In article , Gears
wrote:

I am thinking of making a machine that will punch a .375" max hole in .250"
mild steel. First of all I need to find out how much machine this will take.
Will a 50 ton hydraulic bottle jack have the power? Who sells the dies? Can
the dies be made?

Thanks,
Bill

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I rigged up punch and die holders for my 20 ton shop press.
I have punched holes with it, but in heavy materiel it is a bit scary.
The problem is OVER-TRAVEL.
The press frame flexes enough while the pressure loads that when it
finally punches through it slams the carriage into the materiel.
It releases the pressure in the bottle jack so fast that it seems to
foam the fluid.

Makes a scary sound too.

I can see building a big C frame punch, but I would use an actual
hydraulic cyclinder and pump.