Shear delight

Twilight Fenrir · March 27, 2018, 05:41:14 PM

Well, this last weekend was a very productive one for me... in addition to more or less finishing my power hammer, I also restored my Edwards 10B Alligator Shear! This baby is rated to cut 3/4" thick plate steel, up to 4" wide, or 1" round stock, all by hand :D It weighs in somewhere around 500-600 lbs, or so I am told, it's too heavy for my bathroom scale ^^;

I had to order a new set of teeth for it, they come tomorrow, and I have to scrounge up some bolts to attach them with. Someone used carriage bolts on it at some point, which, surprise surprise, got their caps cut off... somehow... those were fun to remove :P Then I need to make a lever with which to operate it, and THEN I'll never have to use my horrible chop saw again n.n

I'm also planning on painting the raised letters contrasting colors when it warms up again... Black on the blue jaw, white on the black.

lptools · March 27, 2018, 05:49:25 PM

Hello, Twilight Fenrir. Another amazing post. !!!!! Did you build the dolly for that tool? Did you do the painting over the weekend as well? Always impressed by your efforts, Lou

Twilight Fenrir · March 27, 2018, 06:02:17 PM

Quote from: lptools on March 27, 2018, 05:49:25 PM
Hello, Twilight Fenrir. Another amazing post. !!!!! Did you build the dolly for that tool? Did you do the painting over the weekend as well? Always impressed by your efforts, Lou

Haha, thanks :D

I did build the dolly... woodworking is NOT my forte, it's terrible, and I'm going to have to do it over again eventually... The douglas fir it's made out of split something fierce. The oil I used in my drill press all summer is too viscous, and turned to goo in the winter. I'll give it synthetic oil this year... So I had to hand-drill with an 18" long drill bit... the holes did NOT come out straight, lol. I was also re-using the wood from a motor dolly I made but no longer need, so at least it didn't cost me anything.

Yes, tore it apart, wire-wheeled the rust off, painted it, and built the dolly while waiting for coats of paint to dry. It was technically colder than the recomended temperature for the paint... buuut, I wanted to get it done, and it seems to have worked out just fine. I love Krylon :3

Luckily, I actually had all the right size bolts I needed on hand, sans the blade bolts. Fastenal doesn't even have those, so I'm going to have to be clever... or pay $32 for a set from the manufacturer, but the new blades set me back $170, sooo.... I'm feeling penny-pinchy at the moment. I've got a couple ideas how I might get there, but I need the new teeth before I can be sure.

lptools · March 27, 2018, 06:59:40 PM

Hello, I wasn't questioning your woodworking, nicely done!!!!, just amazed that you had the time!!!!!!! Regards, Lou

turnnut · March 27, 2018, 08:01:36 PM

yes, you were busy, I think that when you stopped for the day, you knew that you had done more than you expected.

looking good, is it going to be mounted on a low steel frame ???

Frank

Twilight Fenrir · March 27, 2018, 08:12:34 PM

Quote from: lptools on March 27, 2018, 06:59:40 PM
Hello, I wasn't questioning your woodworking, nicely done!!!!, just amazed that you had the time!!!!!!! Regards, Lou

Haha, didn't think you were, just fessing up to my own shortcomings :P I hate wood.... it's always splitting, and warping, and swelling... give me iron any day!

Quote from: turnnut on March 27, 2018, 08:01:36 PM
yes, you were busy, I think that when you stopped for the day, you knew that you had done more than you expected.

looking good, is it going to be mounted on a low steel frame ???

Frank

Haha, actually, my plans were cut short... I was planning on welding a broken in half anvil I pulled out of a salvage yard back together too... or, starting on it at least... but, my carpal tunnel started acting up and I've had to sit on my butt ever since... oh well, next weekend.... I'll get my lever made for it, too

I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it as far as mounting... Ideally it should be bolted to my concrete floor, but that's just not an option right now. It's too large to permanently live where I'd need to put it to cut 10'+ pieces of steel. I'm going to try it on its skateboard and see how that works out. If it's not enough, I'll consider bolting a bracket to my floor that I can slip the nose of the shear under, cut, then roll away. Someone in one of my facebook groups suggested bolting it to a 2x12 on which I can stand as well, which is a pretty clever option too.

I'm going to have to play it by ear, and see what my actual expectations of the tool will be, and what it will take to meet them.

oldgoaly · March 27, 2018, 08:19:32 PM

Did you get new blades or order tool steel and make your own? got a Kidder multi-tool that needs new blades and a punches.

Twilight Fenrir · March 27, 2018, 09:07:58 PM

Quote from: oldgoaly on March 27, 2018, 08:19:32 PM
Did you get new blades or order tool steel and make your own? got a Kidder multi-tool that needs new blades and a punches.

I ordered new blades. It's got to be some pretty tough steel, and I don't want to risk making blades too hard that might shatter under load and kill me...

Edwards is still around, and they had them on hand... I ordered them on my lunch break, and they will already be here tomorrow... They're Minnesota based, like me! :D If they weren't 4 hours away, I'd be tempted to go visit :P

oldgoaly · March 27, 2018, 10:48:43 PM

I have made punch dies a odd flat oval, but it was for sheet metal,
not sure of clearances for heavier iron, it's on the list of things to do!

Yadda · March 28, 2018, 06:41:24 AM

What a beautiful black and blue beast! Please share a video or two once you have it fully operational. By the way. What is the size on that adjustable seen in one of the photos?

turnnut · March 28, 2018, 08:29:30 AM

the adjustable looks to be around 18 inch

Twilight Fenrir · March 28, 2018, 05:05:29 PM

Quote from: Yadda on March 28, 2018, 06:41:24 AM
What a beautiful black and blue beast! Please share a video or two once you have it fully operational. By the way. What is the size on that adjustable seen in one of the photos?

I'll see what I can do, I'll have to enlist a lovely assistant to record it in-use, I doubt I can do both at once...

Quote from: turnnut on March 28, 2018, 08:29:30 AM
the adjustable looks to be around 18 inch

very close! Only off on a minor technicality... it's a 450mm adjustable wrench, 17.7" :P It's a cheap Chinese tool, but it's easier to swing around than my actual 18" Crescent, which weighs about twice as much.

I picked up the 3/4" x 2" solid stock for the tang of my lever today. I'm planning on welding it into a 1-1/4" iron pipe, roughly 4' long. I'm then going to slip a 1" pipe inside of it, with a locking pin, so I can extend the handle out to 7' when I need the extra oomph. That won't happen 'till this weeekend most likely, though, unless I feel particularly ambitious after work some day tomorrow or Friday.

Twilight Fenrir · March 28, 2018, 07:15:21 PM

My blades are here! n.n The bolts to put them on won't be until Monday, though :/

john k · March 28, 2018, 10:20:10 PM

I would definitely bolt it to a plank if planning to use it often. Are there grease zerks or just oiling points? At that weight one can't move it often, do you have a cherry picker?

Twilight Fenrir · April 09, 2018, 01:56:12 PM

Well, I finally got everything bolted together this weekend aaaand..... I'm pretty disappointed :/ I guess I had some pretty unreasonable expectations of it. It's not as precision of a tool as I had hoped. It doesn't really cut through the steel so much as bite into it, then shear it off (guess the name should have given that away :P) I cut a 5/8" bolt without too much effort, though the 3/4" started to pick up the nose and I never got through it.

Maybe I can make a little thumb-screw vise to hold my pieces where I want... I dunno...

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Shear delight