McDonald steel rolling Mill Vs a Hydraulic Press

[Insaneknifer]

I new to this forum and not sure if there has ever been a post on this subject before. So i Saw a Video Clip of Dee Hedges on you tube and she was making a knife she used a rolling mill, as i later found out that what is was called, to brink down thickness and keep thickness consistent. I started to do some research and found on anvilfire.com that it was refereed to as a McDonald rolling mill and they have a video of him using it to make some Damascus. So got me wandering what would be the Pros and Cons of a Rolling Mill and a Hydraulic press. being a "newbie" to the blade smithing craft, I look to the experts for the answers

 

[RevDevil]

Welcome to Bladeforums.
You might want to be in Shop talk. General Knife Discussion is simply that, about knives.

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

They are two different tools, and one does not replace the other.

A rolling mill is a great luxury that few care to buy unless they are production shops. Most all damascus makers have a press and/or a power hammer. If you are only going to have one big tool .... a press would be my choice. There are those who probably feel the same about their power hammers.