The press was on sale last month for 169 and I went in and got the rain check when it was on sale. The 25% off coupons are online all you have to do is look it up on your phone in the checkout line and give them the code if you are looking up codes ahead of time I would right down all of the 25% off coupon codes you can find in case one of them has expired. You can call the store ahead of time and see if it is stock.
Harbor Freight 20 ton press is changing - Major Changes - Info inside
- Thread starter Wangstang
- Start date
jesselyons2002
Well-known member
Hey the old model was good for me. I didn't have the orignal hf jack. It had a craftsman jack and that one started leaking
So far everything is good. The kit went together pretty easy we had to tweak it to get the top to square up. There are a few spots that were bent or dinged from poor handling, none affected the function.
I would buy it again and for the price I paid with a coupon $149.00 well worth the price.
The bolt together model is not flimsy or wobbly at all. The metal used for this new gray model is much thicker than the old stamped steel. I will NOT be changing the top 4 bolts this may have been and issue with the stamped steel but is not an issue with this thick metal.
Modifications I plan in the next few weeks.....
1) Drill a hole and put a cotter pin or screen in the jack handle hole its to big so the handle can go in to far.
2) Build a stand on wheels to make it mobile and a little higher.
3) Mount something to hold the handle when not in use.
I bought it Friday spent less than an hour to unpack assemble and start using the press.
Pressed on 2 rear axle bearings and 2 U-Joints.
hey man you gotta start somewhere.
LOL!!!!! Probably about right too.........
Ft.ValloniaStreaker
Well-known member
So I hear everybody wanting to change out bolts, take a hint from the 12 year old above. Bolt it together, square it up and lay a bead or 2 on it if you think it needs to be stronger. I'd just use it till it breaks and then fix it, it's not like your making monthly payments on it.........
B-Well
Active member
i made some new arbor plates out of 1" a572 but thats it. still going strong. If you need a set to replace your sh***y cast units, message me
duwem
Well-known member
I called 5 stores in WI and they only have the orange ones in stock and have no word when the silver ones will start coming in. They dont control what gets ordred, its automatic and they wont get silvers till the warehouse runs out of orange.
Was hoping to get a sliver one for christmas...might end up with a gift card which is ok.
Any more feedback if those plates are steel or cast iron?
Was hoping to get a sliver one for christmas...might end up with a gift card which is ok.
Any more feedback if those plates are steel or cast iron?
I went to my local store 2 times looking for the new model then I called customer service they told me that the store manager can request the item if it is in stock at the distribution center. Later that same day my local store manager called me about the item. Just call the store and ask for the manager tell them which one you want and that customer service told you that all they have to do is send a request email,make sure he puts the item number as a specific request otherwise they will send the old one since it's a substitute sku. Took 3 weeks for me but 2 weeks in a row they kept sending the old model number. The old one has a good size following but the display model at my local store has the top beam welded lower on one side than the other kind of turned me against it. Good luck
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Robert Hall
Well-known member
I just finished mine today. I found the 60603 model here in Utah.
I thought the bolts for the top brace were **** so I replaced them with the 10.9 (grade 8 ish metric equivalent) The bolts that came with it were poor, a grade 4.8 I think. They could have snapped off just by tightening them up. The 10.9 bolts from a local supplier can tighten so tight that I could crush the frame, but have chosen not to.
The arbor plates are 1" plate but they make me nervous as well so I cut a 1' plate 22"x10" today.
I also replaced the bottle jack with an air assist hydraulic (HF) and removed the springs that came with the air jack. I might put them back on as the standard springs don't pull the jack back to zero.
I also ran a 3/32 insulated cable through the springs and tied them off in case they decided to break and want to fly across the room.
Im not overwhelmed by the press base where the arbor plate sits so at some point I might redo that as well.
My kind father in law wants to get the Swag heavy duty bender kit for me as a holiday gift.
I thought the bolts for the top brace were **** so I replaced them with the 10.9 (grade 8 ish metric equivalent) The bolts that came with it were poor, a grade 4.8 I think. They could have snapped off just by tightening them up. The 10.9 bolts from a local supplier can tighten so tight that I could crush the frame, but have chosen not to.
The arbor plates are 1" plate but they make me nervous as well so I cut a 1' plate 22"x10" today.
I also replaced the bottle jack with an air assist hydraulic (HF) and removed the springs that came with the air jack. I might put them back on as the standard springs don't pull the jack back to zero.
I also ran a 3/32 insulated cable through the springs and tied them off in case they decided to break and want to fly across the room.
Im not overwhelmed by the press base where the arbor plate sits so at some point I might redo that as well.
My kind father in law wants to get the Swag heavy duty bender kit for me as a holiday gift.
Attachments
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kenburkholz
Well-known member
- Joined
- Sep 27, 2013
- Messages
- 241
I have used my 20 t. H. F. press for several years with no problems, but got tired of all the pumping. My wife went to H.F. and got a 20t air over hydraulic jack. I installed it and am really enjoying the improvement. Ken.
BellyUpFish
Well-known member
Honest Bob
Well-known member
I just got one of these new presses if anyone has any questions.
BellyUpFish
Well-known member
Picked mind up today.
Plate that mounts the bottle jack is drilled incorrectly, other than that, I'm good, so far.
On a side note, I like the 3/32 cable idea. Where can I get crimps for that? Found the cable at HomeDepot but no crimps..
Plate that mounts the bottle jack is drilled incorrectly, other than that, I'm good, so far.
On a side note, I like the 3/32 cable idea. Where can I get crimps for that? Found the cable at HomeDepot but no crimps..
Toolhorder
Well-known member
After using the HF press at the dealer I worked for I would buy ANY other press over it. It's a huge POS IMO....
I ended up with a $75 second hand US made press off CL.
I ended up with a $75 second hand US made press off CL.
They are called ferulles and HD does sell them. They used to be on an end cap of the bolt aisle, but I think have no been moved into one of the side aisles off the bolt aisle.
Use your press and a ball bearing to crimp them.
MN4x4
Well-known member
Back on sale for $169, and with the 25% off coupon makes it about $127.
The new gray one is far superior to the old one, IMO.
The new gray one is far superior to the old one, IMO.
BellyUpFish
Well-known member
If this thing is superior to the orange one, what a heap that thing must have been..
Here are a couple shots of my baseplate for the bottle jack. LOL
Here are a couple shots of my baseplate for the bottle jack. LOL
BellyUpFish
Well-known member
Haven't called them yet.. Not going to be returning it for an exchange, the nearest HF is about 1.5 hours from me and isn't worth the headache over the $130 I spent on it.
The bolt holes for the jack were misdrilled, the plate and main press "piece" is warped..
I'll give them a call on Monday and see what happens. They could easily replace just the cross member.
Shadowdog500
Well-known member
If this thing is superior to the orange one, what a heap that thing must have been..
Here are a couple shots of my baseplate for the bottle jack. LOL
Do you have a picture of the whole thing?
I've been looking for a shop press.
Chris
BellyUpFish
Well-known member
I don't.. I can take one.. I'm fairly happy with the rest of the unit..
ChevyEFI
Well-known member
Don't think my orange has any plate under the jack over the pinion beam.
I understood it to be wider at the cross beam or taller overall working depth. What else?
I understood it to be wider at the cross beam or taller overall working depth. What else?
Robert Hall
Well-known member
The ferrules are usually right across the aisle. I found I had to redrill the air assist Jack to get it set correctly. I also did replace the springs on the air assist Jack. I have welded up the Swag Bender. It's a70 lb beast. Pictures upon return from a short trip.
Gesendet von meinem SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 mit Tapatalk
Gesendet von meinem SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 mit Tapatalk
I get the point that a freshly purchased item ought to be defect-free, but from the pictures, that jack mount looks like it's only 3 hammer slaps away from being flat. Unless it's welded on warped, in which case it's a ground down weld and 3 hammer slaps from flat.
Picked up my new silver version today for $138 out the door.
Edit: I've now go the press together and it seems to be sturdy enough for the occassional use it will see from me. The top is not 100% square, but there is so much slop in the bar that goes up and down, I can't imagine the lack of squareness at the top of the press would make a huge difference in operation. The moving bar on which the jack sits fits only one way. I had it in backwards at first and the bolt holes on the jack wouldn't kine up. I flipped it around and they lined right up.
I've got a question about the jack. It wouldn't pump up at all when I got it. I followed the bleedign instructions and it worked, but the ram moves only about 1/16" each pump. I've make sure that the thing is full with hydraulic jack oil and I used it to split a 2x4 as a test, as I don't have anything that needs pressed right now. Is 1/16" all the ram is supposed to go up when you pump it? I've seen people using these on youtube and it seems that it takes an awful lot of pumping to press a part, but I can't guage how much the ram is supposed to move per pump on the video.
Second Edit: I tried pressing a couple of bearings out of timing belt tensioners just to see what the press could do and found that the jack was not working properly. When it was under pressure, the ram would move when I pumped the lever down, but it would immediately go back up. I think it might just have been air in the jack, but I couldn't get it to bleed out no matter what I tried. I wound up calling the HF 800 numer on the directions and got a very unhelpful woman who told me that since I bought it in the store, I would have to deal with the store. There was no technical support on the phone. So, I went back to the store and exchanged just the jack and the new one works 100 times better. There is more throw per pump and no spongy problem. The base of the new jack looks like some one cast it in mud with a lot of rocks, but it appears to work. Both jacks would not pump at all when I got them. I had to remove the bleeder screw to get them to pump. So, in my experience, quality is lacking, but for $138 I think it will do what I need it to do.
Edit: I've now go the press together and it seems to be sturdy enough for the occassional use it will see from me. The top is not 100% square, but there is so much slop in the bar that goes up and down, I can't imagine the lack of squareness at the top of the press would make a huge difference in operation. The moving bar on which the jack sits fits only one way. I had it in backwards at first and the bolt holes on the jack wouldn't kine up. I flipped it around and they lined right up.
I've got a question about the jack. It wouldn't pump up at all when I got it. I followed the bleedign instructions and it worked, but the ram moves only about 1/16" each pump. I've make sure that the thing is full with hydraulic jack oil and I used it to split a 2x4 as a test, as I don't have anything that needs pressed right now. Is 1/16" all the ram is supposed to go up when you pump it? I've seen people using these on youtube and it seems that it takes an awful lot of pumping to press a part, but I can't guage how much the ram is supposed to move per pump on the video.
Second Edit: I tried pressing a couple of bearings out of timing belt tensioners just to see what the press could do and found that the jack was not working properly. When it was under pressure, the ram would move when I pumped the lever down, but it would immediately go back up. I think it might just have been air in the jack, but I couldn't get it to bleed out no matter what I tried. I wound up calling the HF 800 numer on the directions and got a very unhelpful woman who told me that since I bought it in the store, I would have to deal with the store. There was no technical support on the phone. So, I went back to the store and exchanged just the jack and the new one works 100 times better. There is more throw per pump and no spongy problem. The base of the new jack looks like some one cast it in mud with a lot of rocks, but it appears to work. Both jacks would not pump at all when I got them. I had to remove the bleeder screw to get them to pump. So, in my experience, quality is lacking, but for $138 I think it will do what I need it to do.
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There are two 20 Ton Air/Hydraulic jacks available at Harbor Freight currently:
Item 95553:
http://www.harborfreight.com/20-ton-air-over-hydraulic-jack-95553.html
Base Measurements: 8-5/8 in. L X 5-3/16 in. W
Item 69593:
http://www.harborfreight.com/20-ton-air-hydraulic-bottle-jack-69593.html
Base Measurements: 8-3/4 in. L X 6-1/2 in. W
Both jacks have a min/compressed height of 10-1/4 in.
Both jacks have a max lift/extension length of 20 in.
Anyone have any ideas on which one is the better fit for this press?
Wes
Item 95553:
http://www.harborfreight.com/20-ton-air-over-hydraulic-jack-95553.html
Base Measurements: 8-5/8 in. L X 5-3/16 in. W
Item 69593:
http://www.harborfreight.com/20-ton-air-hydraulic-bottle-jack-69593.html
Base Measurements: 8-3/4 in. L X 6-1/2 in. W
Both jacks have a min/compressed height of 10-1/4 in.
Both jacks have a max lift/extension length of 20 in.
Anyone have any ideas on which one is the better fit for this press?
Wes
NoSloCoupes
Well-known member
Everyone i've seen uses the 95553. I purchased this one, but when i opened the box at home, the 69593 was inside.... . I swear i can't win with this press and accessories...had no arbor plates in the silver press box. There are no mounting holes in the base of the 69593. So its either return it or drill a couple holes i guess.
. I swear i can't win with this press and accessories...had no arbor plates in the silver press box. There are no mounting holes in the base of the 69593. So its either return it or drill a couple holes i guess.duwem
Well-known member
dkroth
Well-known member
Looks like a great set-up.
Are you missing a bolt in the upper right hand corner of the press?
raddksn
Well-known member
The wife got me the 60603 new version for christmas, I'm just finishing up my homemade copy of the swag pressbrake should be done tommorow I'll try to post some pic's and make some comments then.
BellyUpFish
Well-known member
No, it's a 20T. The plate was drilled incorrectly for the mounting bolts, I had to fix that as well..
Harbor Freight has no replacement parts and I'm not driving 2+ hours to return this one. I'll just cut the old plate off and weld in a new one eventually.
Shadowdog500
Well-known member
Just bought mine yesterday with a $149 coupon from the free auto shopper magazine.
I put it together least night and crushed some wood with it since I didn't have anything that needed press out, and so far I really like it.
It was packaged well so none of the parts were banged up or scratched. All of the holes were properly sized and aligned properly for easy installation. The only out of the ordinary thing I had to do was to run a metric chasing tap through the jack mounting holes. After that the Allen bolts to mount the jack went in smoothly.
I'm thinking about modding mine to make the jack inverted. If I do maybe we could have a HF shop press modification thread. I've been looking around and saw a few ideas already.
Here is mine:
I put it together least night and crushed some wood with it since I didn't have anything that needed press out, and so far I really like it.
It was packaged well so none of the parts were banged up or scratched. All of the holes were properly sized and aligned properly for easy installation. The only out of the ordinary thing I had to do was to run a metric chasing tap through the jack mounting holes. After that the Allen bolts to mount the jack went in smoothly.
I'm thinking about modding mine to make the jack inverted. If I do maybe we could have a HF shop press modification thread. I've been looking around and saw a few ideas already.
Here is mine:
RRich
Well-known member
What would be the purpose of inverting the jack?
Shadowdog500
Well-known member
The better shop presses usually have a ram with a pressure gauge.
The ram eliminates the side to side movement that you can get with the bottle jack arrangement and the pressure gauge tells you exactly how hard you are pressing, which is important in certain aplications. The only drawback is they are 3 times the price of the HF press due to the cost of the ram.
Ive found several presses modifies online to have an inverted bottle jack mounted to the top support. This eliminates the side to side, foward back slop. It also allows the use of the screw jack in the top of the bottle jack so you can adjust it to meet the work before even pumping the handle. you can also remove the screw jack from the top of the ram and put in custom attachments. one additional thing is that you can drill and tap the bottom of the jack and put in a pressure gauge to see how hard you are pressing.
Image stolen from another thread:
