Russian hammer

[Minotaur]

I went to see a Soviet Union made power hammer today (pictures of it below). It looks like a Beche clone. The main axel was stuck as it hasn't been used for a while so I couldn't try it. I will go back on Saturday and try to get it running. Is there anything specific (commonly known problems, areas prone to cracks etc.) that I should try to check? Is there any info on these type of hammers available somewhere? What are the levers on the side used for?

I don't speak/read any russian, but I assume that the info on the side of the machine says that it is a 50kg (110 lb) machine with 225 bpm and 220mm (8.7 inch) ram travel.

I don't even have a workshop at the moment (though I'm planning to build one this year), but it is a good start to find a hammer first

[ApprenticeMan]

Mino, that has gotta be one of the coolest hammers I have ever seen, AWESOME, thanks for posting that! Good luck, hope it checks out ok.

[philip in china]

We have a russian woman teaching mathematics here. I will get a translation for you before the day is through I hope.

Happy lantern festival to you all.

[philip in china]

1st 3 lines factory name and address

Then:
Power Hammer

Model # 4127
Serial # 5568
Year of production 1972
Strokes/minute 225
Weight of hammer 50Kg
Height of working zone xxxmm
Total weight of hammer xxxxx Kg

I don't suppose you have learnt anything from that but it is good to know that the details are confirmed. Would you like it translated into Chinese?

[Minotaur]

Yes, it was nice to get a confirmation. My chinese is as bad as my russian, so no need for the translation . Xie xie!

[imagedude]

For all the powerhamers you could wish for, see:

PRESSTRADE - Presssenhandel GmbH

They also sell presses too!

[Valentin]

well the levers on the side are
1 it's conected to the foot pedal so that u can control the stroke from the hand also.
2nd one has 2 position
hammer head up-when u start the hammer the hammer head get's puled up and when u push the pedal it strikes down
hammer head down-when u start the hammer the head sits down and when u push the pedal it get's up and then down
i can;t see for shure in the pic but mine has a 3d one at the oil pum to greeas the cylinders(i can't see it in the picture )

[Minotaur]

There is a third one, but that acts like some sort of lock for the first one. There is nothing that would look like as something to be used for lubricating the piston. There is only a oil reservoir with two pipes leaving from it. There might be an oil pump somewhere inside the hammer?

[Minotaur]

Today I tried to get the hammer running for some time. It seems to be stuck in every possible way. We (me and he current owner) were able get the main axle/camshaft to rotate by using a long iron bar. So now it idles just fine, but the piston/foot pedal system is completely stuck. I need to go back and treat every moving part with some anti-rust lubricant. It may take some time, but in the end I will make it to run...

[John N]

I think it will be a vacuum oiler (ie no pump)

The middle lever is an air bypass to reduce the starting load.

I would pull the covers off and tip some oil down the bores.

The big end bearing on the Con rod will be grease lube, take a grease gun and give it a few shots. Similarly there will be a grease point where the crank exists the cylinder by the flywheel.

If the valves are 'frozen' with rust there might be 2 covers on the other side of the cylinder. Remove all bolts, take the covers off and using a picece of wood drift the valves out, emery, oil & refit. Make sure you mark everthing up so it goes back together the same ! - if you loose the valve positions your into a lot of hastle.

I think there will be a spring loaded ' clack' valve in the bottom valve - check this is free

Its sometimes a good idea to buy it before repairing it, the price might go up once its running!

hope this helps some!