Dutch Style Cheese Press, home made.

[BauerHaus]

Also the Tillamook 100th Anniversary Vintage White Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese thrown in for good measure, aged for three years.

Net cost of the press without mold was $50. 

Gary

[DeejayDebi]

Very nice Gary! That should work great.

[BauerHaus]

Two hard cheeses down a lifetime more to make...

[Cheese Head]

Gary, very nicely done, that's exactly the style of press I'm thinking of making, even has countersunk screws . Good idea on the chopstick to hold the arm and plunger up while placing hoop.

I'd rather make a simpler off wall type press like Wayne and Francois's professional pictures here but I don't have an exposed wall 2x4" stud to bolt to and I don't want to bolt one on to the wall as my house construction is 2x4" and plaster board, not very robust. Plus my wife and I will probably be moving in 2 years when kids gone to college, thus something portable is better for me.

I'd actually like to go for a free standing compound style press like in several of these pictures so I could press large hoops of cheddar but would take too much work so the style you have is what I want to build.

Couple questions:

• To help scale your press, what diameter is your hoop and dowel push rod?
• What is on end of dowel to push on follower and hope to ensure vertical push such that follower doesn't become slopped?
• Any estimate on how big a weight on max setting you could go up to?
• Assume you have put it in service and made two cheeses? Would be grateful to know how worked, I'm concerned on sideways bending if large weights.

Thanks in advance, reason for asking is I've bought DeejayDebi's extra two 9"/229mm inside diameter 3-3.5 kg (6.6-7.7 lb) Kadova Gouda shaped molds and thus I'll probably need to scale up your unit.

[DeejayDebi]

I am think as long as you make the inside press area big enough you could still use cutting board followers to press the chesses. If you make it wid enough to put both molds side by side you won't even have to cut the boards!

[wharris]

I think your fancy new mould John allow you to stack them rather nicely...


I do like this press.  Well done. 

[DeejayDebi]

They do stack nicely I did it last night. I had to use one of my pressing weights for a party ... 

[BauerHaus]

The hoop is a 4.5" dia., 2lb mold.
Dowel is 3/4"  by 20"
At the end of the dowel is a closet rod hanger.
Base is 3 pieces of 2x4x10 (square)

The great find was at Ross, a cutting board with the routed boarder and depression, all I did was drill a hole for a drain spot.

I have done the Farmhouse Cheddar and was up to 20 pounds at my 23" mark which I now know as 75lbs of pressure. I came out very straight.
I did a Jack last weekend and not as straight but still very good.

[Alex]

Gary, very nicely done, that's exactly the style of press I'm thinking of making, even has countersunk screws . Good idea on the chopstick to hold the arm and plunger up while placing hoop.

I'd rather make a simpler off wall type press like Wayne and Francois's professional pictures here but I don't have an exposed wall 2x4" stud to bolt to and I don't want to bolt one on to the wall as my house construction is 2x4" and plaster board, not very robust. Plus my wife and I will probably be moving in 2 years when kids gone to college, thus something portable is better for me.

I'd actually like to go for a free standing compound style press like in several of these pictures so I could press large hoops of cheddar but would take too much work so the style you have is what I want to build.

Couple questions:

• To help scale your press, what diameter is your hoop and dowel push rod?
• What is on end of dowel to push on follower and hope to ensure vertical push such that follower doesn't become slopped?
• Any estimate on how big a weight on max setting you could go up to?
• Assume you have put it in service and made two cheeses? Would be grateful to know how worked, I'm concerned on sideways bending if large weights.

Thanks in advance, reason for asking is I've bought DeejayDebi's extra two 9"/229mm inside diameter 3-3.5 kg (6.6-7.7 lb) Kadova Gouda shaped molds and thus I'll probably need to scale up your unit.

John, look at my self-built dutch press, it can handle moulds up to 8-10". The arm has a power multiplier ratio of 1:2.5-4 in 0.5 increments. To start with something, follow the attached scheme, it's free.

[BauerHaus]

I used the same schematic as my starting point as well.

[Cheese Head]

BauerHaus: Thanks for the answers and extra pictures, I especially like the sticker table of weights and pressures for your mold , saves having to calculate it every time.

Alex: Also thanks for the extra pictures, gives me some more ideas.

[BauerHaus]

This looks like fun.

[FarmerJd]

Those levers appear to have a 20 -1 mechanical advantage each at least. Double pulleys; great idea! And the middle lever is longer so it needs less weight on the end. Ingenuity at its best. Great pic.

[Sailor Con Queso]

The draining table doesn't have a lip on it, so it looks like the whey is going directly onto the floor. And the 5 gallon bucket is overflowing. No wonder her hair looks like she was just released from the psych ward. 

Reminds me of a couple of old "I Love Lucy" episodes. The first one where she is stomping grapes barefooted in a huge wooden vat, and the other -a classic - where she is removing baked pies from a conveyor that keeps speeding up. This woman is Cheesy Lucy.

[Alex]

Adding pulleys and strings, will be my next improvement to get more pressing ability with same outer dimensions.