Thanks for the welcome Peter! I am already enjoying the forum and and have been reading through other members threads, there is such a vast amount of knowledge to be gained here, I was astonished by some of the scratch built cars bodies some members are working on, really makes me want to learn and try new things!
As I mentioned earlier in my introduction I recently purchased a lightly used 20 ton shop press off Craigslist. The previous owner was a retired truck driver and used it for pressing bearings, but said he only used it a few times. It looked like new so I bought it. Today I was planning on building a press brake for it so that I could make some 90° bends in some 16 gauge sheetmetal with it, but after a closer inspection decided that it had a few issues that I needed to address first. I noticed that when trying to lower the press bed it would get stuck. The lower I tried to move it the worse it got. After taking a couple measurements I found that the "H" frame tapered in 1/2" at the bottom. The inside measurement between the H frame was 18" at the top and 17-1/2" at the bottom also I noticed that the angle iron crossmember was bolted in the wrong location so I couldn't move the press bed down to the bottom 2 adjustment holes. So I unbolt ed the crossmember and moved it to the proper location down by the feet of the H frame, I also used a couple washers and squared the frame up so now it's within a 1/16 of an inch instead of a 1/2".
I also made a small "T" handle for the pressure release valve, so now I don't have to use the big clumsy jack handle to release it. I also shorten the jack handle by 10" seemed way to long. My next project will be to make some gliders out of some scrap UHMW to take out some of the slack/play in the press. There is alot of play and one of the big springs seems to have more tension than the other side so it has a tendency to crook to one side instead of being square. it seems like a common problem with the lesser expensive brands.
Hopefully I'll be able to start building the press brake soon!
I ordered a Woodward Fab bead roller today, can't wait to get it and start practicing! From the reviews I read it sounds like its a descent entry level bead roller, do any of you have any experience with this model?
Anyway, sorry for rambling on...figured I'd go ahead and throw in a couple pics of my press, in one pic you can see where I moved the bottom crossmember down to the correct location, the other pic shows the pressure release T handle I made. Thanks for checking in!
