home made cheese press

Being new to cheesemaking, I don't have much to share about the process, yet. But I'm a career woodworker, so here's my first effort at making a cheese press. Works so much better than trying to balance the weights on top of a follower and mould! A bit of math allows me to calculate how much weight I'm putting on the pressure point. This picture shows 40 lbs, using 2 10 lb weights.

Yay Aristotle! That is a sweet press. I have been toying with the idea of incorporating one with just a hand crank and a scale underneath to measure the force being applied.

I thought of using screws, like a veneer press, but didn't think of using a scale to measure pressure! Great idea!

Nice press. Are you sure about the weight being applied though? I thought it was the (length from the weights to the fulcrum / the length from the plunger to the fulcrum) x the amount of weight.

If your plunger is at distance A and the weights are at distance 3A(which it appears in the picture to me), then it would be (3A / A) x 20 lb, so 60 lbs of pressure.

Nice work.

I like how you built in plenty of adjustibility from the start.

StittsvilleJames said:

Nice press. Are you sure about the weight being applied though? I thought it was the (length from the weights to the fulcrum / the length from the plunger to the fulcrum) x the amount of weight.

If your plunger is at distance A and the weights are at distance 3A(which it appears in the picture to me), then it would be (3A / A) x 20 lb, so 60 lbs of pressure.

Click to expand...

I think the plunger is at distance A and the weights are at distance 2A. Pictures can be deceiving.... That is how I figured it, anyway, just like you said.

I forwent the mathematics and built a simple "Put weight on top of press" press. That's not really like me, but I had the materials and the construction was super simple. The bonus is, I eliminated the part of the press that would have been broken (The math!)

I made it last fall and still have not used it for cheese.

Homercidal said:

I forwent the mathematics and built a simple "Put weight on top of press" press. ...

Click to expand...

I also took a non-mathematical approach. I have used it to make a few cheeses and it works fine, but I sure do like the idea of some leverage for cheeses that require higher pressures. No need for a pressure measuring device either because you can just do the math!

I have seen presses similar to the OP's which had several pre-measured points for hanging weights giving some more mathematical options.

....add another project to the list!

cdrozda: Beautiful press. Mine is a little stone age - including the washed gravel in a sack for weight. Did you turn the shaft (it undoubtedly has a name) going into the follower?

Yes, the pressure shaft is turned. Being a professional woodturner, I guess I just had to turn some part of it.....