Fly press vs. trip hammer

[Iron Falcon 72]

Do they serve the same purpose? Does one have an advantage over the other? I assume the standard flypress doesn't have the size capabilities of the standard hammer. Has this been discussed somewhere before?
Thanks

[dablacksmith]

apples and oranges or maybee meat and carrots ... ya its been descussed a bunch hammers are a lot different from a press different type of work ... what do you plan to make?

[781]

UMBA Online
then library
RD141 has a two day demonstration dvd-r using two different fly press
They have several DVD-Rs using hammers also

[Shane Stegmeier]

A flypress is good for a very precise application of great force with a nice "feel". They are used on hot or cold metal for bending, cutting, punching, and incising. They are quiet and you have the ability to gauge how the job is going by holding on to the handle when you give the work "the bump". The tooling is generally clamped in the ram, and on the work table, which allows for very precise alignment. With a large enough press and well designed, and well made tooling there are a lot of opperations that are normally done hot, which can be done cold with a flypress. A flypress focus's on a very small area generally, and moves that small amount of steel. To get much out of a flypress you need to make or buy tooling for every type of opperation that you want to do. So tooling up can take a little time, but once made the results are very repeatable.

A power hammer is loud and can work all day long, and is generally really good at drawing material out, because of how fast it runs it moves alot of steel. Different dies can be made or bought that can forge specific profiles and shapes. With one or two dies on a power hammer you can do a great deal of work, but it takes a bit of skill and experience to repeat that over and over. To get the most use out of a power hammer you will need to make or buy tooling, but most hammers do not have the same level of control that a flypress has in this area. With good control and/or properly designed tooling you can do precise work with a power hammer, but some are illmannered beasts;-)

Generally the learning curve with a power hammer is a bit steeper than with a flypress (IMHO;-) If you want to draw out damascus billets than you probably don't want a flypress. The fly press can do it, but it is not the most efficient or cost effective tool for that job, a nice fast running mechanical hammer probably is. If you want to do very precise bends, punch holes, incise lines, matte down areas, and some embossing then a flypress might fit the bill.

If you mainly want to draw material out get a mechanical hammer.

If you really need precision then you probably want a flypress.

If you want the best of both you want an air hammer, either a self contained or a utility (kinyon style).

Generally a power hammer is more versitle and a better investment, but a flypress is a great addition to most shops.

And sadly I want several of each... ;-)