Upgrades for low cost hydraulic press

[Tmate]

In the U.S., we have a company called Harbor Freight that sells low cost machinery and tools, primarily Chinese. A lot of their stuff is junk, but their hydraulic presses, cheap as they are, are popular here.

Here are a few upgrades I did to my 20 ton model. It probably would have been smarter and maybe cheaper to spend a bit more and get a better one, but where's the fun in that?

1. Air Hydraulic jack
2. Table winch
3. Grade 8 bolts
4. Finger brake
5. Guide rollers
6. Pinned plates
7. Shaft collars on support rods
8. Casters

 

[finyuk2005]

In the U.S., we have a company called Harbor Freight that sells low cost machinery and tools, primarily Chinese. A lot of their stuff is junk, but their hydraulic presses, cheap as they are, are popular here.

Here are a few upgrades I did to my 20 ton model. It probably would have been smarter and maybe cheaper to spend a bit more and get a better one, but where's the fun in that?

1. Air Hydraulic jack
2. Table winch
3. Grade 8 bolts
4. Finger brake
5. Guide rollers
6. Pinned plates
7. Shaft collars on support rods
8. Casters

View attachment 380475View attachment 380478

I like these mods, will certainly keep them in mind for when i get round to it!!

 

[frank horton]

T-Mate......nice one.....no such luck with a store like that here except Machine Mart etc.........
selling the same stuff but for twice the price....lol....we're always ripped off for tooling...

I made this one years ago.....not so pretty.....lol.....
25ton, no air, just too expensive....so too slow for a press brake add on....
has a sliding head....made the bed extra long to get seized pistons and liners outta tractor engines blocks...
can get a 6 cyl Perkins cyl block on there, just....
used a winch like u as not young anymore.....hahaha....
PS, use Bonnet "Hood" springs from a junk Volvo for the jack return.......

 

[James1979]

As far as the finger brake goes - apparently there is an American standard width of press and a GB / European one. Not so much an actual standard but what’s commonly for sale.

Possibly something to do with metric or not.

Anyway. One won’t fit the other. Can’t remember which way round.

Saw it on the Swag site when I was looking at them a while back.

May help someone with an internet “bargain”