C&P Lever-Press?

That is a C&P Pilot press. GREAT PRESS! I’m sure that others will have more specific info for you.

Rick

This is a C&P Pilot Press. The chase size is 6.5”x10”.

Thanks Rick and Jhenry.

I just sent this info to Dave Churchman to see if he has an extra chase or two.

this may be my next press if all goes well.

Thanks again for the info!

Mike

Mike -

Yes, the action on the Pilot is one of the smoothest. And it is well-balanced, so you won’t knock it off the bench while using it. And, yes; Dave Churchman is a good source for chases.

Specifically, that is an Old Style C&P Pilot. It was not designed by Chandler & Price, but they bought the rights and manufactured them for many years. These were used in schools and small shops and were quite popular. It’s fair to say that probably every high school in the country had one of these at one time.

The one that I used in 1964 - like many others around the country - wound up in a dumpster when it was pulled from service. I have one in my collection now that still bears the (ugly) green paint the school it came from had put on it (and all their type cases.. )

Nowadays, this is just about the most desireable table top - no, bench top - press that can be found. Don’t put this on a table. At 160 pounds, it will need a stout bench. This press can print just about as well as an 8x12 and can sell, restored to like new condition for up to (and possibly over) $3,000, although $1500 is more common for most presses. Anything less is a good deal, for sure.

It was probably sometime just after WWII that Chandler & Price updated this design to their own New Series Pilot which they manufactured and sold until some time around 1964.

We have some info on the Pilot at http://excelsiorpress.org/platenpresses/Pilot/

Thompson Cabinet Company built a few cabinets specifically for the Pilot. The basic cabinet had 6 angled slots for chases to be stored in an a roller rack right in the top drawer. I have one of these as well as the plans to build this cabinet - sent to me by Ed Thompson, himself. I hope someday to find the time to reproduce the cabinet that was made just for this press.

I had two, but restored one and sold it - under duress - to a visitor who “just had to have it”. Sadly, I didn’t get any “after” photos. The “before” photos of these cabinets are on http://nodeadlines.com/cgi-bin/mivap/myphotos/dev/myphotos.mv?showcatalo...

But you don’t need one of these - just be sure to have a stout table/bench that will handle 200 pounds. The press is quite stable and will not have to be bolted down. Just be gentle and don’t try to apply more impression than the press can handle.

I am sure that you will enjoy printing with this press. But I think you will want to consider investing in new rollers. New rollers always make life easier for any printer…

BTW - If you intend to photo polymer plates, - and especially if you can’t find a chase quickly, our Excelsior Chase-Base with flexible gauge pins and perhaps extension feed guides might be worth looking into.

http://www.briarpress.org/21320

- Alan

Hi Alan,

You probably don’t recognize my briarpress name, but I spent a good 30-45 minutes with you on the phone a couple of weeks ago asking about your type cabinets.

Small world, ha.

Thanks for the info on this, and the pictures on your site. I think I am getting a good price for it and the gentleman I’m getting it from seems to be happy it’s going to a good home. It was part of a huge high-school auction that he won, sounds like it has a similar history to yours.

I will probably be getting new rollers along with the chases. The spring diagrams you offer on your site are a great help as well and answer some of the questions I had when I was looking at the press. It really is quite a different animal than the Kelsey 5x8 I have now!

Anyway, I hope to have it next weekend. I will post pictures as soon as I’ve had a chance to clean ‘er up a bit and make sense of it all. I am really looking forward to having this new press! I need to give my Kelsey a break and perhaps give it a good refurb when the Pilot is up and running.

I will also be in touch about the bases. I’ve been looking into them for my 5x8 and S&L Old-style Gordon.

Thanks again for the info, and I will see you this spring about those type cabinets!

Regards,
Mike

Alan (or anyone with an opinion)

Just as and aside, you mentioned the Thompson benches that were manufactured specifically for this press. There were two benches in the shop next to this press that were for sale. They were pretty rusted and were missing most of the drawers, etc. He wanted $50 each for them. Here is a pic of one, they were both almost identical. Think its worth having since this press is so heavy?

sorry the pic is sideways…

Thanks
Mike

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