Hydraulic Press

[TonyP]

Always wanted one of these and now that I need to replace my wheel bearings, now's a good excuse to buy some tools...

Whats the thoughts on capacity, yes I know bigger is better , but they do start to get a bit expensive. I think for diy 10T or 15T is probably going to be plenty...

Looking at the Machine Mart site:
10T Floor standing is £260:
http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/produ ... loor-press

15T Floor Standing £420:
http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/produ ... -15t-press

I could stretch to the 15T one, but is this over board?

Then there is the 50T one for a mear £1800... but lets not go there http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/produ ... loor-press

 

[Chris]

I have the MM 10 T. It's difficult to envisage needing more in our line of things. Ask Ben what pressure we used to do his discs! We were bending things at 8t. Having more pressure available might seem tempting, but the press has to be sooo much stronger in order to be able to use it.

It is more about technique than brute force. I rarely go above 3 t to do a well stuck wheel bearing. The beauty of a press is that you can sustain the pressure. With a hammer and punch it's all about whacking. Not all of that energy goes into the target whereas with the press it does. Put pressure on and leave it for a bit. Tap a little here and there and BANG it usually moves.

Chris

 

[TonyP]

Yup I undertand what you are saying.... of course with more pressure I defo stand a chance of breaking things... I can just see it... hmm it's not moving, ok pump that handle a bit more, nope nothing, ok bit more, till snap and all hell breaks loose

Pity I just missed out on the MM vat free discount, finished on the 28th so I will either have to wait another few weeks (if you have not noticed, I am not know for my patience) or just stump up the cash.... hmm I wonder.

 

[Chris]

Trust me Tony, when you start cranking up higher on the pressure, you'll know about it. It may be hydraulic, but there is still some pretty serious pumping needed. You can't accidentally crank it up.

Chris

 

[stevoyorke]

i just done all of the wheel bearings and swivel bearings on the front of my VX 80 using an steel rod and heavy hammer and it all was replaced without a hitch, there were some groove channels in which to place the steel rod for bearing access and tap away each side at a time for even removal. i do have a hydraulic press but i found there was no need for it in my case anyway. good luck with yours.

 

[stevoyorke]

my press is 15t new from e bay not long ago, good one too and i think i paid 120 which included the postage. check on e bay.

 

[Jon Wildsmith]

I should think most times if you need more than 10 ton you need to have a rethink because more would probably just damage the part. The 15t MM model is quite big, nice if you have the space but a PITA if you don't for something used so rarely.

 

[Ben]

if you buy the 10ton one Tony, and for whatever reason one day find you need more pressure, (which i doubt) you could always just buy the bigger hydraulic ram, and so convert it to a 15 ton one.

my plan is/was to buy the bench model Chris has got, and then get some steel and make another frame so it can be used as a floor standing model.

another idea i had was to buy the body repair kit.

http://www.machinemart.co.uk/shop/produ ... repair-kit

and then build a press to take the hydraulic ram that comes in the kit, that way i just have one hydraulic ram that i could use on a few different tools.

maybe im just being tight.

that body repair kit might be useful for you though Tony.

 

[stevoyorke]

This 12t floor standing press
Look at this on eBay:

12 Ton Industrial Hydraulic Workshop Garage Shop Press

http://bit.ly/JBbdB7

It good quality.

 

[Chris]

Sorry Steve, I don't think it is. It's just a bottle jack in a frame. These bottle jacks are not that good quality and the seals tend to go quite easily plus they don't always push straight with the ram travel being quite limited . The 10 one is a proper ram which is far more robust.

With a ram and the ability to weld, you could make one pretty easily but the bought one is good, effortless, already coated etc and by the time you have faffed about you could have done something more useful.

The MM style 10t one is enough.


Chris

 

[TonyP]

Thanks for all the feedback guys. Ideally I want something for this weekend, which kind of excludes ebay. I think I will go with the 10T floor standing one from MM. If it's good enough for Chris then that will do me fine

@Ben, like your idea, but really can't be arsed with trying to fabricate all of that just to change a bearing, anyhow, my welding is way to crap for that! And as far as dents etc... your track history is none to great either

As far as use is concerned, will in the last 2-3 years I probably would have used it about 5 times, so not a lot, but I recon it's one of those tools that once you have it, you will use it more.

@Steve, oh yes I have changed numerous bearings with a hammer and drift, but I am trying to teach myself to be a bit more finesse about all things..... but going by the last Lincombe i'm not too successfull at it

 

[stevoyorke]

@chris yes I agree there with what you said about it, it probably not good enough if it were to be used frequently like in a workshop but it served me well doing all the rubber bushes, like Chris says it has on a couple of occasion not pushed straight and had to reset it in the correct position. I guess the more u pay for quality the better, but for me I have very little use for mine which was enough.

 

[Mark N]

the 10T one should be enough - if it isn't and you have a gas welder (or even an industrial heat gun) then you can apply the 10T and then heat the outside part and it will probably come apart. I did this when seperating my steering stem from the bottom yoke on my bike and it worked a treat!

Maybe should add that to the Tips section?

Regards
Mark