Ascott sell exactly this press for 30 quid, for those of us who are DIY-challenged. (I can carve free-hand, but if one staight bit of wood has to fit another.......... )
Since the interest in cheesemaking on this forum, I have mused with the idea of getting into it.. Unfortunately I can't justify starting. It's not like the meat processing and sausagemaking inasmuch as I started that because I was finding undesirable things (bones and grisle etc) in the products. I only generally eat 2 types of cheese.. The sainsburys 'taste the difference' Picante Gorgonzola, and the Mull of Kintyre mature cheddar. Both of which I cannot fault. Superb products.
I must admit i use a 4.1/2 inch drainpipe with holes drilled in with a wooden folower turned by a mate with a lathe ,and about 8 lbs. scale weights on top and it works well every time. A lot of cheeses don't require pressing , ie Stilton ,Vinney ,and soft cheeses like Camembeart and brie.
Well most people only work with a gallon of milk at a time and that will afford you a pound of cheese.......
If you make a couple a week you have plenty of cheese for a family.
I frequently use me rain pipe with a wooden stand that was used for kitchen towel rolls....the round base is the exact size of the drain pipe and I drop a few dumbell weights over the shaft but you must have a centering disc at the top of the pipe otherwise the cheese can turn out wonky.
Of course a five pound wheel is going to make a better cheese than a one pound truckle.
Has anybody got copies of the images of the made up press, I'm thinking of making one for myself and I would appreciate a glimps of what the finished press looks like.
I shall probably disappear down to the shed later and make a start on it anyway ( too mean to buy one ). I'll photograph the progress if you like, if you promis not to laugh at my woodworking skills
I was too mean to buy one too, but my wife got me one for Christmas. If you have any problems give me a shout and I'll take a photo of the relevant part, it should be fairly straight forward though.
Looking at your workshop, you are unlikely to need any help from me
One thing to note, it does topple over quite easily once the weight is on the arm, so you might want to consider how to clamp it down or even extend the base out under the arm.