Greenerd No. 3 1/2 Arbor Press (NTD)

[Ignacio]

I had been looking for a heavier arbor press for a little while, after my 1-ton HF press broke in half near the base. ha! The ones for sale that I come across can be a bit cost prohibitive and/or further away, so I've been kicking tires for quite a while. Even recently bid on a Dake 3-ton press at an online auction near me, but it went for about $400, so I passed on it. Finally, I ran across this Greenerd No. 3 1/2 (5-ton) ratchet lever arbor press with a stand on FB marketplace. The press itself looks to be about 456lbs, from what I found on Greenerd's site. Seems to be in good working shape. The price was a no-brainer at $75, although the stand it came on had a broken "toe". Because of the broken part of the toe, the stand is wobbly, so I'm either looking to repair the stand (welding/fabricating cast iron) to a stable and preferably decent looking condition, or building or buying a new stand for it. The stand information I found from Greenerd shows a different style of metal stand (says around 117lbs shipping weight) rather than this cast stand. Not sure of the weight, but my back would suggest more than 117lb, so maybe this is an older model of stand. I've seen stands like these on eBay along with a press attached, so they must have been more widely produced (presumably by Greenerd) at some point. I'd love to salvage the stand because 1) I like it, 2) it's got some nice design features like the capture bin below, and 3) it's got some machined parts that allow the press to "lock in" on the stand, and would have to be ground flat if a new stand didn't incorporate the same fit. Any thoughts or suggestions for fixing the stand or maybe even build ideas are greatly appreciated.

 

[LeeG]

I have that press. I had to make my own stand. I’d like to find a factory stand, but they are pretty rare out here.

 

[Ignacio]

@LeeG thanks for sharing. That looks like a pretty simple design. I can't quite tell from this angle, but it looks as though your press has the same V-shaped castings in the bottom; did you have to make a receiving V-shape on the stand to help center and hold the press?

 

[tool_scrounge]

Cut out a steel plate of the current footprint and bolt it to the bottom of the broken casting. If you do not like the look of the broken toe, fabricate a cosmetic replacement out of anything you like as it will not be load bearing.

 

[LeeG]

@Ignacio No. I just bolted it flat.


The front of the press overhangs the front of the stand, kind of giving me the effect of the factory stand.

 

[1982fxr]

That's a great score

 

[Ignacio]

Cut out a steel plate of the current footprint and bolt it to the bottom of the broken casting. If you do not like the look of the broken toe, fabricate a cosmetic replacement out of anything you like as it will not be load bearing.

Actually a pretty solid idea. Thanks for the suggestion!

No. I just bolted it flat.

Ah, I was probably over-thinking how to handle that then.

The front of the press overhangs the front of the stand, kind of giving me the effect of the factory stand.

Yeah, that would seem to help keep the press from wanting to tilt forward when pressing, too. You must have dry climate to house tools outside! We can't do that in my neck of the woods without it all going to pot.