Threw this together yesterday quickly. I used wood to prove the concept, I don’t have tools to cut and drill steel. Its a 12 ton press I got for 39 bucks at princess auto and some 3/4" threaded rod. It surprisingly can withstand a lot of force… But I’m gonna be changing the wooden blocks out to unistrut. I’m also waiting on the stuff to build the heat plates. Il try and update this thread.
It’s made of deep slotted unistrut, 3/4 threaded rod, 3/8 steel plate (from princess auto), steel pipe from home depot, and some flat strut splices. This was designed for the person who doesn’t have a metal shop; I don’t, I have a Sawzall and basic hand tools and drills. But I don’t have a welder, drill press, band saw, threading equipment or anything else you’d want so badly to have when building a press frame lol. This was the best I came up with.
Changed out the jack for a low profile one, and picked up some old tension rods from the thrift store and broke them for the springs, which I then sleeved over the rods that the plate slides on.
Hey thanks for the replies everyone! Amazon messed up my order so there’s a delay on the equipment to build the plates. I’m also looking into insulating material for the plates; I noticed dab press uses bamboo, so I’m probably gonna go get a bamboo cutting board from the dollar store and chop it up. I’m also trying to find some better springs, as the ones I used require significant tonnage to compress lol. All part of the fun!
Stay tuned for more updates… I’m committed to having a final design that is cheap and buildable for anyone with basic tools.
For real guys, whey your bud is nice and freshly cured, still a little moist, you don’t need 20 tons of pressure to get a good yield. I have a 220 pound dude stand on a hair straightener and get good yields. You went all out on that one bro! It’s sweet! And will definitely smash a nugget to tasty goops!
Lol yeah man part of the reason I’m building this thing is just for the fun of having a project on the go; I love the process of growing and DIY’ing things for growing, but my plants are too happy and I have nothing to do! I actually was suprised by my hair straightener yields as well lol But it’s so true what people say: it’s all about the quality of the bud.
I’m waiting on all the lames that bought a press to sell em for pennies on the dollar on Craigslist. Lol. You know there’s a lot of people going to get frustrated trying to even get the rosin off of the parchment paper! I know I do!
Figured I’d post a bit of a update. I have made up the box, fabricated the plates and replaced the springs. It’s pretty slick so far! I’m still not done, it’s been a crazy project!
