Broken crank shaft

Does anyone know if the crank shaft on a C&P old style is iron or steel?

I begrudgingly sold my press a few years back after closing my business. The new owner’s husband didn’t want to pay the extra $40 for the late return on a trailer rental, so he decided to move the press before I could come over and help unload. He toppled it off of the trailer, nearly crushing his dad in the process. The flywheel wasn’t so lucky as his dad was. They finally got tired of having a broken press in their garage, so I snatched it back up recently.

Fortunately the drive shaft broke about halfway between the flywheel and the body of the press, so I feel like I should be able to fix it. I plan to bore out 4” on both sides of the break, pin it, weld/braze it, and then add a collar around the break to further strengthen it. I’d love to hear any other suggestions.

Thanks!

image: IMG_6655.jpeg

IMG_6655.jpeg

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I can’t remember the diameter of those shafts but I do know of someone that used one of these to fix this exact issue .
https://www.mcmaster.com/product/61005K588

How far did it bend before breaking? Iron will not bend much before failing.

How far did it bend before breaking? Iron will not bend much before failing.

It was my understanding that the flywheel crank shaft of the C&P press is cast steel. Cast is more brittle than forged iron or steel, due to the crystal structure that results from the liquid metal cooling without movement of the metal. If the cranks were forged steel they would be much more resistant to breaking, but would bend instead. Casting was probably chosen as the easier method of forming the crank offset.

Bob