hand crank 5 ton clicker presses

[Tangent Creations]

As far as clicker set up, that looks like how ours is. Could you elaborate some more on your molds?? Those are cool (considering how much busted up cutting board we have )!

[bruce johnson]

Regis,

I bought the whole setup for under $200. Some parts are welded and some are bolted. Originally I wanted a benchtop, and a guy on another list sent me pics of his. He was one that suggested the 20 ton jack, he had broken smaller jacks. I left the pics with an ag welding shop a couple years ago. They stayed busy and never got to it for a while. Finally the price of steel got too high combined with their labor to make it viable to build. Mine came from a local industrial supplier. It is sturdier than HF and the ram is straight. Some of the Harbor Freight 20 tons had the ram welded on crooked. The cold roll steel plates are 1" thick. A guy could use thinner I think. I got them from the scrap pile at a local steel yard. They cost me about $30 for the bottom and three sizes of tops. They will rust and also transfer iron marks,so I am pretty careful about handling them with one hand and the leather with the other to avoid iron marks later.

Tangent,

I just cut the molds from scraps of HDPE or LDPE with a jigsaw. I screw them together with drywall screws. They can be smoothed up on a belt sander. I can make these up faster than I can fight a molded piece over a block. You need to allow for the planned leather thinkness in the kerf. I usually cut the female part slightly oversized. I then true up the male part, widen the gap, and knock off the square edge on a belt sander. They don't have to be pretty, just smooth. Dremels also will clean up a sharp edge.

[T Moore Medicine Hat Saddlery]

what brand is your press

[Luke Hatley]

Regis..... i see now, that Basement is going to be Full of

some Great Leather Working Tools.

[bruce johnson]

what brand is your press

Trying not to sound like a smart alec here, but it is a "red one'' and came from China. There is no brand name on it. I got it from Rayco which is a local industrial equipment supplier (Modesto, CA). There is a Rayco that comes up on internet searches, but this isn't part of them to my knowledge. Rayco has a lot of shop equipment that is a step above Harbor Freight, but the price difference is visible in the quality.

I have to come clean on this deal too, under threat from another member who knows this. My wife uses this a LOT more to click out stuff than I do. She started out making coasters a couple years ago. Simple stamped, but mostly hair on hide scraps glued to scrap skirting and then clicked and edge sewn. She was hand cutting them to start with, and got the attendant oddballs from handcutting anything. I ordered her some dies, and they arrived just before Feb 14th. Guys, clicker dies for your wife are not the most appreciated Valentine's Day gift. Any gift you give her later seems like an afterthought. Seemed like it would be funny at the time.....

[Mike Craw]

So, I guess that riding lawnmower you were going to get her is out...?

[Canuck]

Here is the link for the clicker press. http://lucris.com/index.php?option=com_fro...ge&Itemid=1

they are for sale on ebay but do cost a considerable amount. Currently $1200 US.

I use a 3 ton arbor press. ($100) I got a longer handle (40") 1" round rod.

I made a base by laminating four 12" squares of 3/4" plywood. I put a 12"x1/2" nylon cutting board on that. As mentioned in previous posts it's also advisable to have a thick piece of steel to evenly distribute the pressure over the die. I use 1 1/2" steel.

I'm cutting billets and straps as well as ranger belt components. 6-8 oz leather is realatively easy. 8-10 oz takes a little more effort. I found that a quick downward thrust, replicating a clicker action works best.

You have to make sure the arbor press is bolted down well to a workbench.

I have since modified the press. I now have a 12"x12"x1.5" piece of steel attached to the ram. I slide out the nylon cutting board place the leather and the die on the board then slide it back into place then drop the ram.

I'm pleased with the results.

You may want to check with the die maker how much pressure is required for the die to work properly. The more intricate the die and size will determine the size of clicker press you will need.

All the best

[sheathmaker]

Up until about three weeks ago, I used the Tippmann 12"X12" 7 ton pneumatic clicker for about three years. It performed flawlessly, and I literally clicked thousands of items with it. I think full retail on them is about 1495.00 now but I only paid 1100.00 for mine and passed it on to a saddle maker who was glad to get it for 1000.00. That wasn't a bad three year "rental" for a real time saver and money producer.

I'd surely recommend that anyone wanting a clicker to investigate the Tippmann pneumatic choices, along with your other selections.

Paul

Edited November 10, 2007 by sheathmaker

[maven05]

Does anyone has images of that manual clicker?

I would like to find out how it works. Really wonder how with bare hands one can pull out 5 ton.

Max

[Tex Shooter]

I have two Lucris presses and for what I do they are hard to beat. If you do small item clicks, there is nothing faster. Here is a link to there web site. I have one of mine for sale, but will not ship it!

Diecutting Press