Hydraulic shop press

[OverlandZJ]

Bud and i are wanting to pick up a shop press, using it for general rig repairs such as axleshaft bearings.

Will a 12 ton suffice or do i need a 25 ton? What do you guys have, how's it holding up? Would a Harbor Freight press be worth considering?

 

[old_man]

I've had the HF 12 ton for probably 4 years. I has always done what I needed it for, namely gears, bushings, etc. If you are wanting to bend some steel plate, look at a 20 ton unit, where you can get a press brake adapter for it.

 

[WebDog]

We have the HF 20 ton at the shop and its a pretty decent unit for the price.

 

[Vanimal]

i have a hf 20 ton press and it's really tweaked and cracked badly in several places with torn welds. pretty much getting to (or beyond) the point where it's unsafe. i wont say i dont abuse it though. i throw an old leather jacket over it when pressing out bearings to help contain debris when the thing blows out.

 

[pleembob]

HF20ton here. Works well, $149 on sale. Practice welding the bolt together frame and add some beef to it. Several sites online showing how to improve it. Great 4 the $. Get the 20 and check out the Swag off road accesories.

 

[2stix]

HF 20 ton here. works well for me. i did need to add a bunch of hydraulic fluid to the jack when i got it. the instructions show how to bleed the jack to make it simple for anyone. bolt it, weld it, and keep an eye on it, and you should be fine.
Vanimal----weld that puppy back up with some added gussets allready. be safe brotha.
i do like the SWAG products. and will probably end up buying his press brake dealio instead of making my own. seems like some good stuff.
get the press on sale and use the ever lasting 20% discount coupon. i think i payed $140
i would like to find better press plates for it though.

 

[Vanimal]

HF 20 ton here. works well for me. i did need to add a bunch of hydraulic fluid to the jack when i got it. the instructions show how to bleed the jack to make it simple for anyone. bolt it, weld it, and keep an eye on it, and you should be fine.
Vanimal----weld that puppy back up with some added gussets allready. be safe brotha.
i do like the SWAG products. and will probably end up buying his press brake dealio instead of making my own. seems like some good stuff.
get the press on sale and use the ever lasting 20% discount coupon. i think i payed $140
i would like to find better press plates for it though.

dude this thing is so tweaked it doesnt even sit flat on the ground anymore. the i beam where the top of the piston pushes on is bent up and at an angle which makes the piston want to move outward when the frame twists, and it broke the little retainer ring that keeps it in there. the big beam that you raise and lower for your workpiece height is cracked between the two and will probably split in half eventually. the pins you slide in to adjust the height are also bent pretty badly. i'd say it's toast lol

 

[xcm]

Congrats, you broke one...

That doesnt change the fact that these things are work horses. How long did you beat on yours before it quit?

 

[Vanimal]

Congrats, you broke one...

That doesnt change the fact that these things are work horses. How long did you beat on yours before it quit?

i probably used it 2 dozen times, at most. it's about 3 years old.
I'd hardly call it a workhorse. Have you used a decent domestic press? BIG difference.
My biggest issue with this thing is it's sloppy and it twists. when it twists, the ram is out of square to whatever you're pressing. That not only wastes a ton of energy and gets bearings started crooked if you're not DEAD on center, but is also pretty unsafe.
If you're smart, you'd keep an eye out on craigslist for a decent used one. You'll probably pay the same for a MUCH better unit.

There's some crap i've gotten from harbor freight that was ok and i swear by like their impact sockets and even bench grinders, but IMO this one is meh.

 

[MoparManiac]

Used Harbor Freight presses before for bearings and whatnot.

I don't see the thing bending unless you're trying to use all 20 tons of force.

And if you are, you're doing it wrong. At least for what the automotive crowd needs it for.

 

[2stix]

Vanimal - i get what your saying man. i too abuse the heck out of most of my tools. but i think you may be being a little harsh on your review of the HF press. they are not that bad for what they are. sure they can be improved upon, and sure there are much better presses out there. but when i wanted one for small projects, i could not find a good one for anything near the price of the HF one. and searched all over so cal craigslist. can you find a good one for cheap? maybe, but you will be searching everyday for a long time untill that once in a lifetime deal comes around. for the price of the HF one i think they are a decent deal as long as you know it is just a HF product. i for one would not use it for something that needed it max or near max load. but it beats the heck out of a brass drift and a hammer for setting races and stuff.
one the other hand, i do wish i had a kevlar vest sometimes when using it. they are not the most square and are a bit too sloppy, but adding some shims or even thick felt tape helps a bunch.