What is a drop forged shear?
Pieces of steel are heated up red hot and put in a die that looks somewhat like a cake form in the shape of the shear or tool. Half of the form is fastened to a big anvil; the other half of the die is attached to the ram which acts like a hammer. The ram comes down on the steel, forging the pliable steel into the die and giving the steel the form of the future shear. These drop hammers are up to 20 feet high, standing on a 10-foot deep foundation. The ram can weigh 1000 lbs. or more. Because of variances in dimensions of the shears, some of the hot steel is being squeezed out of the die cavity. This creates a large burr which is cut off under heavy presses. Now the still hot shear forgings are cooled off under controlled conditions to eliminate any internal stress. They are then tempered and trimmed.
