Got a Manley Press.... but i still feel the same

[Workhorse247365]

I recently picked up a manley press. I believe it was originally a H press but somewhere down the line it was converted to a side by side set up with arbor press and mounted on a pedestal. The pressure gauge seems original to the press and its 0-30 tons psi. The number on the tag which i think is the model number reads 3-44 , i dont have the serial on hand at the moment but i do know it ends with a B if that is any help at all. So that said i have some questions about this press that i hope you guys can help me with.

Is there a way to convert the from manual to powered or air fairly simply or is it worth the effort?

What type of forging applications would this best be suited for, and what should i avoid asking of this press?

Should i not even use it due to the conversion from the original design?...though it seems done well and i removed most of the paint and all the dirt and hyd fluid looking for cracks etc i also know a weld can hide a multitude of sin.

Would the tooling design ive seen on the site apply to this style of press?

[Workhorse247365]

)))))))...crickets chirpping...((((((( haha

[Jim Kehler]

In my opinion this would be too slow for forging operations, but that said there are a lot of cold working  operations that it could be used for such as punching,notching and shearing thinner material. In Donald Streeter's book "Professional Smithing" he shows a lot of tooling that he used with a small press.

[Workhorse247365]

Thank you jim. I have 4-5 books coming today or tomorrow hopefully and i still would like to 3 others so i will add this book you recommend to my "get" list. I have also read on here the Dr. Batsons book on forge presses is a must read and is on my next book order. Maybe i can get them both ay the same place. Thank you for your response and the book recommendation.