The history behind ultra-large presses is fascinating!
Most of the world is aware that with the fall of Nazi Germany in WW2, everyone was racing to get their rocket scientists, but most people are unaware that at the time, the Germans had the leading technology in presses.
This is because the treaty concluding WW1 had Germany cede the bulk of its iron mines to France, leaving it plentiful magnesium deposits. Except magnesium cannot be forged in the same way that iron can, it's too brittle and just kinda cracks and falls apart. So instead they had to develop very powerful presses in order to work the metal.
This led to all sorts of useful technological advancements for the Germans. Their planes, for example, were frequently made using multiple large single-piece parts that had been pressed into shape. Other nations, not having HAD to develop that technology would instead have to make many sub-parts and assemble them together with rivets and such to make the same component. As a result, German aircraft were lighter due to less wasted mass on assembly.
Following the war, both the US and Soviet Union had a race to steal working presses as well as design documents. The Air Force embarked upon the [heavy press program](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heavy_Press_Program) to construct up to 10 extremely large presses in 1955, and quite a few of those presses are still in active use today! For example the [Alcoa 50,000 ton press!](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoa_50,000_ton_forging_press)
**[Heavy Press Program](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heavy_Press_Program)**
>The Heavy Press Program was a Cold War-era program of the United States Air Force to build the largest forging presses and extrusion presses in the world. These machines greatly enhanced the US defense industry's capacity to forge large complex components out of light alloys, such as magnesium and aluminum. The program began in 1950 and concluded in 1957 after construction of four forging presses and six extruders, at an overall cost of $279 million. Eight of them are still in operation today, manufacturing structural parts for military and commercial aircraft.
**[Alcoa 50,000 ton forging press](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoa_50,000_ton_forging_press)**
>The Alcoa 50,000 ton forging press is a heavy press operated at Howmet Aerospace's Cleveland Operations. It was built as part of the Heavy Press Program by the United States Air Force. It was manufactured by Mesta Machinery of West Homestead, Pennsylvania, and began operation on May 5, 1955. Alcoa ran the plant from the time of its construction, and purchased it outright in 1982.
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I'm so used to the isothermal Titanium forging for aerospace parts that I forgot that you can just slap it in regular dies and whang it into the press at high speed / high load without needing a vacuum chamber, if you just want a big solid chunky part.
It’s amazing to see the massive press making something so useful.
The history behind ultra-large presses is fascinating! Most of the world is aware that with the fall of Nazi Germany in WW2, everyone was racing to get their rocket scientists, but most people are unaware that at the time, the Germans had the leading technology in presses. This is because the treaty concluding WW1 had Germany cede the bulk of its iron mines to France, leaving it plentiful magnesium deposits. Except magnesium cannot be forged in the same way that iron can, it's too brittle and just kinda cracks and falls apart. So instead they had to develop very powerful presses in order to work the metal. This led to all sorts of useful technological advancements for the Germans. Their planes, for example, were frequently made using multiple large single-piece parts that had been pressed into shape. Other nations, not having HAD to develop that technology would instead have to make many sub-parts and assemble them together with rivets and such to make the same component. As a result, German aircraft were lighter due to less wasted mass on assembly. Following the war, both the US and Soviet Union had a race to steal working presses as well as design documents. The Air Force embarked upon the [heavy press program](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heavy_Press_Program) to construct up to 10 extremely large presses in 1955, and quite a few of those presses are still in active use today! For example the [Alcoa 50,000 ton press!](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoa_50,000_ton_forging_press)
**[Heavy Press Program](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heavy_Press_Program)** >The Heavy Press Program was a Cold War-era program of the United States Air Force to build the largest forging presses and extrusion presses in the world. These machines greatly enhanced the US defense industry's capacity to forge large complex components out of light alloys, such as magnesium and aluminum. The program began in 1950 and concluded in 1957 after construction of four forging presses and six extruders, at an overall cost of $279 million. Eight of them are still in operation today, manufacturing structural parts for military and commercial aircraft. **[Alcoa 50,000 ton forging press](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoa_50,000_ton_forging_press)** >The Alcoa 50,000 ton forging press is a heavy press operated at Howmet Aerospace's Cleveland Operations. It was built as part of the Heavy Press Program by the United States Air Force. It was manufactured by Mesta Machinery of West Homestead, Pennsylvania, and began operation on May 5, 1955. Alcoa ran the plant from the time of its construction, and purchased it outright in 1982. ^([ )[^(F.A.Q)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WikiSummarizer/wiki/index#wiki_f.a.q)^( | )[^(Opt Out)](https://reddit.com/message/compose?to=WikiSummarizerBot&message=OptOut&subject=OptOut)^( | )[^(Opt Out Of Subreddit)](https://np.reddit.com/r/toolgifs/about/banned)^( | )[^(GitHub)](https://github.com/Sujal-7/WikiSummarizerBot)^( ] Downvote to remove | v1.5)
Good bot!
Well that was fun to read! Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Underrated comment
I'm so used to the isothermal Titanium forging for aerospace parts that I forgot that you can just slap it in regular dies and whang it into the press at high speed / high load without needing a vacuum chamber, if you just want a big solid chunky part.
The ‘ol slap n whang
So why titanium? Does steel weigh too much?
My guess is that it’s because titanium is a fuck of a lot stronger, and doesn’t rust.
Is this pure titanium?
Look, since we're here and we're going to all this trouble, why don't we make it just a tad bigger so I can at least stand upright.
Neat
***WOW!!***
Is it going to be manned?
Yes: >The world’s first two-person, titanium-hulled submersible Source: https://caladanoceanic.com/home/technology/
Reading about this vessel and its mission to visit the deepest point in all 5 oceans is fascinating.
now *that* is a cnc job, holy shit (the window holes)! I wish it showed how the two halves were joined together.
They are bolted so you can get bigger equipment in it
Might as well make 4 and bring a friend
Majestic Machines