Freight gear having enough safety margin to pull it off. You approach sounds wise. I look forward to seeing it. I have sub'd. Thanks.
Well, I guess I'd better make sure it turns into a video! See, the way I figure it, is that I'm not going to max out to 30 tons, but with a modified press brake, it'll make bending 1/4" plate for tabs and brackets that much easier and quicker. That's kind of the limit I work with in the shop anyway, based on max welder penetration (without having to do multi-pass welding) But yeah, on the docket is DOM tube spacers welded in the side legs where the pins go. Then fully box that C-Channel. Obviously, use grade 8 bolts everywhere... which I think I've already upgraded. Then on the platform, fit in little vertical gussets on the C-Channel, both sides, then box that in. Then on the upper part of the press, more vertical ribbing, and weld the open portion closed. I've not yet decided how I'm going to do that. Initially, it seems like you'd just slap a piece of 1/4" plate across the top. But the more I think about it, I'm leaning towards a piece of C-Channel in the down position. I've got my foot actuated pneumatic switch for the ram. Then I'll mount the whole thing to a mobile base. The last part is to find chainmail to make a front and rear curtain.
Yes, I'll have content recorded for it as I go. I'll also most likely post on my instagram for sure though @EcoMouseDesign (I upgraded my HF gantry crane in much the same way. All grade 8 hardware, and an entirely new longer, stronger I-beam. So, I'll definitely be documenting the press build)
I only wish I had a mill and a lathe so I could do the same thing. I think I can come somewhat close and not as sexy looking. Question for you: Can you show some examples of the tools that you would make to attach to the new ram head? (I think that is what you call the rod that presses in side the press). I may have to see if I can get mine turned down to a perfect circle so I can do the same. Nice job, subscribed.
Thanks. I did these videos quite a while ago, but didn't I show making an adapter in at least one of them? All I did was bore out a piece of 4140 to the proper diameter and added some Allen screws just for friction to hold it in place. Thank you very much for the sub.
When it comes to using your Lathe, I would recommend running down the external diameter to keep "the wobble" TRUE for your application! Sure wish that I had a Sturdy Lathe for the 3× a year (maximum possibility of use) within my shop/garage...
I basically have the same press it's just older. It has always done what I needed it to do. I always wanted something nicer but with the modifications that you showed this seems like the route that I'll take. That way I could put the money into something that would expand my capabilities. I'm a new subscriber and enjoy your channel.
I have no idea of what you are using for a camera so I don't know if you have a manual focus mode. Other than that the photography is excellent. I think I would have put a recess in the plate under the jack for the shaft and clamped it at that point rather than in the middle of the 2 x 4 tube which would give the shaft even more support. I would have run the shaft up into the plate and then bolted the plate to the 2 x 4 so that every thing was in alignment. Knowing that the shaft is not truly round I think I would have tried to true it up on the lathe. I'm going to see which of your modifications I can use on my HF 12 ton as I do not have room for the 20 ton unless I build a smaller work bench. I'm also building a stand for a 6 inch Buffalo vise (came with the Bridgeport I bought at auction and replaced with a DX6 as soon as I had the money) that will bolt to the floor for my rod bender made from Tom Lipton's plans. It will be handy for removing jack parts, too. I've disassembled several rusty jacks to use the pistons for mill clamp supports. They were older than yours and did not have paint holding them together so I was able to get them apart with very large pipe wrenches.
My camera does not have manual focus mode. Very interesting suggestions thanks. The adjustable ram makes side contact at the top and the bottom of the 2x4, but Your idea might just be better. I considered your approach, but thought that my current method would be ok. Time will tell. As a side note, I did later true up the roundness of the shaft. You might consider making some vids. I would be interested in seen the projects you have outlined. Cheers.
I was using Cool Tool II and yes it cools a bit and lubricates. I haven't tried too many other cutting fluids, because this on has always seemed to work well. I have used WD40, especially with aluminum, but over time, if loeft on the machines, it can get really sticky and nasty. Just my thoughts.
Nice put a triangular gusset on the top piece so as to stabilize it preventing twisting. Above the Jack, Like a 3/16" flat stock on both front and rear, triangular, Like 8"wide on bottom and 12"wide at top or bigger. Nice job . You have machinery I'd love to have... I also have the 20 Ton HF PRESS...
Thanks for the really interesting idea. I have not used this press enough to see the twisting issues. I appreciate the heads up on a solution, even before I run in to the problem. Much appreciated.
Wow... I just picked up a HF 20T Press for $154 (on sale). Thought I got a pretty good deal. After watching a couple of these "HF Press Mod" videos, I'm excited to know that If I save my pennies (~$200K worth of them) I too could have all of machines necessary to turn my $159 shop press into a $1K shop press all by myself!! Great video BTW.
I get the equipment thing, but others have found way around have large machines. I am sure you could too. The press is a decent deal for the money. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Got to say that I think this is a masterful effort indeed. Would like to copy this for sure. 👍 It’s a shame they don’t come this way from the manufacturer, because all of the improvements make a lot of sense to me from an operator comfort / satisfaction point of view. Poor design soon leads to dissatisfaction if using it becomes a bug-bear. I’m after a shop press, never owned one - mostly for broaching internal keyways - but also pressing bearings in and out etc. I think this would be a great addition to my shop. Thanks ever so much for showing all your improvements, all well thought out & executed. I’ll have to subscribe now. 👍👍👍🇦🇺
Thanks for all of the compliments. I really appreciate them . This community is great about sharing ideas and improvements. I just wanted to play my part, because I have benefitted so much from other's outstanding work.
@DudleyToolwright Man, I wish that I had all of the machinery like you have. But, all of that machinery wouldn't be worth a darn without your skill. So,,,to go along with all the machinery, yup,,,I also would like to have all of your SKILLZZZ!!
Simply amazing watching you mill your own parts!!! I am just facilitated with any videos on lathes!!! I sincerely appreciate both of these improvement videos and wish you all the best!!! Perhaps you should try and design some type of new Gatling gun that can fire billions of rounds out in a minute for our military!!! Lol Thanks again Art PS: I only got nervous twice in this video and that’s when you’re reaching into the lathe to catch your parts!!! Please be careful as the “Big Guy” upstairs only gave us 10 fingers!!!
Hello, Im trying to keep pressure for 24 hours to glue a wood, Im on my second bottle jack and it start to slowly leak and losses pressure and lift back to start position. Can any one guide me on the right direction? Thank you
The Harbor Freight bottle jacks seem to have crappy seals. If you watch the video I did on total pressure this press can apply you will see that I had a similar problem. At max pressure this jack leaks like a sieve. It would lose max pressure in a matter of seconds. I also have a hydraulic lift table that mostly gets used as a table and it also had to be propped up with a 2x4 because it would fall flat to the bottom over night. I suggest that you look for better jack that has better seals if you need "long term" pressure.
Replace the bottle Jack with a Enerpac cylinder they hold the pressure for a long time but they are expensive. Or add some screw jacks on the side of the bottle Jack that you could compress the wood with the bottle Jack then adjust the screw jacks to hold the pressure. You can find some old screw jacks at a junk yard out of an truck or two.
That is a great suggestion. I am not sure why it did not occur to me? I would think that there could be some scoring caused by them on the unhardened surfaces, which might lead to leakage. Thanks for the great and now obvious recommendation.
Hi yes a steel chip under one of the ball bearing seats would give a leak, I have reseated those by dropping in a ball and thumping it with a punch it works most of the time.
When I assembled one of these today, I noticed the vertical frame doesn't actually touch the base of the feet. It's just resting on the bolts. There are also four struts at the bottom that are suppose to keep it from wobbling, but the two pieces they bolt into aren't on the same plane so the strut has to flex to be tightened. It all seems fixable but haven't noticed anyone mentioning it so wondering if I just got a crappy unit.
Harbor Freight seems to source their tools from multiple vendors, so they are all different. When I bought mine, there were three different part numbers that different stores carried. In your case there is not much force on the base so it seems like you'll be okay. Nice information for the community.
I saw what looked like an Eisen lathe manual near something you were filming, do you have an Eisen lathe? I've been thinking of getting an Eisen 1324 and am curious to know how you like it? Thanks
My lathe is an ACRA. That Eisen document was a brochure that came with a right angle attachment I got for my mill. The quality of that tool seems pretty good if that is worth anything.
I think you've inspired me to build my own press. I have a ton of Steel and them a pretty good welder. I do not own any kind of Machine Tools though ie a lathe or Mill. After you going to this process do you think I would have to have a lathe a mill to finish one?
Fantastic. I hope you video the process. I for one, would enjoy watching the build. There have been some really creative suggestions made to me in the comments, about how to achieve my results or better, without having access to really expensive equipment.
@@DudleyToolwright I am definitely going to do that. I've never done a lot of RUclips videos but I think I'm going to try my hand at it. I definitely built a lot of stuff. Thank you for the encouraging word. I love your honesty on stuff like the Machining and stuff. Cuz that stuff is so far above my head. I like the way you describe it in terms of people can understand.
Nice suggestion. I will have to do some research to understand the details of your suggestion, but it sounds great. I have very little experience with presses and even less with iron workers so I get the drift, but would like to understand the specifics better. Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts.
I do not recall the mfg. off hand, but perhaps you are more interested in the style. There are three main styles of taps: Hand, spiral pointed, and spiral fluted. Hand taps are the ones you see most often and can come in sets of 3 including the starting, plug, and bottoming taps. The spiral point taps are for power feeding through holes where the chips created are pushed in front of the tap. Spiral fluted taps are for power tapping blind holes and eject the chips out the back. I was using this type of tap. If this was really not your question I think it might have been Kennametal, Hertel, or OSG.
I watched both, thanks for showing us, fully agree with the improvements,i would do the same,*but* ,just curious, with all that expensive machine shop equip' there, why didn't you just get a proper 20 ton press in the first place,with a real ,a fat one, 20 ton jack ? You sped up that jack, maybe you do *a lot* of pressings? if so,a good 20 ton press would make sense; if not,speeding up the jack(expensive!) is the only thing i would not have spent extra money on; the bottom threaded adjustment is gonna make me wish my press had one lol
I loved the challenge and I really do have limited funds and have to pick and choose carefully, the items I buy. Also, I am always looking for content for my channel, that might help someone else.
I have never used a high dollar press, but this one has been used since and has performed well. I don't really have a base for comparison, sorry about that.
Amazing how much service one gets from a hole saw when liberal cutting oil employed! :-) Is that cross piece as you call it just regular 3 (or 4) x 2 x .250" rectangular structural tube? It looks so nicely finished and I could not quite see the weld seam.
If I hadn't seen it done before, I never would have believed it myself. As to the material, yes, it was regular tube as far as I know. It was in better shape than any other I have seen, but there is a very noticeable internal weld. Externally, when I cleaned the piece off, I was really surprised as to how nice the finish was. If it was something else, I would love to know. Thanks for the questions.
There's a potential consideration I would like to mention, bottle Jack's can be modded to work right side not up. The acme thread clearance adjustment shaft does then appear, as luck would have it on occasion, pointing the way of the udder. Good day and I'll watch for more of your, how it should have been done, videos.
@@DudleyToolwright making a wheel for your main Jack's acme shaft is another possibility although you will be working against the two springs. I lost those in favour of counter weights encased in the stanchions. It's never ending. Have fun.
I enjoyed your video. I'm looking for another lathe, and if you do not mind will you tell your viewers a little about yours? From the blue color, it looks like a Precision Mathews? What brand and country of origin? Have you run any precision tests on it? Appreciate anything that you have to share.
It is an ACRA 14 Heavy weighing in at about 3300 pounds. I have turned an item a foot long and held a tenth before. It is a much better lathe than my skills dictate. It is made in Taiwan. I have been extremely happy with it. It has a 5HP motor and a coolant pump/sump. Here is a link to the current version: www.acramachinery.com/Manual_Machines/1400-1600TE.htm I have a sales contact in the Rancho Cucamonga, Ca. offices if you need it. They were extremely helpful.
On testing the Half-ball-bearing valves on old Rolls-Royce jet engine fuel valves, the test pressure was 2000 bar kerosene. More than enough to cut the end of a finger clean off, which it did to one of my colleagues, much to our delight.
That was a fascinating if not terrifying story. Thanks for the contribution. I had heard a story from an electrician that had worked building oil refineries and he was told that a pin hole in the ultra-high pressure hydrogen line had cased the decapitation of a worker who had walked through the nearly invisible jet. Respect high energy systems.
Question. Would it not have been better to mill a piece of hardened steel round bar and insert it inside the hollow tube, either welded in or press fir to give the whole assembly the strength you are looking for? That would eliminate ANY chance of it failing or deforming in any way. Just a LATE suggestion as I am just now seeing this video! I subscribed after viewing the first of these 2 videos. And will continue to watch your uploads! Thanks for the information! It was good to watch the process as you went through it. Also, I now, know how HF bottle jacks are made! Thanks, again for the videos. They've been very informative!!!!!
I always seem to find videos that I want to comment on years after they have been posted. A thought on why the screw isn't hardened is that hardened parts are "slippery" there is no give to the surface so other hard parts can't dig in and will have a tendency to slip off. That's not a good thing when jacking up heavy items that don't engage the grooves machined into the top of the screw.
Are there ever enough? I have a list of over 100 tools to make. Every time one comes off the list anther few go back on. I'm happily loosing this war...
Nice mod. I have a 20 ton Chinese bottle jack press I bought a long time ago. The presser foot attachment is not perpendicular to the travel. I faced the foot but that of course didn't fix the problem. It is just held on by a set screw so no rotary reference. Will change that. I had been considering making a threaded foot extension on the lathe but your solution seems better. I want to make some adapters to fit the presser foot. This older press is quite a lot heavier made than the newer ones but still sloppy in it's travels. It came with two very soft, very irregular bars of steel for the pressing surface. I machined them flat and square edged but they get dinged up very easily.
Interesting, thanks. The softer press plates may deform and gouge, but that might be a bit better than the ones they made out of cast iron that fail catastrophically. I have had a bunch of people warn me about them, although the way mine machined, I don't think they are cast iron. If you video your improvements, I would enjoy watching.
I don't have a video camera. Can do photos. I bought a used Jet mill about 4 years ago. 2 years ago I bought a new PM1440HD Chinese lathe. It's OK. I've been learning machining VIA the RUclips university. The two best sites I've found are Joe Pieczynski's and Thatlazymachinist. Both excellent educational value. Would like to trade e-mails about our mis-adventures in machining. I also do some Aluminum casting. Best videos for that are from olfoundryman. Interesting videos from myfordboy include some casting and machining.
Good recommendations. Some other really excellent teachers are Oxtools with Tom Lipton, ABOM 79, Keith Fenner, MrPete222, and ROBRENZ (master of precision). Tom was my inspiration to start learning this trade. He explains his thought processes when he machines, a born teacher.
@@DudleyToolwright -- I don't have video capability. Over the last week I've been trying to tune up my lathe and mill. I started on the lathe by using a test bar to get the collet chuck as close to centered as possible. It is Chinese made with the "set true" design. It appears to be very nicely made. My collet set claims to be with in .0005". So trying to get any better runout on the chuck is a waste of effort. I managed to get .0002" with the collet and test bar I was using but that figure is only good for that particular set up. I use the collet chuck more than I ever thought I would. On work up to 1.125" it is quicker for me to be able to swap ends of the work than using a 4 jaw. I'm no Abom79! I did get my mill trammed in the left rt. direction pretty much dead on. Now I've got to try the nod direction.
The answer is simple. I screwed up when I was talking. I was estimating and guessed wrong. The plate I had was 3/4" thick. I was just using a piece of stock I had on hand. The job was to spread the force of the piston out over the bottom of the jack base casting.. I would guess that 5/8" would also be adequate if the original Harbor Freight thin welded stock also worked. Thanks for the comment.
![I.N "HALLUCINATION" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/n5B5q1Hwt_U/mqdefault.jpg)
You had me at "Release the Schmoo!" and subscribed!
Thanks. I did steal that comment from aVe. His play on words always amuses.
Taking the extra time to not just come up with a solution but making it ascetically pleasing. Nice job. I have a lot of tools but no lathe. Now I'm wishing for one.
Every tool I get opens new possibilities. I really do sympathize with the addiction. I hope you find one soon. Cheers.
I like the way you do these videos, for a hobbyist, you do real nice work. Everything you say is to the point and informative. no wasted words, unlike a lot of guys who really must love the sound of their own voice...
Thanks. I try to edit out everything bu the essentials. Sometimes I get it right.
Dude! The title of this is “Make Improvements to the Harbor Freight 20 Ton Press...”, you should have taken a few more episodes and call it: “How to make your own USA made 20 Ton Press with dual adjustable pistons”!!! Lol. Solid work man, solid!
Thanks. In case you missed them, there were also a couple of other videos with improvements and one where I looked at how much force the press could actually produce. Happy New Year.
Nice job! Clever use of the extra ram. Most times I've seen slip on adaptors for different apps of the standard bar. You still may use them, but having that screw in the old ram is priceless. Again, Nice Job!
Very kind, thanks.
Nice job Robert, the use of the second Ram is simply genius!
Thanks. I have limited room to store things, so that was a partial motivating factor.
@@DudleyToolwright If you look at some of my older fabrication videos, you'll see that my shop is half again, if not twice the size of yours, with about 1/4 the space... ;)
I've watched every video on bottle jacks, and this is the first that actually shows the details of how they're put together. Thank you for that. It's easy to sit on this side of the video, and comment. But I seriously doubt the lifting shaft could tolerate the forces if it were cast iron. It's great to know how that thing is made. My press consists of a bottle jack and a very big section of I-beam. One of these days I've got to put a press together. These videos have provided some great ideas.
I never mind comments, they always provide food for thought regardless, so don't stop. I think you are correct about the strength issues with cast iron. What got me thinking in that direction was the bottom press in piece, which looked like cast iron and was. At the time I thought the whole assembly was a single piece of material. In hindsight, I probably should have known better. I was expecting some sort of case or through hardened shaft, but what I found was, at least to my ignorant self, surprising. Thanks for keeping me thinking.
You might be able to figure out if the piston is hollow or not by weighting it.
I like your innovation , I have a similar press I've modified as well .
Some folk do not understand why go to all this, but something is learned every time you think out of the box , and oft times it's far better than want is currently available .
My innovation is providing the capacity to open 2 ways ,rather than having only one .
Thanks. I agree completely. It was fun and a learning experience, especially since I have gotten a ton of constructive feedback from the community. I appreciate it all.
Nice additions, you gave me some ideas on modifications to mine.
Glad I could help
Very nice work, and great video!👍🏻
Thank you very much!
This is such great stuff! I've been waiting for this press to go on sale and tomorrow is the day so I'll be using some of your great ideas. I really appreciate all of your videos and can't wait to get to work on this project. Thanks!
Hope you enjoy it!
Man I never comment on any videos. But i read a lot of comments. It's awesome you take the time to reply to comments. And receive constructive criticism openly.
Keep being rad!
Thank you very much. I figure that if the community is willing to spend their time to offer advise and comments, it's the least I can do to respond.
Good useful mods. My HF 20 ton press came with the round stock welded in crooked and I didn't unbox it till well after the 90 day warranty. So I need to make a straight ram.
I do consider purchases at Harbor Freight to be a bit of a coin toss. Sometimes you really do win though.
I bought a really big pipe wrench to rebuild my floor jack. If I had to do it again I might try a strap wrench made to take a tee handle. ABOM repairs hydraulic cylinders it looks like you need an in at a hydraulics store to get the good prices. Ah, you mention Abom.
I agree with dismounting lathe chucks onto a board and have seen some nice custom ones that prevent rolling and position the chuck near its final height. I like the idea of clamping a bar in the chuck as a handle to move and position it.
Thanks for the comments. I like the strap wrench idea. I only have a small one.
We have a huge drill press looks like it was made in the 1930s has that art deco style to it, we need a motor for it to get it going. We have many industrial tool's heavy duty machine's that we got from old timers that are no longer needing then. They see my brother's and I are always building are working on stuff. I guess they feel like there tool's are going to a good home that will get used. I have many nephew's and there friend's that like building thing's to.
The old machines are made to last. With a little bit of effort they can last multiple lifetimes.
I had a project i needed to crimp the ends of pipe. I think it was 125 pipes crimped both ends. I turn on the air motor full time and just opened and close valve. It worked well. Thanks for sharing
I would love to see a video on that one. Thanks for sharing.
Great ideas to upgrade my Chinesium press, I have ordered an air/hydraulic jack. A pressure gauge would be good, but how to do it?
That is a good question. You would need the pressure in the piston, which isn't too easy to access. Interesting problem.
On my press the channels that form the work table were tall enough to cover a set of pin holes in the uprights . I drilled two holes to accommodate an extra set of pins so it is supported at four points rather than just two . An older press I have has deformed holes in the uprights due to repeated heavy use .
Thanks for sharing your experiences with this press and possible solutions to the eventual problems.
I like all of your ideas. I bought 20T HF press a few years ago that came in orange. I like your color much more. The number one thing that bothered me was those two black springs that lift everything back in place when finished. I think the main issue was mine were not tightened enough and stretched with time, so I was always practicing arm curls to get the unit back up. Finally, I replaced them with a cable and weight system. I should make a video of it, but here is what I did: I used 3 OH garage door cable pulleys (3") on each side. That style of pulleys have ball bearings. For each side: I ran thin steel cable from the top horizontals (drilling and inserting a bolt between them to attach the cable end), down to a pulley on the "press bar", then straight back up to a 2nd pulley above the top horizontals. The cable stays between the two top horizontals. There is a 3rd pulley cantilevered to the side of the press. Two wide sheet-metal "angle irons" sit above and are bolted to the top horizontals, sandwiching pulleys 2 & 3 for their support. So the cable path goes down, up, horizontal, then finally hangs down to a suspended weight. My weights are scrap iron, each weighing 20 lbs which is overkill because of the multiplication factor with the press bar pulley. It all works very smooth and always pulls the bottle jack up tight.
Neat solution. No matter what I come up with and no matter how long I have thought about a problem, someone else always seems to come up with a unique solution I had not thought of. Very nice and thanks for sharing.
@@DudleyToolwright If video makes this easier to understand, search for 'Harbor Freight Shop Press Pulley', (ruclips.net/video/3y3MQRTYtY0/видео.html). It is an unpolished quickie video.
Great shop walk through, I also believe in constant shop upgrades. Your ideas work Dudley. The only problem I had was time, now I have to quit my job to catch up.
I feel ya. There is never enough time to get even a tiny percentage of the projects done. I have a full time job as well.
Your down right impressive for a hobby guy. I suppose the biggest thing is having the right tools but everything your doing seems really quite well done. Great job!
You are very generous. Thanks for the kudos.
I'm not impressed, the guy has a lathe he should have made that piece.
Very good improvement, I own the orange version of that jack . So many times I feel I can improve it but fight the little time I have in my shop to do anything about it. Thanks for sharing
Thanks. It was fun trying to conceive of ideas to improve a really mediocre, but affordable press.
Every time you makes an improvement, please send me the piece, I should have a full press in about 10 more episodes? Fantastic Loved it...whens Part 3?
I have some ideas...thanks for the encouragement. I appreciate the feedback.
Great job
is there way to order all this great improvements for me?
Thanks
Thanks. I am afraid that as a manual machinist these parts would have to be too expensive to be worth it for the consumer. If I ever decide to make a batch, I will let you know. The other problem is that Harbor Freight constantly changes their products, often having multiple SKUs for a single item, like this press. If I made parts for one, they might very well not fit another.
@@DudleyToolwright Thanks anyway
… if some day decide to make it …
I’ll be happy to have it
Have a nice Sunday
Some people clamp their chuck on a shaft/broomstick to provide a good handle. I have also seen wood blocks with side stops like wheel chocks to prevent rolling. Rolling the chuck off onto your foot is a BIG consideration along with denting the ways. Thanks for sharing!
Good suggestions, thanks. I usually set the chuck onto the d-pins when I am not holding it, but man I can imagine my 4 jaw hitting a toe...what toe?
Fabrication and Modifications are "KING" to make the Tool you need!
Thanks and let's not forget fun.
I built my press and i added the ability to thread a large thread into the bottom with a design like the one you showed in the beginning to so i did not have to destroy a jack to have this adjustable feature. I can mount different pushing shapes just by screwing the next attachment in.. I also added a means to raise and lower the press support by adding a houst and cable so i don't have to play with the support which weighs then try to load the height pins .
Very nice. I considered making the threaded portion myself, but I already had the spare jack and I was not sure if I could pull of ACME threads, especially the internal ones, easily.
I believe you can buy a acme tap / die to make the threads or you can bore out the center of you punch and braze or weld a thread that you buy into the hole. They sell big nut and threads that could be used . Just suggestion!
First time watching your videos, enjoyed the lathe work. I have the parts for an older press, this gets me some things to think about. I've been welding for over 30 years, you are doing fine. The biggest thing is every time you weld you get better. Thank you for the great work. Btw my daughter set me up to subscribe and I will in a second. thanks
Thanks for the sub and the words of encouragement. I have a long way to go before I make decent tig welds. I am completely self taught from books and vids. Every once in a while I get a straight clean bead, but that would be the exception. Thanks for the kind words though. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts.
@@DudleyToolwright Remember keep your metal clean, never use anything other than acetone to clean the metal, Fosgene (sp) gas is a real threat to the welder, look it up. the other thing take your time with your puddles, keep your tip sharp or rounded depending how you like it. Leave your gun tip in the weld until all gas has left at the end of your bead. and remember to breath while you weld. Self taught is not a bad thing, shows desire. Get a scrap piece of metal and practice making your welds. You will get it .
Thanks for the tips and the encouragement. By the way, for unknown reasons YouTunbe's spam filter keeps moving your posts to the spam folder which is why I missed it when you posted it. Very strange. Thanks again.
@@DudleyToolwright well my downfall is computers, I got something on my apple computer yesterday, thought they fixed it, oh well , hope this works thanks for the information
@@joegarage6132 why to bread while welding ? I am not a professional welder too, and I hold my breath to save the lungs and heart from inhaling the gasses or even dust from the process.
I love how you use tools, to make things for your tools, so that you don't have to use other tools to adjust your tools. (thinking about the knobs for the springs there :). Really great videos, thanks for posting them.
Thanks. I'll try not to be a tool and respond using this electronic tool. Wonderful play on words.
Considering the design limits of the 20 ton press I am wondering if limiting the input pressure to the air over jack to 90 psi would de-rate it to around 17 tons?...oh yes I did drill those extra column holes and that came out well
I think that limiting the air pressure would work. Nice idea.
Great video, I learned something just by watching your channel. Thanks for the "Tutorial"
Thank you, I try, but remember, I am not an expert and if you see something questionable, don't hesitate to call me on it. I always learn a lot from the comments, good or bad.
I am curious how you made the hand turn knob on the bottle jack?
I made it on my lathe, which puts this part out of reach for many, but there are some other really creative solutions out there.
I added a winch with cables crossing over the top of the Press connecting to the handles on each side. I used a bearing w/long bolt across the top of the Press (this is used as cable guides.) The purpose of this set up is to raise/lower the table. This makes it easier when you have a heavy item on the table.
That is a good idea. moving the table up and down is a pain.
Great Video. More great Ideas to upgrade the HF Press. You're well on your way having a good Press for not much money.
Thanks again. Consider documenting your journey. Everyone wins if you do. This community is incredibly generous with ideas, help, and support.
@@DudleyToolwright That is great to know. Man I just wish youtube, and all these Videos would have been around 25 - 30 years ago, and I would be a lot further down the Machining road.
now. Lol
Keep up the good work.
I agree wholeheartedly. Other guys videos like Tom Lipton over at Oxtools really helped me out when I was starting.
Home Shop Machinist, the first couple issues, built a press with the jack upside down.
Then you could use the screw to adjust.
Nice Tip, Thanks.
I did the bottle jack inversion mod. Same results but more stability
At the time, I did not try the bottle jack inversion. If I had it to do over, that might well be my approach.
AVE is cool and very informative and his sign off at the end of his videos drives my wife nuts. lol
He is quite entertaining and as his viewership increases he gets nuttier. Put a what, where?
His sign-off is an homage to The Red Green Show, a Canadian TV program that ended up on the Canadian version of BBC, the CBC. Red Green, the host and main character, would always end the program by saying: "Keep your stick on the ice". A hockey reference that a hippie dude might translate as: "Peace out, bro".
I'm interested to know what the ID was on the bottle jack ram and if it would have been possible to just slide it over the existing piece that was provided by the manufacturer? Might be an easier way for those of us that don't have machines to make all of the machining changes that you made.
I appreciate the question. I always try to reply to every comment. It has been several years since I made these mods and I did not keep the original fixed ram and crosspiece. As I recall they were very similar in diameter, but I am not entirely sure. I really like your approach to the solution. You definitely could reduce the diameter of the fixed shaft to fit inside the one I removed from the jack that came with the press. It would require a large lathe of removal and then it would need to be rewelded to the crosspiece. I suppose with a bunch of effort you could manually reduce the diameter. Your approach is a novel one. A bigger problem for me to comment is that Harbor Freight changes their product manufacturers all the time and often has multiple SKUs for current products, so I have no idea if my observations currently apply. On a positive note they seem to be incrementally improving their tools.
If you ever decide to manufacture any of them knobs, id be happy to buy one from you! I hate using that handle to open the valve on mine.
Thanks. I will add your name to the list.
On my application drilling additional 21mm holes on the 2 column uprights inline and halfway between the existing 4.5" center holes would allow adjustment for my 2 sets of dies,,has anyone drilled holes in that manner, any ideas of structural results,,?
I don't know, but I understand the idea. I think the designed hole spacing was chosen based on ram travel length so that you could get full range coverage. I would carefully consider doing anything that potentially makes the column weaker. After doing my pressure testing of this hydraulic press, Harbor Freight seems to have had, at least some parts, made without much of any safety margin. When testing the press at full capacity (20Tons) the top bar of the press deformed permanently. Failures in high PSI environments can be catastrophic, so please be careful.
I was surprised that you did not make the side tangs ( the pieces that you welded on ) a little taller to keep the twisting front to back down.
I haven't used the press that much yet, but I haven't seen any twisting issues. I will keep my eyes open now. Thanks.
You mention that Harbor freight did not do a careful job machining the jack ram. It looks like you use a 4 jaw independent chuck . Why did you not indicate the ram while installing it in the 4 jaw chuck? Or, is the ram slightly bent from pressing stuff?
You make a good point. I was just facing off the face, but it could have ended up crooked in the jaws with the final face not perpendicular to the shaft axis. I should have.
Great Video... I think if I had your Tools and Knowledge I would have just built the press my self... You do Nice work...
I considered it, but the materials would have been more than the whole press (if I had purchased them from my local supplier). Besides, I was curious to see if I could take a very affordable unit and make it something like the more expensive brands. Thanks for your thoughts.
or maybe i could do it with my B&D 3/8 drill........seriously, great video, superb skills, but no way it helps me.
I've watched videos of people adding casters. I was going to add casters, to my Harbor Freight 20 ton press. But I’m concerned. Seems like a bad idea. wouldn't that force the bottom angle feet to break once your pressing? I suppose that isn't an issue when doing some light pressing. You're a pro. thanks for your videos.
The forces during pressing should all stay internal to the frame. The wheels allow the mobility I need in a shop as tiny as mine. I have done tests to measure full output pressure with no issues, except for bending the frame. They under built my version of the press.
@@DudleyToolwright
Great. Thank you.
Would it have been cheaper/easier to machine your own presser shaft, cut the acme thread, etc, rather than sacrifice a working jack?
For support, would it make sense to cut a small cup in the base plate? So the shaft is supported on the end by the cup and the two wall thicknesses....
Interesting take. I will have to think more about your suggestions. Thanks.
I had zero used for another spare jack, so I was not worried about killing the one I salvaged. However, it would have been an interesting project making a presser shaft as you suggest. Cool.
the newer versions of this have boxed steel on the push bar instead of c-channel, there's a plate under the jack itself, and the top where the ram sits is a ring instead of the two fold channel from front to back. there's some improvements that can be made with the new model, but not as many need to be done.
Thanks for the update. Much appreciated. Harbor Freight does seem to want to iterate and slowly improve their products. Thanks again.
Nice vid, thanks! On the piston shaft, I’m not sure why you thought it would be cast iron, as cast iron brittle and could shatter under the imperfectly unbalanced loads in a job which was not set up perfectly (most of them ;-). It needs to be incompressible and resistant to bending, while not fracturing.. so it needs tough and strong. Cast iron is hard (so it make a good end cap) but could shatter when bent. IMHO of course .
You make some excellent points. I was factoring in the fact that these tools were sold by Harbor Freight, who used to sell theses presses with cast iron press plates. There are a surprising number of comments talking about catastrophic failures.
There's plenty of room for improvement on these Chinese, Taiwanese made equipment. They tend to use cheap, re-cycled steel which are softer and full of other elements. We are seeing a trend towards these kinds of re-engineering lately and this clip is one of the best. My 1950's British made press is mechanical and I will be converting to hydraulic soon. Thanks for posting, enjoyed watching.
Thank you for the kind words. I appreciate all comments, but I must say that favorable reviews or people commenting that I helped in some small way are my favorite. If you end up making a video of your update project, let me know. I would love to watch.
Like I stated in another video, I made D shaped handles from 1/16" x 1" flat for the cradle shafts to make them easier to work with and installed a cable winch & pulleys to move the cradle up & down much easier, particularly useful when adjusting with a work piece in the press. Otherwise, excellent ideas.
Great tip! Thanks for sharing your ideas. I could really use a pulley system to raise and lower my cross bars.
@@DudleyToolwrightThanks. That is the awesome thing about the net. People can share all sorts of information so everyone can benefit.
I was considering this mod, except I don't have a lathe. So then I thought about buying one from harbor fright, but then I began to wonder how many videos and mods I'd have to go through to make that operational.
By the time you get done with all the mods on one of these presses, I'm about to believe it'd just be best to buy a quality one and be done.
On the other hand, wouldn't it have just been easier to cut off the shaft on the press and attach the second jack upside down?
I get your take, but the equivalent high quality 20 ton press goes for $3-5k. It would be a whole lot better, but quite expensive. Flipping a jack upside down is a really good idea, but in order for it to work you have to take it apart to modify it so that the hydraulic fluid pick up comes from the other side of the reservoir. Definitely doable.
@@DudleyToolwright Actually my thought was just being able to screw the shaft out in order to take up the slack in certain situations and save a whole bunch of pumping.
I live in Sydney Australia, what oil should be used?
Hydraulic fluid, but I am not sure of the viscosity. I am definitely not a hydraulic expert.
Great machine work! I don't have the tools or skill to do anything like this. I do have 1 little idea for your shop press. On the very top of the press I installed 2 broom spring clips to hold the handle for the jack so it wouldn't stick out, or get misplaced.
I like the idea, Thanks.
I too have some press upgrades currently going on. Never gave much thought to that pusher pin ram thing. I may have to address that, since I'm upping mine to a 30 ton air/over hydraulic, with additional gussets, boxed in supports etc.
If you are making a video, I would love to see your take on improving this press. I did consider going to a 30 tone jack, but was not comfortable with Harbor Freight gear having enough safety margin to pull it off. You approach sounds wise. I look forward to seeing it. I have sub'd. Thanks.
Well, I guess I'd better make sure it turns into a video! See, the way I figure it, is that I'm not going to max out to 30 tons, but with a modified press brake, it'll make bending 1/4" plate for tabs and brackets that much easier and quicker. That's kind of the limit I work with in the shop anyway, based on max welder penetration (without having to do multi-pass welding)
But yeah, on the docket is DOM tube spacers welded in the side legs where the pins go. Then fully box that C-Channel. Obviously, use grade 8 bolts everywhere... which I think I've already upgraded.
Then on the platform, fit in little vertical gussets on the C-Channel, both sides, then box that in.
Then on the upper part of the press, more vertical ribbing, and weld the open portion closed. I've not yet decided how I'm going to do that. Initially, it seems like you'd just slap a piece of 1/4" plate across the top. But the more I think about it, I'm leaning towards a piece of C-Channel in the down position.
I've got my foot actuated pneumatic switch for the ram. Then I'll mount the whole thing to a mobile base. The last part is to find chainmail to make a front and rear curtain.
It sounds like you are really going to end up with a nice press. You have me intrigued. I look forward to seeing a video(s) if you make them.
Yes, I'll have content recorded for it as I go. I'll also most likely post on my instagram for sure though @EcoMouseDesign
(I upgraded my HF gantry crane in much the same way. All grade 8 hardware, and an entirely new longer, stronger I-beam. So, I'll definitely be documenting the press build)
I will check out your Instagram page and wait for the press build.
I only wish I had a mill and a lathe so I could do the same thing. I think I can come somewhat close and not as sexy looking. Question for you: Can you show some examples of the tools that you would make to attach to the new ram head? (I think that is what you call the rod that presses in side the press). I may have to see if I can get mine turned down to a perfect circle so I can do the same. Nice job, subscribed.
Thanks. I did these videos quite a while ago, but didn't I show making an adapter in at least one of them? All I did was bore out a piece of 4140 to the proper diameter and added some Allen screws just for friction to hold it in place. Thank you very much for the sub.
When it comes to using your Lathe, I would recommend running down the external diameter to keep "the wobble" TRUE for your application!
Sure wish that I had a Sturdy Lathe for the 3× a year (maximum possibility of use) within my shop/garage...
Thanks for the tip. I get the love of tools. Every one opens new possibilities for things you can achieve.
Love your videos , keep them coming!!
I will try. I found machining a bit late in life, but now I am hooked. Thanks for the comments.
the guides at the end of the box steel could have been extended up to lower the speed of drama that might occur in failure ?
Interesting idea. Thanks for sharing it with the community.
Great work! Great informative video
Thanks.
Can I come and work in your shop !! Great video
Thanks.
I basically have the same press it's just older. It has always done what I needed it to do. I always wanted something nicer but with the modifications that you showed this seems like the route that I'll take. That way I could put the money into something that would expand my capabilities. I'm a new subscriber and enjoy your channel.
Thanks, I really appreciate hearing about other peoples perspectives. Thanks for subscribing.
I have no idea of what you are using for a camera so I don't know if you have a manual focus mode. Other than that the photography is excellent.
I think I would have put a recess in the plate under the jack for the shaft and clamped it at that point rather than in the middle of the 2 x 4 tube which would give the shaft even more support. I would have run the shaft up into the plate and then bolted the plate to the 2 x 4 so that every thing was in alignment. Knowing that the shaft is not truly round I think I would have tried to true it up on the lathe.
I'm going to see which of your modifications I can use on my HF 12 ton as I do not have room for the 20 ton unless I build a smaller work bench. I'm also building a stand for a 6 inch Buffalo vise (came with the Bridgeport I bought at auction and replaced with a DX6 as soon as I had the money) that will bolt to the floor for my rod bender made from Tom Lipton's plans. It will be handy for removing jack parts, too. I've disassembled several rusty jacks to use the pistons for mill clamp supports. They were older than yours and did not have paint holding them together so I was able to get them apart with very large pipe wrenches.
My camera does not have manual focus mode. Very interesting suggestions thanks. The adjustable ram makes side contact at the top and the bottom of the 2x4, but Your idea might just be better. I considered your approach, but thought that my current method would be ok. Time will tell. As a side note, I did later true up the roundness of the shaft. You might consider making some vids. I would be interested in seen the projects you have outlined. Cheers.
Good video, when you are drilling and cutting holes with the hole saw what do you use for lubrication and does it cool as well. thanks Mike
I was using Cool Tool II and yes it cools a bit and lubricates. I haven't tried too many other cutting fluids, because this on has always seemed to work well. I have used WD40, especially with aluminum, but over time, if loeft on the machines, it can get really sticky and nasty. Just my thoughts.
Thanks much
Nice put a triangular gusset on the top piece so as to stabilize it preventing twisting. Above the Jack, Like a 3/16" flat stock on both front and rear, triangular, Like 8"wide on bottom and 12"wide at top or bigger. Nice job . You have machinery I'd love to have... I also have the 20 Ton HF PRESS...
Thanks for the really interesting idea. I have not used this press enough to see the twisting issues. I appreciate the heads up on a solution, even before I run in to the problem. Much appreciated.
Wow... I just picked up a HF 20T Press for $154 (on sale). Thought I got a pretty good deal.
After watching a couple of these "HF Press Mod" videos, I'm excited to know that If I save my pennies (~$200K worth of them) I too could have all of machines necessary to turn my $159 shop press into a $1K shop press all by myself!!
Great video BTW.
I get the equipment thing, but others have found way around have large machines. I am sure you could too. The press is a decent deal for the money. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Got to say that I think this is a masterful effort indeed. Would like to copy this for sure. 👍
It’s a shame they don’t come this way from the manufacturer, because all of the improvements make a lot of sense to me from an operator comfort / satisfaction point of view.
Poor design soon leads to dissatisfaction if using it becomes a bug-bear.
I’m after a shop press, never owned one - mostly for broaching internal keyways - but also pressing bearings in and out etc.
I think this would be a great addition to my shop. Thanks ever so much for showing all your improvements, all well thought out & executed.
I’ll have to subscribe now. 👍👍👍🇦🇺
Thanks for all of the compliments. I really appreciate them . This community is great about sharing ideas and improvements. I just wanted to play my part, because I have benefitted so much from other's outstanding work.
@DudleyToolwright Man, I wish that I had all of the machinery like you have. But, all of that machinery wouldn't be worth a darn without your skill. So,,,to go along with all the machinery, yup,,,I also would like to have all of your SKILLZZZ!!
I love overkill stuff... Just wish I had your skill set. Great video!
You are very kind. Thanks.
Simply amazing watching you mill your own parts!!! I am just facilitated with any videos on lathes!!! I sincerely appreciate both of these improvement videos and wish you all the best!!! Perhaps you should try and design some type of new Gatling gun that can fire billions of rounds out in a minute for our military!!! Lol
Thanks again
Art
PS: I only got nervous twice in this video and that’s when you’re reaching into the lathe to catch your parts!!! Please be careful as the “Big Guy” upstairs only gave us 10 fingers!!!
Thanks for the comments and warnings. I appreciate you looking out.
Hello, Im trying to keep pressure for 24 hours to glue a wood, Im on my second bottle jack and it start to slowly leak and losses pressure and lift back to start position. Can any one guide me on the right direction? Thank you
The Harbor Freight bottle jacks seem to have crappy seals. If you watch the video I did on total pressure this press can apply you will see that I had a similar problem. At max pressure this jack leaks like a sieve. It would lose max pressure in a matter of seconds. I also have a hydraulic lift table that mostly gets used as a table and it also had to be propped up with a 2x4 because it would fall flat to the bottom over night. I suggest that you look for better jack that has better seals if you need "long term" pressure.
Replace the bottle Jack with a Enerpac cylinder they hold the pressure for a long time but they are expensive. Or add some screw jacks on the side of the bottle Jack that you could compress the wood with the bottle Jack then adjust the screw jacks to hold the pressure. You can find some old screw jacks at a junk yard out of an truck or two.
I wonder if you have thought to check the fluid in your air/hyd jack for metal particales, if there are any they could cause problems down the line.
That is a great suggestion. I am not sure why it did not occur to me? I would think that there could be some scoring caused by them on the unhardened surfaces, which might lead to leakage. Thanks for the great and now obvious recommendation.
Hi yes a steel chip under one of the ball bearing seats would give a leak, I have reseated those by dropping in a ball and thumping it with a punch it works most of the time.
Thanks. I appreciate the approach.
When I assembled one of these today, I noticed the vertical frame doesn't actually touch the base of the feet. It's just resting on the bolts. There are also four struts at the bottom that are suppose to keep it from wobbling, but the two pieces they bolt into aren't on the same plane so the strut has to flex to be tightened. It all seems fixable but haven't noticed anyone mentioning it so wondering if I just got a crappy unit.
Harbor Freight seems to source their tools from multiple vendors, so they are all different. When I bought mine, there were three different part numbers that different stores carried. In your case there is not much force on the base so it seems like you'll be okay. Nice information for the community.
I saw what looked like an Eisen lathe manual near something you were filming, do you have an Eisen lathe? I've been thinking of getting an Eisen 1324 and am curious to know how you like it? Thanks
My lathe is an ACRA. That Eisen document was a brochure that came with a right angle attachment I got for my mill. The quality of that tool seems pretty good if that is worth anything.
I think you've inspired me to build my own press. I have a ton of Steel and them a pretty good welder. I do not own any kind of Machine Tools though ie a lathe or Mill. After you going to this process do you think I would have to have a lathe a mill to finish one?
Fantastic. I hope you video the process. I for one, would enjoy watching the build. There have been some really creative suggestions made to me in the comments, about how to achieve my results or better, without having access to really expensive equipment.
@@DudleyToolwright I am definitely going to do that. I've never done a lot of RUclips videos but I think I'm going to try my hand at it. I definitely built a lot of stuff. Thank you for the encouraging word. I love your honesty on stuff like the Machining and stuff. Cuz that stuff is so far above my head. I like the way you describe it in terms of people can understand.
Excellent. I've sub'd and am ready whenever you get the time. Good luck, it'll be great.
I would thread the old ram for ironworker nut and use it for punching making a die holder plate for the bottom.
Nice suggestion. I will have to do some research to understand the details of your suggestion, but it sounds great. I have very little experience with presses and even less with iron workers so I get the drift, but would like to understand the specifics better. Thanks for taking the time to share your thoughts.
You are welcome. You would not be able to punch too thick of material. thinking 1/2" in 1/4" little rusty on tonnage for thickness
Thanks. I had no idea such a small press could punch holes that big in material that think. Amazing. I realize that you are spit balling, but wow.
americanmachinetools.com/tonnage_punch_hole.htm I was wrong it's 1/2" in 1/2" 20 tons that assuming everything is sharp.
Watch pressing on that press plate that comes with the press, you can break them pretty easy and they shatter, I know I did it to mine.
Thanks. you are the second person to comment on that. I will definitely watch out.
The newer presses come with flame cut plate, the old ones (orange ones) were a casting and they break LOL.
Thanks Dudley. I'm going to direct copy you. All good stuff.Don from Oregon
That is very flattering, thanks.
Can you change the pump to a pneumatic input or better yet both?
The air motor powered jack can also be run manually. Did this answer your question?
Really enjoyed the video, i wanted to ask what type of taps do you use? Ive used a couple and they dont seem as well built as the ones you use
I do not recall the mfg. off hand, but perhaps you are more interested in the style. There are three main styles of taps: Hand, spiral pointed, and spiral fluted. Hand taps are the ones you see most often and can come in sets of 3 including the starting, plug, and bottoming taps. The spiral point taps are for power feeding through holes where the chips created are pushed in front of the tap. Spiral fluted taps are for power tapping blind holes and eject the chips out the back. I was using this type of tap. If this was really not your question I think it might have been Kennametal, Hertel, or OSG.
@@DudleyToolwright What brand name is what he wants I think.
I watched both, thanks for showing us, fully agree with the improvements,i would do the same,*but* ,just curious, with all that expensive machine shop equip' there, why didn't you just get a proper 20 ton press in the first place,with a real ,a fat one, 20 ton jack ?
You sped up that jack, maybe you do *a lot* of pressings? if so,a good 20 ton press would make sense; if not,speeding up the jack(expensive!) is the only thing i would not have spent extra money on; the bottom threaded adjustment is gonna make me wish my press had one lol
I loved the challenge and I really do have limited funds and have to pick and choose carefully, the items I buy. Also, I am always looking for content for my channel, that might help someone else.
Nice upgrades; great video quality too
Cheers
Thanks.
How many hours of labor do you have in it? Thanks for your video
I am not sure, but probably 8-10 hrs. I distill my videos down quite a bit, trying to tell a reasonable story.
Dudley Toolwright ok sounds good lots of good info thanks again
Btw, ATF can also work well as a cold weather hydraulic fluid.
Great ideas here, some I will definitely borrow. Thanks!
That is good to know and it makes sense. Thanks!
My old skid steer calls for type F atf instead if hydraulic fluid late 70s early 80s takes a few minutes to warm everything up when it's cold out.
"Knurl" the sides of the "Plunger Head Peice"?
I am not sure what this is referencing. It has been a seriously long time since I made these mods.
great job Brother, I have this same press. You have some great ideas here I may use some of them.
Thanks. I appreciate the comment.
Really nice 2 part video. How does this press now compare to a high dollar one? Seems like it has to be on par or better.
I have never used a high dollar press, but this one has been used since and has performed well. I don't really have a base for comparison, sorry about that.
Amazing how much service one gets from a hole saw when liberal cutting oil employed! :-)
Is that cross piece as you call it just regular 3 (or 4) x 2 x .250" rectangular structural tube?
It looks so nicely finished and I could not quite see the weld seam.
If I hadn't seen it done before, I never would have believed it myself. As to the material, yes, it was regular tube as far as I know. It was in better shape than any other I have seen, but there is a very noticeable internal weld. Externally, when I cleaned the piece off, I was really surprised as to how nice the finish was. If it was something else, I would love to know. Thanks for the questions.
Chris Leech what is liberal cutting oil
liberal amounts as in "don't be conservative"
@@chrisleech1565 with his mill work and lathe work would help
Good video. I make my knobs with a spindexer & a ball end mill works well
I love the solution. Necessity is the mother of invention. I really love the lateral thinking going on out there.
What kinda lathe do you have?
ACRA Heavy 14 or 1440TE
acramachinery.com/product/1440te-precision-gap-bed-engine-lathe/
Thats a good Project ! Love it!
Thanks.
Thank you I injoy youf videos
Thank you for watching.
@@DudleyToolwright watching one now
you should make yourself a holder for your jack rod, I find it annoying how often mine falls.
Excellent point and I think I will.
awesome upgrade gave me some ideal to fix mine
Thanks.
There's a potential consideration I would like to mention, bottle Jack's can be modded to work right side not up. The acme thread clearance adjustment shaft does then appear, as luck would have it on occasion, pointing the way of the udder. Good day and I'll watch for more of your, how it should have been done, videos.
Others have mentioned this as well. I was not aware of this at the time, so thanks. I have tons to learn and I appreciate you helping me along.
@@DudleyToolwright making a wheel for your main Jack's acme shaft is another possibility although you will be working against the two springs. I lost those in favour of counter weights encased in the stanchions. It's never ending. Have fun.
I enjoyed your video. I'm looking for another lathe, and if you do not mind will you tell your viewers a little about yours? From the blue color, it looks like a Precision Mathews? What brand and country of origin? Have you run any precision tests on it? Appreciate anything that you have to share.
It is an ACRA 14 Heavy weighing in at about 3300 pounds. I have turned an item a foot long and held a tenth before. It is a much better lathe than my skills dictate. It is made in Taiwan. I have been extremely happy with it. It has a 5HP motor and a coolant pump/sump. Here is a link to the current version:
www.acramachinery.com/Manual_Machines/1400-1600TE.htm
I have a sales contact in the Rancho Cucamonga, Ca. offices if you need it. They were extremely helpful.
What do they call the power engraver that you use
I don't know, but I think I'd like one.
On testing the Half-ball-bearing valves on old Rolls-Royce jet engine fuel valves, the test pressure was 2000 bar kerosene. More than enough to cut the end of a finger clean off, which it did to one of my colleagues, much to our delight.
Mistake was made! It was 200 bars of kerosene pressure. Sorry
That was a fascinating if not terrifying story. Thanks for the contribution. I had heard a story from an electrician that had worked building oil refineries and he was told that a pin hole in the ultra-high pressure hydrogen line had cased the decapitation of a worker who had walked through the nearly invisible jet. Respect high energy systems.
Question. Would it not have been better to mill a piece of hardened steel round bar and insert it inside the hollow tube, either welded in or press fir to give the whole assembly the strength you are looking for? That would eliminate ANY chance of it failing or deforming in any way.
Just a LATE suggestion as I am just now seeing this video!
I subscribed after viewing the first of these 2 videos. And will continue to watch your uploads!
Thanks for the information! It was good to watch the process as you went through it. Also, I now, know how HF bottle jacks are made!
Thanks, again for the videos. They've been very informative!!!!!
The 7075 aluminum is as strong as common coldrolled steel and so far I have not had any issues with deformation. However, I like the idea though.
I always seem to find videos that I want to comment on years after they have been posted.
A thought on why the screw isn't hardened is that hardened parts are "slippery" there is no give to the surface so other hard parts can't dig in and will have a tendency to slip off. That's not a good thing when jacking up heavy items that don't engage the grooves machined into the top of the screw.
That is an excellent observation. Thanks, you are never too late.
The joy of working metal to make it fit just right with what you've got at hand. Very inspiring! Now all I need is to get some more tools...
Are there ever enough? I have a list of over 100 tools to make. Every time one comes off the list anther few go back on. I'm happily loosing this war...
Nice mod. I have a 20 ton Chinese bottle jack press I bought a long time ago. The presser foot attachment is not perpendicular to the travel. I faced the foot but that of course didn't fix the problem. It is just held on by a set screw so no rotary reference. Will change that. I had been considering making a threaded foot extension on the lathe but your solution seems better. I want to make some adapters to fit the presser foot. This older press is quite a lot heavier made than the newer ones but still sloppy in it's travels. It came with two very soft, very irregular bars of steel for the pressing surface. I machined them flat and square edged but they get dinged up very easily.
Interesting, thanks. The softer press plates may deform and gouge, but that might be a bit better than the ones they made out of cast iron that fail catastrophically. I have had a bunch of people warn me about them, although the way mine machined, I don't think they are cast iron. If you video your improvements, I would enjoy watching.
I don't have a video camera. Can do photos. I bought a used Jet mill about 4 years ago. 2 years ago I bought a new PM1440HD Chinese lathe. It's OK. I've been learning machining VIA the RUclips university. The two best sites I've found are Joe Pieczynski's and Thatlazymachinist. Both excellent educational value. Would like to trade e-mails about our mis-adventures in machining. I also do some Aluminum casting. Best videos for that are from olfoundryman. Interesting videos from myfordboy include some casting and machining.
Good recommendations. Some other really excellent teachers are Oxtools with Tom Lipton, ABOM 79, Keith Fenner, MrPete222, and ROBRENZ (master of precision). Tom was my inspiration to start learning this trade. He explains his thought processes when he machines, a born teacher.
@@DudleyToolwright -- I don't have video capability. Over the last week I've been trying to tune up my lathe and mill. I started on the lathe by using a test bar to get the collet chuck as close to centered as possible. It is Chinese made with the "set true" design. It appears to be very nicely made. My collet set claims to be with in .0005". So trying to get any better runout on the chuck is a waste of effort. I managed to get .0002" with the collet and test bar I was using but that figure is only good for that particular set up. I use the collet chuck more than I ever thought I would. On work up to 1.125" it is quicker for me to be able to swap ends of the work than using a 4 jaw. I'm no Abom79! I did get my mill trammed in the left rt. direction pretty much dead on. Now I've got to try the nod direction.
Really enjoyed the video, one question, bottom plate under jack, 5/8'', you put on screen 0.750, thats 3/4, am i missing something here......
The answer is simple. I screwed up when I was talking. I was estimating and guessed wrong. The plate I had was 3/4" thick. I was just using a piece of stock I had on hand. The job was to spread the force of the piston out over the bottom of the jack base casting.. I would guess that 5/8" would also be adequate if the original Harbor Freight thin welded stock also worked. Thanks for the comment.