press

[JHertzman@domain.elided]

In the latest AD7-829 (the second, split by four different 828s) Zamani asks 
about the usefulness of a 6-ton press, or whether he should get a 12-ton? I 
have followed the recent press-size discussion with considerable interest, 
noting opinions ranging from Jay Negrin's "I would suggest the biggest, 
baddest, most heavy duty press that will fit where it is supposed to go" to 
Bob McKeown's "six tons is 12 THOUSAND pounds. If you have to press anything 
on an Alfa any harder than that - - - something is wrong." The "12 THOUSAND 
pound" argument sounds reasonable, thinking about what I have made-do with a 
bench vise, or with drifts and a four-pound sledge hammer. An old industrial 
supply catalog I have has arbor presses in quarter-ton, half-ton, one-ton, 
two-ton and three-ton sizes, and hydraulic presses in 5, 6, 12, 15, 20, 25, 
35, 40, 50, 65 and 75 ton capacities, with prices from $44 to $4,200. Many of 
the moderately priced presses were sold without jacks, with the jacks offered 
separately in versions with and without pressure gauge, always with jacks 
below the rated capacity of the press; a ten-ton bench press with an eight 
ton jack, fifteen ton press with a twelve ton jack, and so forth. One big 
variable, apart from the pressure, is the inside width of the press frame; I 
would want a press large enough to handle the largest object I would put in 
it, but I doubt that I would need twenty-four thousand pounds to push things 
like suspension bushings, especially if I had limited garage space to 
dedicate to big klutzy occasional-use tools.

Cordially,

John H.

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