# Tool gloat



## bvd1940 (Nov 16, 2011)

Went shopping at the local scrap yard today and found me a  Phase 2 press laying there saying take me please take me!!! So I did for 30 cents a pound then I spied a smaller press right near the phase 2, and a Chicken weather vane to make wife happy for $46 for the lot.  :biggrin::drink2::lmao:


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## Old Iron (Nov 16, 2011)

Nice score bvd1940, But where is the picture of the Chicken?

Paul


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## Starlight Tools (Nov 16, 2011)

Awesome score.  The arbor press is probably the most used tool in my shop.  Picked mine up better than 23 years ago, sitting in some guys wood shed.

A bit of cleaning and it looks like it will be very servicable for you.

Walter


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## Hawkeye (Nov 16, 2011)

There was a 3-ton press very much like your big one advertised here for the last month or so. The slotted disk was missing and the top of the ram was mushed over from a severe hammer beating. The seller said "Make an offer", so I emailed him and offered $25, mentioning the deficiencies. He responded that he wouldn't take less than $100. You did great. Good gloat.


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## bvd1940 (Nov 16, 2011)

Hawkeye said:


> There was a 3-ton press very much like your big one advertised here for the last month or so. The slotted disk was missing and the top of the ram was mushed over from a severe hammer beating. The seller said "Make an offer", so I emailed him and offered $25, mentioning the deficiencies. He responded that he wouldn't take less than $100. You did great. Good gloat.



I know there sposed to be a plate but could not find it and was in a hurry so I might have to go shopping there again but ifin I cant find it I will make one if I ever get my new lathe I ordered March 30th but have not received yet


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## Starlight Tools (Nov 16, 2011)

I get more mileage from a set of bearing knives.  Mine are made form a chunk of 8" square x 1-1/4"  T1 Armour Plate.  With 3/4 NF 51-- series spring stock used to make the bolts.  this is one of the projects that I made while in millwright school about the same time as I picked up the press.

Then there are the other plates, and sleeves and pins that all make it a more convenient tool. 

The pictures of the Grey press and the one of the sleeves out on the table are a friends shop.  I have that same set of sleeves, but I made up holders to fit into the doors of my Craftsman wall cabinet that is right above my Famco #25R 5 ton ratchet handle press.  The other pictures are some of the special jigs that I have for pressing tools apart and back together.

Walter


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## Tony Wells (Nov 16, 2011)

I'd say you did very well. Arbor presses are very versatile when you start making dies and punches for them too. Let your imagination run wild.

Plus you made wife happy.....good job.


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## churchjw (Nov 17, 2011)

Very nice score.  Have you ever done electrolysis cleaning for rust removal? This project would be perfect for it.  I have used it on a few junk yard finds and it works great.  Walter, not to be slow but what are bearing knives? I am getting ready to build a 50 ton press out of a car jack and would love ideas on design and usage.  Mostly looking to use it for press forming but want to keep my options open.  

Jeff


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## Starlight Tools (Nov 17, 2011)

Jeff

The bearing knives (bearing splitter) are actually shown sitting on the press.

Here is the plans that I used to make them up from.  Note that they show using a Grade 8 bolt, but I used 5160(?) spring steel and turned up two bolts, threaded at each end and use 4 nuts rather than just two as shown.

Also I included the drawings for the Vee Plates that I use on the 50 Ton Press.  These were made up at around the same time.  I made up two sets, that way they can be stacked it required to get a bit extra height.

The other print is a smaller set of bearing knives that are good for hard to reach bearings.  I copied a set i used to work with, but I never made these, ended up getting a set premade from Milwaukee, but I prefer the ones that are drawn up.  Maybe one year I will make them up.

 Walter


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## bvd1940 (Nov 17, 2011)

Walter
I have a collection of wrist pins of different sizes that I use for pressing items.  Do you use the rotary plate much or would it be better just to have bunch of plates to setup with?:thinking:
My old arbor press I had was built different and very limiting on operation. By the way finaly got news on my new lathe and it is in the USA (customs) finaly:biggrin:  Maybe I will finely will get to some of the backlog I have for the lathe.:biggrin: 
There was another BIG press out there but could not find any ratings or name on it but it would be in the 100,S of ton rating, the cyl. was at least 16 inch bore and the press was all there but would not fit in my shop We used one like it at the shop I retired from to press out pencil lead for fishing. You would need a semi to move it.

Jeff 
No I have never tried that method to de rust anything yet but have already got the big one cleaned up, painted and reassembled and ready to mount to bench:biggrin:
I am going to break down and try that one of these days. The press had been hardly used from the looks of it after clean up  the only thing other than the rotary plate missing was a rubber cap on the end of the lever.:lmao:


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## Tony Wells (Nov 17, 2011)

Instead of grade 8 bolts, or having to thread up your own, try to get some all thread in grade B-7. It's basically 4140 HT. Plenty strong for bearing knives, or many other high stress applications where all thread is needed.


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## Starlight Tools (Nov 17, 2011)

Bill

I have never found that I needed the rotary plate.  My press never came with it and even though at the time I worked in a shore where I could have gotten a import rotary plate cheap, I never figured I would need it.  I use, 99.99% of the time the 8" bearing separator that I made in Millwright school.  That plate has been sitting on that press day in and day out since I got it.

if you look in pictures I posted, there are two other plates I use, in the cabinet, centre section, there is a plate that is about 5 x 10 that has a few holes drilled in it.  This is a Milwaukee press plate.  More often, there is a round plate with  series of holes in it that hangs on a magnetic hook at the back of the throat of the press.  This is used over the Bearing plate if I need to press something and need to surround the shaft.

The sleeves are also very handy as you can press a bearing on or off over a shaft and get the presure on the fixed race.  Id for a shaft, OD for the housing.  Also you can use a sleeve under the part and one over to get into a cavity.

If it was me, I would not worry about the rotary plate.  I would get or make a large sized bearing separator like I have shown.  Next, I would find or make as needed a variety of sleeves of various sizes and them along with the wrist pins will give you a good assortment to work with.

FYI, my sleeves range from about 9.55 mm OD x 6.15 mm ID and go upwards to 49.26 mm OD to 42.86 mm ID.

I also have a bunch of chunks of pipe of various size with 4-1/2" dia being used the most for what I do and then up from there that can be used to support stock like shown in the one picture of my buddies shop where he has the pipe with  hand cutout in the bottom and a bearing separator on top.

Tony,

Yes, I agree that B-7 threaded rod would be a better choice.  

Bear in mind that I made this as a project in millwright school and threading that stuff was part of my grade of my course.  Now they did not spec the material, actually they had a bunch of projects they wanted students to make, like a raised face flange.  I asked the instructor what they were going to use the raised face flange for when I completed it, cause I really did not have a use for it.  His answer is that it would be thrown into the metal scrap bin.  Since I really did not see any reason to make something, spend all that time doing a really nice job and then have it melted down, I asked if I could come up with  few other projects.  I handed him plans for the bearing separators, the vee plates and an engine hoist.  They had equal or harder design, layout and machining skills involved, and the instructor said, yup yup and build three of the hoists.  I got one, the school kept one and the third went home with  the instructor.  LOL

As for the rod, when I was out getting scrounging / buying / stealing material, that is what a buddies shop offered me as something that would work.  Yes it worked, but it was knarly stuff to machine.

As part of the course every student was issued a few HSS lathe bits and we had to learn how to sharpen them.  Well I was working on these bolts and I was having to resharpen them after each pass or every second at the most.  The instructor came over and said I'll be right back.  He came back with a brazed carbide threading bit and said you know how to sharpen them, but try this one.  Well that did the trick and I have never gone back to HSS unless in a pinch. LOL

Walter


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## Tony Wells (Nov 17, 2011)

That makes sense. In school, it's about learning how to make stuff, not get out of making stuff.


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## bvd1940 (Nov 17, 2011)

Thanks for the feedback guys, tomorrow I will mount it to my bench & move to the small press and clean it up.:biggrin:


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## churchjw (Nov 18, 2011)

starlight_tools said:


> Jeff
> 
> The bearing knives (bearing splitter) are actually shown sitting on the press.
> 
> ...




Thanks that clears it up.  I have seen these but did not know what they were called.  Had not thought of doing something like the Vplates that is a great idea.

Jeff


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