Sunflower Seed Oil Press

The homesteaders can produce sunflower oil from their own seeds with sunflower seed oil press. The oil can be pressed as is or heated to 170 degrees F., which doubles oil yield.
Both methods require the seed to be ground to fine powder. If you are pressing the oil seed variety, a meat grinder or electric blender will do an excellent job of grinding the seed. The confectionary type of seed will require the seed to be hulled and winnowed before it is ground. A food mill with the stones set at the coarse setting can be used to accomplish this step.
The ground kernels are placed in the cylinder with the piston closing the bottom portion of the cylinder.
The cylinder is mounted in the press frame and a three-ton hydraulic jack is used to supply the pressure.
Because of the great pressures created by the hydraulic jack, it is important that the frame be properly constructed and firmly mounted to the work surface before the pressing operation begins.