Looking at the hobo freight shop presses, see they have a 12t and a 20t. This will be used for basic work like front end bushings, bearings etc., will I need the 20t, is it built better etc?
I bought the HF 12 ton, used it for a few years, and replaced it with the HF 20 ton.
Technically the 12 ton is more than enough to do anything you’d need to do on one of these cars. I found though that when you really push it, there’s enough flex in the different parts to put some side load on your work, which can cause things to bind up.
The 20 ton has a heavier frame and I haven’t had any issues with it flexing or distorting when using it for the same stuff as I was using the 12 ton for.
Ultimately I was always able to get the job done with the 12 ton, but the 20 ton is just smoother and easier to use. Which has kind of been my experience with most HF stuff, you want the rating of the tool to be at least double what you actually think you need it to be.