How to clean up aluminum housings on water pumps

I've acquired a number of cast aluminum water pumps and was thinking of purchasing a 1 ton arbor press to punch out the steel shaft that holds the impeller in place on one side and the pulley on the other thus ending up easily (I hope) with a 'clean' cast aluminum housing. Anyone have experience cleaning up water pumps this way? Is a 1 ton enough pressure? Going to a 2 ton the cost jumps considerably. Will this work? Any different suggestions on how to easily and affordably accomplish this action? I don't have room for a large floor press in my shop.

Thanks in advance for an suggestions!

Wow....sounds like you are set up and ready to go. Nice into, sounds like you are a bit of a jack of all trades. As far as the pumps instead of using a press would it be easier and faster to heat the seal up with a torch,expanding the al and knocking them out with a hammer and chisel?

I have experimented with a 20 ton press with an air over hydraulic ram. The results, believe it or not, we're less than satisfactory. Let's see what the other SMF people recommend...

Heat it up and throw it in a log splitter, (rented or borrowed.)

Thanks much for the reply. I don't know. I have acetylene torch, vise, punch etc. but would need to securely setup pump each time, get pump hot & while hot smack the punch with my hammer strongly, straight on & reliably. I was thinking the 1 ton arbor press with about a 6' to bottom and 5" throat would be simpler. Put the press on my work bench, place pump in correct position and apply 1 ton pressure on the pin. I just don't if 1 ton is sufficient or that matter if that's the correct way to do it. But heating and smacking every one seems like more work.

FYI; Grizzly & or Harbor Freight tools both advertise a bench mounted 1 ton arbor press for bout $60.

I've never had any success with arbor presses other than to push new bearings into nice clean holes. They always seem to be a ton or two short of what I need to get something apart.

I second Brasscatcher's suggestion. Nothing stands up long to the blue nosed dragon and a sledgehammer!! And it has lots more uses than pretending it is a press!!

By the way, welcome from the sticks of Southeastern BC. Another guy too young to retire, too old to easily get back into the workforce.

Jon.

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Originally Posted by 1LooseCannon

I've acquired a number of cast aluminum water pumps and was thinking of purchasing a 1 ton arbor press to punch out the steel shaft that holds the impeller in place on one side and the pulley on the other thus ending up easily (I hope) with a 'clean' cast aluminum housing. Anyone have experience cleaning up water pumps this way? Is a 1 ton enough pressure? Going to a 2 ton the cost jumps considerably. Will this work? Any different suggestions on how to easily and affordably accomplish this action? I don't have room for a large floor press in my shop.

Full article at Scrap Metal Forum: http://www.scrapmetalforum.com/intro...#ixzz3SRDMQQHR

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I don't know if it will work or not, but if you are going to spend the money on a press, get at least a 12 ton... and a 20 ton is only $199 at harbor freight as i remember.

Search results for: 'shop press'

If your scrapping it , hit it with a bfh.

Toonces is right, if you're going to get a press, get the biggest one you can afford. I have a 50 ton and am amazed sometimes how much pressure it takes to push shafts out of housings or bearings. I haven't tried a water pump, but in dealing with other things, I can see how it could easily be too tough a job for a 2 ton.

How many do you have? Have you tried striking it with a sledge? I have smashed apart many housings when the steel refused to give up.

Or find a friend that works in a hydraulic/press shop.

Have a welder? Could build a mini press out of scrap iron and a bottle jack.

Is there room to make a relief cut in the housing parallel to the shaft? I've removed bushings and shafts this way a few times, using a cutoff wheel, then pound it out with a sledge.

I don't understand why you would spend $200 on a press when all you need is a hammer. Its scrap it doesn't have to be pretty. And iam sure you already have a hammer.

Unless your just trying to justify by a press cause you want one.
That I understand. Cause I like tools too! More the better. Ha

Ive cleaned alot of these with a sledgehammer. Always wanted to build a press. And dude... You work at a scrapyard. Idk if yours is like ours but we get bottle Jack's and angle iron all day.even good welders. The whole point of scrapping is to recycle

Put a piece of rail road iron on the ground and hit it with a sledgehammer. Heat is not nessecery nothing is faster

https://www.scrapmetalforum.com/off-...p-rebuild.html

Sell as irony and move onto the next job.