Awesome Hydraulic Press

After the guys from the Hydraulic Press Channel got their new 300-ton press, they built an industrial-strength bunker around it to protect themselves and their workshop from flying debris. With the bunker in place, they used the machine to compress some large springs to see if they could make them go flying. It’s surprisingly harder than it looks.

We’ve seen how explosive something as tame as paper can be when crushed in a hydraulic press. So, how energetic are actual explosives when subjected to similar forces? Press play and find out as the Hydraulic Press Channel takes canisters of compressed propane gas and smooshes them next to a bunch of candles.

Since they’re made from plastic, LEGO bricks probably don’t stand a chance against a 150-ton hydraulic press, right? They’re stronger than you might think. Lauri from the Hydraulic Press Channel shows exactly how much force the ABS plastic building blocks can endure when assembled. Distributing the pressure across a larger surface area certainly helps.

The Hydraulic Press Channel shows us how it’s possible to turn fruit like bananas and apples into rock when subjected to enough pressure. Why you would want to do this, we have no idea. Maybe goalies would enjoy eating hockey pucks that come flying at their faces. They also turned some socks into a rock, presumably because it rhymes.

The Hydraulic Press Channel created a shiny new tool for showing off the destructive power of their industrial press. The upgraded WormMaker 5,000,0000 is made from thick acrylic, making it easy to see what’s going on as items get smashed and emerge like a fountain from the holes on top. It’s great at smooshing fruits, but can it handle candles?

There are much easier ways to split a log than with a 150-ton hydraulic press, but we’re not sure there’s any more entertaining method. The guys from the Hydraulic Press Channel start out trying to cut through their wooden target with knives, then bring their A-game with a custom tool made from four axes assembled into an “X” shape.

Is a pricey kitchen knife stronger than a cheap one? The Hydraulic Press Channel conducted the ultimate knife-on-knife battle, pressing blades against each other to see which cuts deeper. Which knife will reign supreme? We love how he says, “don’t try this at home,” as if we all have a 150-ton hydraulic press lying around.

As we’ve learned over and over again, crushing things with a hydraulic press can be quite satisfying. In this clip, the master of the machine shop, Lauri subjects tungsten, titanium, aluminum, magnesium, and copper cubes to the force of his press. Will freezing them in liquid nitrogen first cause them to explode?

In this experiment from the Hydraulic Press Channel, they wanted to test how the thickness and number of threads on nuts affects their strength. So they placed different nuts on the same kind of bolt, then pressed down to measure the force required to move and bend each one.

After the Hydraulic Press Channel tried to turn small rocks into bigger rocks, they got the idea to try the same technique with something more edible. Under the immense pressure of their machinery, they turned large portions of breakfast cereal into dense pucks which could theoretically be used for survival.

If you stick a plastic soda bottle under the force of a 150-ton hydraulic press, it will fail rapidly. But what happens if you reinforce the outside of the bottle with things like hose clamps, rubber bands, or zip ties? The Hydraulic Press Channel has the answer in their latest excuse for destruction in the name of physics.

Duct tape is an incredibly strong and versatile mending tool. But can it help objects stand up to the force of the mighty 150-ton hydraulic press? HPC wrapped some everyday items in thick layers of the sticky silver stuff to see if it improves its ability to survive the press?

The guys from the Leftover Currency channel sent the Hydraulic Press Channel a bunch of nearly worthless cash for them to subject to the intense destructive force of their 150-ton press. Like other stacks of paper, the bills fail quite spectacularly, while the coins just get smooshed.

When you want to start a fire, it’s important that you have dry wood. Logs that have been sitting around and getting rained on are very difficult to keep lit. The Hydraulic Press Channel wanted to see if they could use mechanical force to extract enough water from damp timber that it would be dry enough to light.

The guys at the Hydraulic Press Channel have been trying to get a hammer to explode under the crushing weight of their 150-ton press. Despite their best efforts, they couldn’t get it to happen. Will adding some liquid nitrogen help make their explosive dreams a reality? Hit play and find out.

The threads on steel bolts are designed for strength and to resist stripping. But they’re no match for a 150-ton hydraulic press. Place your bets now and guess how many kilograms of force different kinds of bolts can survive. While most of them compress, the biggest one explodes when it fails.