Getting the right size for your press.
The key to replacing a roller is being able to order the correct size (length and diameter) for your particular press. So long as a good portion of the hard rubber compound remains on one of your rollers, you (and your roller supplier) will not have difficulty knowing the size of the roller to be replaced.
If you can determine the dimensions of the roller, then simply ship it to a roller supplier to have it replaced for a fee. For sources, see the Printer's Yellow Pages.
If you can’t determine the dimensions of the roller by simply looking at it, you’ll need to determine the size of the roller your press requires before you proceed. This can be tricky, but may be accomplished in a few ways:
- If remnants of the rollers remain, you can sometimes surmise their original diameter by looking at the roller truck. The trucks on presses of a similar make tend to be a standard size smaller than the rollers for these presses; for instance, the trucks of Golding presses are precisely 1/8” smaller in diameter than their corresponding rollers.
- Roller sizes for a more commonplace press, such as a Kelsey Excelsior or a Chandler & Price Pilot, are widely known and should be available from most roller suppliers (see below). Some of these suppliers will also provide metal cores if the roller dimensions are known.
Roller prices range from $40 to $65 per. Composition rollers are less expensive than rubber rollers but are less hardy: the composition rollers tend to expand in humid basements and deteriorate more quickly, although mice do prefer them to rubber rollers.
