Stephenson Blake & Co - Type cabinets

Middletonbold
on 15 Jul 20 (04:24)

I am in the process of moving my print studio and am currently planning the new space.

In my collection I have a number of SB & Co wooden cabinets and want to set out one complete wall with cabinets. The cabinets I own date from about the 1960 / 70s - measuring: 570 deep x 1060 high x 915mm wide. The type cases are quite deep 816 x 422mm (single central handle with label window to the left).

Does anyone have or know where there is catalogue listing the variants? - I also have a cabinet for chases at the same size but am wondering if there was also a wooden cabinet of the same size designed for furniture?

Many thanks
Carl

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harrildplaten
on 16 Jul 20 (11:23)

St Brides library will have a S. B. & Co catalogue that will show what you want, indeed they likely have various dated ones. As for furniture generally the usual thing in small jobbing shops was a deep drawer under the imposing stone, with the stuff all jumbled up, as part of the strong wooden table structure that supported the imposing stone. More up-market outfits usually had some sort of rack fixed to a very adjacent wall or partition. In passing it was a commonplace to have decent eg Cornerstone furniture sent down to the machine room for running off, but there was never enough to use this for standing formes. So, after the run, when it came back to the comp room, the furniture was changed to wood for storage - and that had its own problems!

platenprinter
on 16 Jul 20 (11:55)

Updated 16 Jul 20 (12:01)

This what you want I think Carl.

http://type.org.uk/archive/stephenson-blake/wood_letter_1915_stephenson_...

Regards
Paul

harrildplaten
on 17 Jul 20 (05:09)

I stand corrected gentlemen, indeed there was such a thing.
Mind you I’ve seen maybe several hundred comp rooms, from The Times in Printing House Square down to tiny village winkle bag shops in France with sand on the floor! and never saw such. I do think given the current survival rate of wooden randoms one may reasonably use the hens teeth phrase, and would consider asking if some woodworking friend etc etc.

Middletonbold
on 29 Jul 20 (02:29)

Thank you for your very valuable comments.

I have noticed that SB & Co made quite a range of this style of cabinets - each one altered slightly differently from the next. Mostly the same hight but quite a lot of difference in width (for some reason) and depth - so my desire to find eight matching is a bit of a quest - I will have to go for the ‘mix and match’ aesthetic in the new print studio.

Best wishes to all
Carl