restored cider press

[NE PA QDM]

i stumbled upon this old press last year. i bought it from a guy who made cider with it a long time ago. the original frame was starting to fall apart and had some broken legs, so i decided just to re-make the whole thing (so more of a rebuild than a restore).
a guy down the street runs a saw mill so i have access to pretty inexpensive 2.5" thick red oak as well as black walnut. i spent a little less than $200 on lumber/stain/varnish/clear coats/etc.

The guy i bought it from was the 2nd owner, not sure who made the original or when exactly it was made, but i hope it lasts another hundred years and i can't wait to use it this fall to press some cider. and if anyone knows the brand of the original that would satisfy my curiosity.

lots of details of the construction with which i won't bore you (unless you're curious) but it was a time-intensive project. i think i have about 250 hours into it.......
hope you like it.

 

[wiscwhip]

BADA$$! Nice work! Follow-up pics of the "fruits" of your labor when you finally get some apples run through it, if you please.

 

[Spur]

It is an 1870-1880 Whitman cider press. It is worth around $2,000 restored like that.

 

[2ndHand]

Well done!! Look forward to seeing some action photo's.

 

[jwill1776]

Now that is a thing of beauty!

 

[John-W-WI]

Wow.... The result is amazing. I can't imagine the work it took to get there.... I bet your great grand children will enjoy that!

Tell us some details, I'd love to hear them.

What made it so challenging??

-John

 

[Turkey Creek]

Very nice! Always enjoy craftmanship.

 

[aerospacefarmer]

Awesome job. Makes my new one look like a toy. Where in PA are you located.

 

[deepsleep]

That is really, really sweet. Spur mentioned above it's worth 2k restored like that. Any idea where to find a restored one?

 

[Rally1148]

That's a pretty gorgeous piece of "equipment"!

 

[SmallChunk]

Just a thing of beaut! Well done sir

 

[Bowsnbucks]

Very nice job !! Time well spent. Many times the old equipment is just COOLER ......... period. Enjoy the workings come fall !!

 

[Natty Bumppo]

VERY nice! A lot of hard work there!

Question...will you use it, or is it now room decor?

 

[NE PA QDM]

Thanks for all the responses and info.
Not sure where to find another one, I stumbled upon this while buying an orchard ladder, I mentioned to the guy that some day id like to press my own cider and he had an old press he was looking to get rid of.
Aerospace, I'm in Monroe county.
Natty bumppo it is currently decorating my room but only until fall when I get apples to run through it! I took great pains to make it functional and there's about 10 coats of varnish on every surface of wood so it should be able to take the abuse.
John, it took forever just to disassemble the original piece to get the dimensions of them (including figuring out, for example, that the frame joints were mortise and tenon). It was tough getting the old bolts and nuts off without breaking them. Each and every nut bolt screw or piece of hardware including the chain was covered in rust and I hand cleaned them with a dremel. I think I spent two hours just cleaning of the chain which had to be taken apart link by link.
The frame construction was challenging but fun. I had never built anything with mortise and tenon joints, so I bought a pack of chisels and spent hours hand tuning each joint; there are 14 m/t joints in the frame. You can't see them anymore since they are all flush! After sanding and staining, ~10 coats of varnish on each surface which meant I would apply to the upright surfaces then wait a day to flip it upside down to do the underside, so just that took almost a month.
The tolerances on the gears are pretty small, so getting them precisely aligned took a lot of planning and trial and error and dry-clamping before drilling and bolting. Also, it was a real challenge to figure out the sequence of putting it all together since it had to be done sequentially but obviously didn't come with an instruction manual!
Anyway, it was a great project and as someone pointed out I hope it's something my grandchildren someday enjoy.
Thanks again for all the comments.

 

[buckvelvet]

Wow, great job, really neat!

 

[doublelunger]

Wow that is AWESOME! Good job!

 

[Natty Bumppo]

Natty bumppo it is currently decorating my room but only until fall when I get apples to run through it! I took great pains to make it functional and there's about 10 coats of varnish on every surface of wood so it should be able to take the abuse.

Nice! I was hoping you'd say that. I restore WWII M1 Garands as a hobby, and regardless of the work and time and expense I put into them I shoot them at the range until they smoke!

That's going to make some great cider, and great memories with your friends and family!

 

[John-W-WI]

NE PA QDM,

Those mortise joints must take a LONG time with a chisel. You were dedicated to the outcome, and it shows. Love it, and I don't even make cider :)

-John

 

[tooln]

WELCOME and VERY nice job, great pics.