Machining World First Transparent Hydraulic Press Tools

YouTube:

Welcome to another exciting episode of Beyond the Press, where we take you behind the scenes of creating our unique transparent tools for our 150 ton hydraulic press seen on hydraulic press channel.

In this episode, we dive deep into the process of designing, machining, polishing, and testing our latest creation - transparent tools made from high-quality acrylic. We've invested 3000€ into these plastics to ensure we're working with the best materials possible.

Watch as we transform these raw materials into fully functional, transparent tools through a meticulous process of design and machining. Our workshop is buzzing with the sounds of lathes, milling machines, and polishers, all working in harmony to bring our vision to life.

We'll guide you through every step of the process, from the initial design sketches to the final polishing touches. You'll see firsthand how we maintain the transparency of the acrylic while ensuring the tools are robust and functional.

But we're not just about the process - we're also about the results. That's why we put our transparent tools to the test, demonstrating their effectiveness and durability.

This video is a must-watch for anyone interested in machining, workshop processes, tool creation, or simply enjoys watching a satisfying transformation from raw materials to finished product.

Don't forget to like, share, and subscribe to Beyond the Press for more behind-the-scenes looks at our workshop and the fascinating world of tool creation.

Note that I did not watch the whole thing. I started at the beginning, sampled four or five sections and then zipped to the end for the first test at about 30:17. Wonderful! 

And here you can see the new tools in action: 

Don't try this at home

Using a 300-ton hydraulic press to crush a block of 10,000 Lego bricks

 

The really fun stuff starts at about 8 minutes in, but, really, if you're going to watch that, why not watch the whole thing? 

AND: What kind of person laboriously assembles 10,000 Lego bricks into a single block for the purpose of seeing how it will respond to pressure from a 300-ton hydraulic press? 

They're having so much FUN doing this.

Those scamps at Hydraulic Press Channel are at it again: Extruding gummy bears!

From the YouTube page:

In this exciting video, we use a hydraulic press to conduct a series of experiments that explore the incredible power of hydraulic pressure. We start by pushing an orange through a 2.5mm diameter hole, then work our way down to smaller holes, including 1.5mm and 1mm, to see what objects like gummy bears, soap and candles can be pushed through. Our slow-motion footage captures the explosive results of each experiment, revealing just how small of a hole a hydraulic press can push objects through. Don't miss this fascinating look at the power of hydraulic pressure and the incredible things it can do.

Nick Bostrum vs. the 300-Ton Hydraulic Press: Take That!

Bostrum ranks high on my list of over-rated intellectual annoyances but, alas, I feel that I have to deal with some of the glittering baubles he has released into the world. I have a number of posts dealing with that pesky simulation hypothesis he foisted on the world shortly after the turn of the millennium and some of my other posts on various topics no doubt mention him as well. For someone with my interests he's unavoidable.

Anyhow, he’s got a new book out: Deep Utopia: Life and Meaning in a Solved World. Here’s a podcast in which he discusses it:

I decided to take a look because, as I said, he’s all over the place so I might as well see what he’s up to. It seems he’s imagining what life would be like when all possible technologies have been invented, and they are benevolent. What would we do? How would we find meaning? I listened to as much as I could take, a half hour or so, and then decided to take a nap.

Fifteen minutes later I decided to watch the most recent video from the Hydraulic Press Channel. As you may know, the Hydraulic Press Channel is one of my favorite YouTube channels. I’ve been watching it for years. What could be more fun than watching a big machine crush things? In their most recent video they use their big new 300-ton press (which I’ve recently posted about) to crush hammers. What fun!

One problem with Bostrom is that he seems to live in a world in which no one has the type of imagination that takes pleasure in such an utterly useless activity, much less expends time and effort developing the facilities needed to do it more effectively. Come to think of it, one of the things they like to do is crush paper and books. I wonder how many hardback copies of Bostrom’s book their press could crush in a single pass? Is that an activity that would be popular in a solved world?

More fun with a hydraulic press that can generate 300 tons of pressure – crushing nuts into nut cake

Can you press steel screws or bolts and nuts back to solid piece of metal using our new 300 ton hydraulic press? We will find that out  on this experiment!

What I find fascinating is how much time and effort our host – I don't know his name – devotes to creating the tooling to make these little experiments work. He's having fun with this! And why not? They've over 9 million subscribers, so they've got money coming from this operation. Is there enough money to cover the cost of the new press, along with the housing and tooling they've constructed for it? I'd be surprised if it was, though the surprise is a pleasant one.

This shop is a commercial enterprise of some kind, obviously some kind involving custom work using machine tooling, and I would imagine the new press can be used in that business as well. After all, that's what the old press was doing before it was put to use making nonsense videos. Who knew or expected that those videos would become so popular?

The use of ChatGPT in data analysis [crushing things]

I've been following the Hydraulic Press Channel for the last several years, I suppose, to satisfy my inner 8-year-old's interest in crushing things, any thing, until they break. The channel just purchased a new and bigger press to plus (to borrow a term from Walt Disney) the level of concentrated nonsense they can put on display.

Between 0:23 and 0:43 we learn how the new equipment allows them to gather data on how the machine is performing. From 0:48 to 1:07 we see them using ChatGPT to graph the data. Mirabile dictu!

From the YouTube page:

In this video we will test our 300 ton hydraulic press with data logging system and sensors! Press can calculate force being generated through pressure sensors, so no need for force sensor / load cell ! Then it can measure position of hydraulic cylinder piston with position sensor. From this data we can also calculate speed and power of the press. To test out the system we crush paper like playing cards and post it notes, bone and log.

We also give a update about bunker building project. We have ordered ar500 steel parts like roof and bullet proof door. We are now waiting the bullet proof windows and couple other parts to finish up the project.

Machining World's First Transparent Hydraulic Press Tools

If you don't already have some experience with the Hydraulic Press Channel, the following text is probably not adequate to tell why this guy invested 3000 Euros on custom fabricated plastic rods. Alas, I'm not in the mood to write the necessary prose.

Welcome to another exciting episode of Beyond the Press, where we take you behind the scenes of creating our unique transparent tools for our 150 ton hydraulic press seen on hydraulic press channel.

In this episode, we dive deep into the process of designing, machining, polishing, and testing our latest creation - transparent tools made from high-quality acrylic. We've invested 3000€ into these plastics to ensure we're working with the best materials possible.

Watch as we transform these raw materials into fully functional, transparent tools through a meticulous process of design and machining. Our workshop is buzzing with the sounds of lathes, milling machines, and polishers, all working in harmony to bring our vision to life.

We'll guide you through every step of the process, from the initial design sketches to the final polishing touches. You'll see firsthand how we maintain the transparency of the acrylic while ensuring the tools are robust and functional.

But we're not just about the process - we're also about the results. That's why we put our transparent tools to the test, demonstrating their effectiveness and durability.

This video is a must-watch for anyone interested in machining, workshop processes, tool creation, or simply enjoys watching a satisfying transformation from raw materials to finished product.

Don't forget to like, share, and subscribe to Beyond the Press for more behind-the-scenes looks at our workshop and the fascinating world of tool creation.

The Hydraulic Press Channel has gotten a new and bigger press

I've been watching this channel off and on for several years now. FWIW, it now has almost 9 million viewers, which is probably why they could afford to buy a fancy new press. The premise is simple: Use a hydraulic press to crush something. What? Anything that fits in the press, preferably something that exhibits interesting and unexpected behavior under pressure.

At its worst it's just boring. At its best it's laugh-out-loud hilarious.

What more could you want?