Don’t Buy An Enerpac Hydraulic Pump If You Want It Repaired In
Fifteen Or Twenty Years !
A rather rude awakening this week, finding out that the big pump I
was using on my 50 ton press turned into a hundred pounds of scrap
metal when it stopped working a couple months ago. I got it about 7-8
years ago, unused, but it was 15 years old at the time. Confirmed by
Enerpac technical personnel today: their pump technology evolves
rapidly enough to render older models obsolete and unsupported.
Confirmed by my local hydraulic service company : yeah, they pretty
much suck in that regard, while Power Team and OTC pumps remain
servicable, with repair parts available for a much longer period,
more than 25 years.
The Enerpac would cost around $5,000 to replace with a current model
today. I got in on Ebay for $1,000, so that’s all I’m out. My second
biggest (now my biggest) is a Power Team pump that would be about
$4,000 today, which I just got repaired for $450. It’s gone through 3
motors, and has cycled at least 5 times as many pressings at high
pressure than the Enerpac did before something internal broke down.
Bonny Doon uses Power Team pumps, by the way, so here’s another good
reason to go that route if you want to sink some bucks into the
equipment. You’ll know it will hold up well, and be fixable if and
when it finally does give out. I wouldn’t be able to guess how many
cycles I’ve put my main pump through. Literally millions, I don’t
doubt.
Dar Shelton