officially new.

A Poco #0 most likely. I believe these are galley height presses at .968” You may need to shim up lino blocks a bit before printing, but that’s easy enough. For multi-color work, you’ll need to figure out a registration method. Nice press.

Mine is also awaiting some TLC.

check out: http://pocoproofpress.blogspot.com/ and http://sites.google.com/site/pocoproofpress/ for more info.

No.0 Poco, Size of Bed 12” x 18”, Weight 210 lbs.
No.1 Poco, Size of Bed 13” x 25”, Weight 355 lbs.
No.2 Poco, Size of Bed 18” x 25”, Weight 405 lbs.

From 1923 ATF Catalogue, page 928

Paul

It’s a #1. See how the ink table is supported, so it’ll swing up out of the way? #1 and #2 have that scheme. #0 has a simpler, bolt-on scheme.

Also has gear tracks on both ends of the bed, versus only one side on the #0.

Preston

yeah. based on the catalogue pic and size I think it’s a No. 2 but I’ll measure today for sure.

going to have to dig through the forums for best method to get it cleaned up.

I’ll probably put a nice coat of black rustoleum gloss or a hammered finish on it once it’s cleaned up.

also.. forgot to mention if it matters. I picked this up* for $150 and got a handful (literally) of type.

*I didn’t actually pick it up.. 4 guys lifted it and put it in the back of my truck… the trick will be getting it out. I’m thinking an engine hoise will do the trick.

Be forewarned. Poco’s are particularly cumbersome to move; especially delicate are the cast crank and the cast struts that connect the base, front to back. The only real bearing points are the four feet. Somewhere on the web I have seen photos of a Poco moving tragedy. Take those pictures to heart.

BTW, it looks like you got a great deal. This is a great press: simple but capable of immaculate presswork. And big enough for small posters.

More important than a paint job, is to carefully clean and oil it and coax it gently back into smooth operation. Start by scouring it meticulously with 3-in-1 oil and a fine brass bristle toothbrush, wiping often with a soft rag. After you get that done, you’ll be too busy having fun printing to take it off line for a coat of paint.

thanks for the great cleaning advice. i wasn’t sure how to start but 3in1 and a toothbrush will bring me back to my latrine cleaning days in the army. :)

i did see the pics of the broken poco yesterday so i’ll definately be careful.

the other question i had… it looks like there a LOT of crap accumulated insice the roller cylynder.. like leaves / dirt / spider webs, etc.

i’m going to assume i could try to pull apart the roller at all the various screw and bolt points but wanted to check here first.

anyone know?

If that press is like the “0” don’t even think about disassembling the cylinder — you’d have to separate the frame sides to get the cylinder out. However, it looks like one end is in a split bearing, but getting the cylinder free of the other end may be … interesting. I’d poke around in there with something like a long handled bottle brush and loosen the junk and try to vacuum it out through the open ends of the cylinder.

I was able to get my press apart (and back together!), but not the cylinder assembly. There maybe some press fits there. Having gotten the rest of the press apart, I took the pieces to a car wash, followed by sand blasting and powder coating.

The sand blasting & powder coating cost money and require care to protect the various machined surfaces and bores, but the result was quite nice. You can get a better (and less expensive) result by hand, but of course it’ll take time.

Preston

It looks to me that the cylinder would unbolt from the top, probably making it lighter by 70 or 80 lbs. You could use an air compressor to blow the stuff out of the cylinder. I had a Vandercook that a mouse decided to nest in, had little bits of paper and leaves fall out of it for days. If you remove the cylinder be very careful to mark the gears where they come together so you can re-assemble it correctly. Except for a bit of rust removal the press looks to be in pretty good shape. I you are planning to build a table for it, the original took floorspace of 28” x 35” and stood 31” high.

Paul

Don’t start taking stuff apart to start. You can probably fit a vacuum nozzle in there. Or a blower. As you bring a good machine gently back to life, minor stuff like that takes care of itself. (It will fall out gradually while you are reviving the action.) Most important is that the gears and rollers move like silk, that the bed glides smoothly. As you clean and oil, feel all the bearing surfaces (rollers, bearers, etc.) carefully with your finger tips; listen closely to the action. Hands and ears can “see” things better than eyes sometimes. Feel your way along.

Judging from the photos, the packing covering the cylinder looks short. You’re lucky, because original factory instructions for the Poco are published somewhere on the web. Find them, print them out, memorize them.

My guess is NA Graphics can help you with the replacement packing for the cylinder, if needed. When you learn how to replace that, the inside will be easy to reach.

all outstanding info that is much appreciated! I’m going to start slow… I’ll pull out the leaf blower and hit it with the high pressur nozzle, that should work for now. then it’s a green pad and some wd40. and patience.

so i went out before the tornado tonight (currently a tornado warning in my county of ohio) and measured the bed.

18x25. looks like i got the big daddy of the group. a Poco No.2

I’m very happy about that because I was hoping to be able to print larger projects.