JPH

Howdy!! Well..ya all ain't going to believe this..but it is working...I was so nail spitting FRUSTRATED that I just smacked it with a hammer and well..it works??!?>?I have no idea but I have been running it for about 10 minutes now and it cycles and the overpressure valve kicks in at 3200 PSI ish like I wanted it.. Nothing is leaking and all is right with the world at least press wise.. Now I have to clean up all that mess.. sheesh..but I am now 100% set yup./.just some clean up and I will be back to work full speed probably tomorrow. THANK YOU all for the help and suggestions...I really appreciate that.. JP ( I got the press running) H

Frosty ... OK the press works...I can squish anything that I can get between the dies...I get the pressure but I simply do not get a pressure reading on the gauge at all...and the over [pressure relief valve isn't opening when the pressure goes above what ever point I have it set to.. Oh I can use the press by ear and I can tell when it is starting to over load but that is not safe at all... Everything works ..the limit switches...the foot pedal...it raises the cylinder to the upper limit switch when I step off the pedal like it is suppose to...the press works it's just not safe... So it's time to call in a pro...I am out of ideas.. JPH

Hello!!! OK I replaced the overpressure valve and the gauge and well...they both don't work!! I am beat on this...the gauge is not reading any poressure at all and the over pressure relief valve doesn't do anything...so...suggestions or is it time to call in a pro?? JPH

Frosty: That Lucas treatment helps to keep the temp down as well as being an anti-foam agent.. It is running but I am not all that keen of using it until I get that overpressure valve problem eliminated..The last thing I want is a busted hose or a cracked valve plate spraying hot oil all over with a burning forge going. That could get to be a bit exciting and not in a good way... JP (back to setting up my work benches) H

Frosty: The tank capacity is right at 25 gallons...plus about 3 gallons for lines and the cylinder..I got an extra 5 gallon bucket just in case I need more...the best price I found was at our local Rural King down out towards Weekee Wachee ...I got the heavy duty stuff and $35.00ish for 5 gallons plus I added some Lucas hydraulic booster as well...so I am set fluid wise.. I should have this sorted out in a couple more days..I hope... JPH

Frosty: I have two filters..one on the out line to the pump and one on the return line from the cylinders....When i moved I drained the tank and when we got here I drained and flushed the whole system as well as filling it with new fluid...boy that stuff is getting $$$$..so the system is pretty clean.. I just want to get this done and all so I can finally get my old carcass back to work...The missus is looking at a knee replacement so I am going to need to get some serious stuff done... So as soon as I get the tweeking and all done on my studio set up I will be posting photos.. JPH

Glenn: You got that right.... as it is I have been out of work since last December and this is so close to getting everything up that I can smell and taste it.. Tomorrow in the the AM I will be getting my benches sorted out and ready as well as getting the last of my tooling where it should be... I just need to get back to work..FINALLY....and this will be a major relief... I will be posting studio pics in a little bit once I get this sorted out... JPH

Update: well I got that pesty gremlin...had a couple of loose wires behind the relays...so it is running... now it seems that the pressure gauge as well as the over-pressure valve are no longer functioning... Now I know I have pressure...A LOT of it so this time this should be a easy fix... more as things progress.. JPH

Hello: Well that was the case here.... Now I have a gremlin living in my electrical..the 220/240 is 100% fine..but for some reason I am not getting and juice to the solenoid so I will be spending the rest of this afternoon with a voltage meter running that pesty gremlin down.. JPH

OK called Northman this AM and it is a bad valve..they had a new one waiting for me in Tampa and now that is in...I get cycling...now I get to run my circuits to make sure everything is still good...at least I have the schematics that I drew up when I first built this thing...(the plans are in my 4th book BTW)..having a huge thunder/electrical storm now so I am signing off for the duration.. JPH

ok I am beat on this one.... When I broke it down I disconnected the cylinder lines A and B at the cylinder and labeled them..no way could these be reversed as line B is way too short to connect to the A port..so..that is not a problem..... I also disconnect the return line from the valve at the tank and the line to the pump at the tank as well.... These are two different sized hoses and can not be confused as the fittings will not interchange.... nothing else was disconnected as the motor/pump and lines were all moved intact with the valve. The electrical problem is no longer part of this as that has been removed from the problem...so..I hook everything back up nice and tight...fill the tank..let is sit a bit and fire it up...that's when the problems started...I solved the sparks and electrical stuff...now no flow out of the valve..I have circulation on the pump/motor side while the valve is neutral..that's all well and good...now I get NOTHING on the down line out to the cylinder on either port A or B... I mean this was working great before the move...so...I am beat..I tried reversing the lines from QA to B and B to A..nothing...put them back as originally hoked up... Tried jogging the valves (The new solenoid DOES have a override)...no good...still nothing..but I can feel the flow when I activate the valve...so where is this going??..I am fresh out of ideas... Anyone??

Hello: OK replaced the solenoid valve...used the exact same valve by mod # AND manufacturer...Northman SHW-G03-C6-R120-10..now I am not getting ANY flow from the valve to the cylinder...on either the A or B port.. Oh come on you ruddy machine..you were working perfectly before the move..what happened??checked the lines...all clear...gonna try something and see if that works...more later.. JPH

Jeffery: Hummmmm interesting...never thought of that..I will check tomorrow AM on the wiring... You ARE Correct..the sparks happen at the place you mentioned...at the spider between the motor and pump....when I activate the solenoid....there could be a short in there... I will look... THANK YOU... I will let ya know....now I get to drain the tank so I can replace the solenoid... fun fun fun.. JPH

Hello: No soap on the manual over ride..this puppy doesn't have one... so i wait till the replacement gets here..still wrestling with the fly press and LG..it's a bit difficult for a one man op to do but hey..I can get creative and I will get it done in the next few days..I still have a bunch of small stuff to do in the mean time.. I did get to mount my bench shear and buffer...plus made a few more shelves and SLTT along with setting my two post vises and the last two bench vises..still have to stain some benches..got the small forge up on the bench and the refractory covering laid down...so all in all a more or less decent day.. More as things progress JPHJ

Frosty..this will be the third in 17 years or so... As far as the sparks...that has ceased (at least for the moment) ...we will see what happens when the pump comes under load when I replace the solenoid...ordered it today..no one had a suitable replacement locally so.... Tomorrow I move the fly press and my 25# LG in...fun fun fun JPH...

Hello: wait till ya see it all finished and set up..still have a lot of hand tools to put in as well as my LG and my fly press...that should be done this weekend and then I am finally back to work..if all goes half way right...hunted down a new solenoid...got three places that I can go..who ever can get it to me quickest gets my lucre JPH

Howdy... OK..I have fluid flow to the solenoid and back..NOTHING goes through to the cylinder..just does the loop which it is suppose to do...from the pump...on through to the tank return.. It was working 100% fine when I broke it down for the move...This isn't the first solenoid I had to put in..this is No 3..so I'll just change it out and that should do the trick..I hope it does... as for pics...here ya go..a progression... so more as things happen JPH

ok..here's the dope...the re-orientation of the pump/motor/ seems to of solved that problem...now I may have a busted solenoid...given all the bumps and shocks that the thing went through it is not surprise there as these things can be a bit sensitive to shock.. I DO have fluid flow to the solenoid but not on the down line side..so something isn't opening.. So now the search begins... More as things happen JP (Murphy was a real pip) H

OK let me clear up something up as I may of been a bit vauge...the motor runs..runs great...but when I hit the control pedal that activates the solenoid that is when the trouble starts...it just sparks at the pump...all the while the motor keep running...I think that it is turning the wrong way cause I wired it wrong when I got down here....I have a diagram I pulled from Baldor and I will see what is what... This would explain why the cylinder did nothing when I first fired it up... I checked the alignment between the motor, spider and pump and it looks good there.. so in a few minutes I will go out and give it another go.... More as things progress.. THANK YOU all for the ideas... JPH

I checked everything three times 3....it has to be the motor rotation..."xxxx It Jim I'm a bladesmith not a hydraulic engineer" once I screw up enough courage to get down there and get a good look I will give it another go.. I am a bit gun shy at the moment.. It is just I am so close to being set up and his is stalling everything.. Well Murphy strikes again... I'll figure it out...just want to make sure before I do anything else.. JPH Here are some pics...I am working on this and letting it percolate before I do anything else...the last thing I need is to wind up a smoldering grease spot on the floor...

Hello OK I have a puzzlement.. I set up my press now that I am settled in down here in the Florida Jungle..got it plumbed back up.,.motor/pump mounted...frame up on the stand...solenoid secured and the tank filled with hydraulic fluid (I was using AFT before this...but I went to the gen-u-ine hydraulic fluid cause I flushed out the system..and it was a lot less $$ than the ATF) .. All is well and good.. I started the motor up and the pump started humming...but no movement on the cylinder..it should of come up...I hit the down pedal and that's when it got interesting... All sorts of sparks started coming off the pump..I shut everything down PDQ and now I am wondering...could the problem be I mis-wired the motor when I hooked it back up...?? Could the pump be turning the wrong way? At a loss here...NO movement in the cylinder but there is fluid in the lines between the tank to pump to return..There is absolutely no way I hooked the hoses wrong as they are not long enough to mix up...I circuit checked everything electric wise and that checks out good as well... My only spot I am unsure of it the motor wiring.. Any ideas??? THANKS ALL JPH

Hello: Why didn't ya just ask me direct??? I do NOT recommend using arc weld as it can really mess you up and as Brother Steve says..it looks like crap... Look at it this way... How did the smiths "of Olde" secure material together BEFORE an electric weld was even thought of?? They used either wire or bands.... You work your way back and remove the wire/bands as you work down the bar..and there is NO problem with much of anything getting "in there" and buggering up the weld/pattern... Geeze..YOu could of just asked me... The photos below are of the raw materials I use... 1095 sheet... L-6 sheet.. and 200 series Stainless Steel HT foil... (Yeah..I weld this stuff WITHOUT it being in a can...why?? Because I can..it's all a matter of knowing what to do with what ya have to work with..) and the first weld completed..as well as what it looks like after I am done with it... This isn't anything new or anything we are talking "Dark Age Tech" here.. Remember Occam's Razor... But then again..what the blazers do I know anyways??? I am just and olde xxxx .. FAB JPH

Brother Thos: If you want some mosquitoes I can always catch and send ya some...just let me know... Anyways Just been coordinating with my slave labour..we have been scheduled for a mud delivery this Friday at 1000hrs....so we pour!! After that we wait two weeks and we erect the building...I still have to arrange the delivery on that (pic of the footings/foundation/slab follows).,.then it is running the water and power to it..putting all the internals in and then back to Nevada to get my equipment and I am back up and running a wee bit after that... JPH

Ya 'all are very funny...I hate to tell ya this but I have never ever been bit by a mosquito.. they just don't like me...something about my skin they find unsavory...I am also immune from poison ivy/oak and sumac... but one bee sting and it is the dirt nap for me unless I get my eppy in PDQ.. Moved from desert to jungle...a lot of interesting critters crawling around...they don't bother me..I don't bother them...I just hope I can keep the peafowl off the slab until it cures enough so they don't leave tracks all over it...I already have the hex signs to put into the thresholds.. To keep out the bad ya know... JPH

Hello!!! Well we have landed..we pour the footings/foundation and slab Friday on my new studio now that the trees are cleared and everything has been inspected.. so....two weeks or so after that I can get the building put up... Here is one of the last "Nevada" blades that I finished before the "Great Shutdown of 2017"... this one is one of my "Hugs and Kisses" pattern welded long/bastardswords... 1070 and L-6 for the blade materials...One of my infamous one piece baskets and a nice Chevron patterned bronze wire wrapped grip... 37" blade length with hammered in fuller too!! Turned out OK if ya ask me... This will be posted for sale this evening along with a few high carbon steel swords that I have been holding until now for bacon and beans money as well as finishing up the studio.... JPH