Iron Worker Punch Press

[OutbackL130]

I'm wanting an iron worker but have never used one before. When I drill holes on the drill press I first center punch my mark to know where to position my bit. From the videos it doesnt look like there is a point on the end of the punch press to line up your marks. How does this work?

 

[Shield Arc]

It's been ages since I used an ironworker, at one time I owned a Little Scotchman ironworker too. I had to think for a minute, but I seem to remember the punches having a point on them. Like these Edwards punches. Seems as I remember using a center punch just like for drilling the hole. Place the center punch mark of the tit on the punch, and slowly step on the pedal. The punch will push your material down onto the table, and punch the hole. Just don't get your fingers under the plate! :laughing:
8 Set Ironworker Round Tooling for Edwards CST Piranha IW's 1 2 1 1 16" | eBay

 

[4shorts]

I'm wanting an iron worker but have never used one before. When I drill holes on the drill press I first center punch my mark to know where to position my bit. From the videos it doesnt look like there is a point on the end of the punch press to line up your marks. How does this work?

Yes there is a nipple on the end of each punch to go by. Great machine to have.

 

[yomax4]

I thought that the Uni-Hydro had a center pin for punch line up. Great Iron Worker for the money. Of course Schotchman is the bench mark..

 

[4shorts]

Of course Schotchman is the bench mark..

Not sure if I agree with you there. The best I ever used was Piranha.

Piranha Overview

 

[Shield Arc]

I don't remember the name brand, but I worked for Mid West Conveyor Systems out of Kansas City. They had one that at least 8-guys could work on at the same time. Remember a guy on night shift used the wrong hole part for the punch. The punch broke hit him right in the chin went up his jaw and exited out of his jaw just before his ear! Guy never came back to work.

 

[Arc weld]

Peddinghaus are the top of the line but there's a lot of good ironworkers available. I was looking at Piranha and they look like a really well designed unit. The Uni-Hydro's are cheaper and a little bit crude looking. I remember reading that the guy that started Uni-Hydro used to be with Scotchman but they had a falling out. Scotchman are a good ironworker but guys that have used them, say they are slower than some other hyd. models. I've used a 105 ton Peddinghaus mechanical, 125 ton Kingsland Hydraulic and a couple smaller Mubea mechanical ironworkers as well as a 40 ton Uni-Hydro. The mechanical are real FAST! but can be very dangerous. Once you hit the button or pedal, there's no stopping it for an emergency. That's a big reason they don't make them anymore. I did like the mechanical better for punching holes because you could lower the punch into your center punch mark and just push a button for an instant hole. The hyd., you could do that but you had to change a hyd. function and then switch it back to punch the hole. Some hyd. let you put the punch on the plate but overall for punching holes a mechanical is faster. For other functions the hyd. shines because you can change tools for different applications. The hyd. is much safer because you usually have to keep pushing on the pedal/control until you're finished. The rule of thumb to remember when punching holes is that on mild steel, the smallest hole you can punch in a specific plate is the same diameter as the plate thickness. So if you have 1/4" plate, 1/4" is the smallest hole you could punch, 1/2" plate-1/2" hole. If you tried to punch say a 3/8" hole in 1/2" plate, you stand a good chance of breaking the punch. I think there are special punches available for doing smaller holes in thicker plate? Most punches do have a dimple to line up with a center punch mark and some punches also have a scalloped cutting edge to make punching easier. The cutting edge is on an angle to work like a shear and lower the pressure required for punching the hole.

 

[OutbackL130]

Thanks for all the info! Is it more common for guys to center punch their marks by hand onto the workpiece using a template? How do you setup jig fixtures on the punch press for repetitive holes?

If you have to do repetitive cuts on the angle and flat bar shear do most ironworkers have a stop gauge like the edwards posted above?

 

[camshawn]

The iron worker I used as a kid on my first job had a stop for repeat cuts. Once it was setup, I just checked the size every 50 pieces or so as advancing the flat bar would slowly move the stop if I pushed too hard.
For punching, I had a 2 sided jig setup under the guidance of the shop Forman. I still have all my fingers but did nip off the end of an oversized glove. It was a mechanical beast and once the peddle was stepped upon, the clamp came down followed by the punch. I do not remember any guards on that old machine.
I keep looking on Craig's list for one myself.

Cam

 

[OutbackL130]

I'm convinced an ironworker is going to make a great addition to the shop and will be used everyday for shearing, punching, bending and notching.

This ironworker happens to be located in my town. New 55 ton edwards costs a couple thousand more but it looks like this one has been used quite a bit. What do you guys think about it and the price?
55 ton EDWARDS IRON WORKER

I do like how everything is laid out on the edwards and how the punch is setup nicely on the outside for easy access where as some ironworkers I notice the punch is more obstructed.