Hand Fed Press
While most of our work does fine on the windmill we are looking at adding a hand press for the odd jobs the windmill has issues with. Any type of press from 8 x 12 chase size on up. What hand fed press would you reccomend. We dont want tabel top. We also wonder if any of the hand fed presses can work with a sheet larger than the chase area. We also want work with odd shapes like a pre die cut box. We will probally not need to die cut on it. We are wondering about inkers, roller height adjustments and the fine tune options for printing. We also wonder about working with stocks 80 -100 pt that are considered to heavy to work on windmill so impression strenght is a question. Alot I know, but teach me what I dont know( which covers just about everything) and expand my knowledge please.
Here in the UK the Autovic would be my choice for the work you are proposing. the Autovic is a Heavy Art Platen with parallel approach and can accommodate a good range of stock. I am not sure what the equivalent in the USA might be?
I’m in Maryland, USA. We have two 12 x 18 Kluge model N inkers from the mid to late 1930’s. They are very heavy duty. You can die cut on them if you want or emboss if you didn’t need heat. I regularly print sheets 24” x 18” on them by setting the guide pins into card stock extensions off the platen and adding some wings off the grippers to keep the stock from touching anything dirty or oily. The platen is supported by five large adjustable bolts so you could adjust to print very thick stock. Ours have all the automatic feed mechanisms removed and run backwards so they are hand feed only. They originally came with vibrator rollers that ride on top of the form rollers and redistribute ink, which are very handy for good coverage on large solid areas of ink. Ours seemed to have been lost in the mists of time but I was able to purchase a set from a printer who wasn’t using his. There is also a side registration system that is very handy. The rails have some wear but haven’t been an issue. They are thick steel so I imagine they could be resurfaced if needed. Kluges can be found pretty cheap. I’ve seen them on auction sites as low as $800 but most seem to be priced around $1200 to $2000. The rollers, trucks and other such are common sizes available from multiple suppliers. Not sure if that fits your bill but I thought I’d put that out there for you.
a 12 x 18 kluge/CP would suit your needs quite fine. they handle over sized sheets well.
Thanks for the feedback. Bruce next time you run the larger I would love to see a pic about the guide pin setup, a lot to ask I know but I cant quite figure out how you are doing it. Great feedback, I had no idea a larger sheet could be fed.
I have a 12x18 C&P newstyle, for sale in Connecticut- probably too far away, but one of these would be good. 12x18 is a nice size, stronger and more versatile than the smaller ones
i also have one for sale in Milwaukee, Wis,
This isn’t an actual setup but I put the pieces together. Another person would probably do things differently but this works for me. First thing to do when printing an oversize sheet is to clean the edges of the platen and bales and the metal on the sides that the stock might come in contact with. Getting a side guide pin in a position where it won’t get smashed by the rail or get oil on it from the cam there can cause drama depending on the size of the stock. Sometimes I reposition the form in the chase to get that right. Also loading a large sheet takes some getting used to, watch that the far corner of the sheet doesn’t hit the roller saddle during that operation and get a spot of oil.
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Hi Bruce, first of all thanks for the speedy reply - I did not need you to go to this much effort. That is very cool, I had no idea this could be done. I better not show my wife, I know a whole new product line she will want to invent.
ericm, scottbaldwin I think the shipping distance would to much cost.
Megill’s made extension feed guides that clamped under the tympan bale and projected below. They aren’t sold by Megill’s (i.e., American Printing Equipment) now but they still appear on eBay occasionally. The best part was steel spring tongues that had a long arc, easier to feed a difficult sheet beneath.
I’ve seen 2-pt. brass rule bent into J-shapes to be used as gauges for the same reason. I don’t know just what adhesive the old-timers used to adhere brass to tympan.
I have some brass extension guides ‘pic’ but sadly the bales on these machines are misshapen, from what I can’t imagine, but when I install these under the bale it jams the side registration system from operating. I have gotten used to doing it with the quad guides and card stock which only takes a couple minutes and works well.
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