10-20 ton Shop Press

[CTX-SLPR]

Howdy Folks,

So.... the wife's daily driver 2012 Genesis dropped the passenger side of the car (I was at the wheel) into the ditch on a 1.5 lane road and while most of the damage was cosmetic scrapes on the underside of the car, the rear subframe mounting point for the lower control arm turned out to be a low spot and got bent up pretty bad. I was able to get it back into a usable shape and aligned but it's not a permanent fix. That means putting a similar mileage used one in there and there's a ton of bushings in the subframe and control arm. Time to get a shop press.

Surprisingly there is like bupkis on Craigslist so I'm going new I guess. Looking for a 10-20 ton unit so I have some head room for building press dies and such. I have air so an air over hydraulic wouldn't be bad but I'm trying to keep this firmly in lets say the "Craftsman" quality bracket vs. the "Matco". I'd rather pay for material quality and durability over quality of life stuff like air.

Any suggestions?

[squirrel]

I'd go with the biggest one you can....they come in really handy. I have a generic 30 year old 20 ton, gets a lot of use, and it struggles with some jobs.

[DanStokes]

I have the smaller HF (IIRC it's a 10 ton) and while OK it sometimes runs out of steam. I'd do their 20 ton but I'd weld the connections that they bolt together as even my little one wiggles (I'll weld it when I get time).

Dan

[Russell]

I have the 20 ton HF press I got it over the smaller one because there were some reports on the frame on the 10 ton bending. The one thing would have really liked if the base was wider where a rear diff does not fit between would make changing bearings easier. I have thought about getting some c channel and making a diamond base. but that is a long way off.

[Captain]

I also purchased a HF 20 ton press.
Went Large as they were on Sale the day I went to to get one. (was rebuilding the Tranny and axle bearings on the Timber Cruiser)
Works well, but YES the opening on the adjustable beams has been a problem for some uses.
Actually, my Rusty Iron Junkie Friend has come over to use it more than I have !! He has a Ancient YaZoo mower
he is always working on, Axle Hub Bearings, Spindle bearings/bushings, seals...etc.

[CTX-SLPR]

Go 20 ton, got it.
So it sounds like the HF press is the one with the recommendation?

[squirrel]

if you can find one somewhere else, buy it...old used is best, of course. But HF might be your only source, if so, get the biggest best they have, and it'll probably do the job, sort of, a few times.

[Beagle]

I've had no problems with the cheap 20 ton HF unit I got years ago. It's "good enough" but I'd consider a build my own if I really needed a bigger one or wanted air over hydraulics. I would have preferred old and used, but it did the trick for the junk I was dealing with, was cheap, and was immediately available when I wanted / needed it.

[Russell]

I got the HF one because I wanted it then, it was the cheapest easiest to buy.

ITs just a frame and a bottle jack. I sometimes use a smaller jack because the 20 ton takes a lot of pumps per inch.

20 tons is a good bit of pressure I don't like being around it if it's not moving. Things will go sideways if down is not an option. Getting everything square is important.

[DanStokes]

Just a use tip: At work we had a huge Dake press. It had the power to break pretty much anything. Over time we learned to take the torch to stuff that wasn't moving - put pressure on it and warm it up 'till something happens. Usually just a bit of heat would do the job and rarely did we have to heat anything to red hot. It also take a lot of the drama out of the "breaking loose" part of the disassembly. We broke a lot fewer parts that way.

Dan

[CTX-SLPR]

Well Craigslist snooping has uncovered and older, definitely import, press that has the advantage of having a bunch of reinforcement already retrofitted onto it. It's about the same price as a new HF press so I'm trying to get in contact.

[squirrel]

I found a picture of my press, it's still at my old house, and I'm at my new house, so I can't measure, read, etc at this moment.

I'd rather have a real old one, this is only 30 years old. And it's an economy press. US made, although the jack is imported. Might be bigger than 20 tons, but I don't remember.

[CTX-SLPR]

None of you boogers better snipe this from me...

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/eby/tls/d/union-city-frame-press-20-ton/7264748187.html

[CTX-SLPR]

In the shop against my "Other Military History" wall

[DanStokes]

Looks like the one the HF presses were copied from. Good score.

Dan