Help! – our No 4 sounds like a freight train and can be heard two floors up. Thinking the sound was possibly coming from the ink drum or chain, I removed the belt that connects the motor to the gear box, but no luck. The motor itself is quite (I disconnected it from the press [...]

Having recently brought to the shop a nearly untouched SP-25, and in the midst of attempting to sort out the electrical nightmare (550V-3-phase), I’ve run into a problem I’m hoping folks around here might be able to help me with. The press was originally bought in the mid-60s, and it sat in a warehouse as [...]

Our newly acquired SP-15 has a very loud motor. Not sure if this is normal. We have a second SP-15 that is also loud, but not as bad as the newer one. I sometimes have to shout for my students to hear me. I received several suggestions to check/add oil, and we did that, but [...]

Recently the motor on my universal I has been reluctant to start. If I manually give the cylinder [drum] some torque, it will start. I replaced the capacitor mounted on the motor ($6.00), which seemed to help some. I can get a new motor from a local supply house for a reasonable cost (approx. $150) but [...]

Hello all – In the middle of a big job this weekend, my Universal 1 Power started making a persistent new noise –something between a chatter and a squeak. The noise occurs as the carriage is moving, a little more on the return. The noise occurs whether the motor is driving the carriage or whether [...]

Our SP-15 (#22182) at UA Fort Smith is missing the nylon wiper (X-20758) that apparently cleans the rails on both sides of the press. Looks like these were replaced at some point with a couple of pieces of thin metal. The other day, on the non-operator side, these bits of metal shifted and on the [...]

The motor/chain on my Uni I recently started getting louder. I applied some serious grease and it seemed to quiet a bit, but not much. I also noticed the rollers aren’t distributing ink thoroughly on one end (closest to the chain). I experimented with raising and lowering the roller height and it doesn’t make much [...]

Our #4 has a squeak that appears to be coming from the ink drum. In attempting to find the source of the squeak, we have noticed the ink drum is VERY close to the operator side of the press(less than an ink knife blade). I did a little careful cleaning with a utility blade and [...]

I read that one should periodically check the oil level in the SP-15 motor gear box. I removed the plug and can see the oil is at a level below what I believe is the worm-gear shaft. What is the appropriate level that should be maintained and what specification of oil should be used? Is [...]

Hello! I have two pictures (pictures below) of a piece that is grinding on my vandercook 219. There are fine metal shavings under the press after about an hour of running. I see no way of adjusting this to lift it up. Any suggestions? Pictures: Nick

Dear Vandekin I am in Memphis cleaning & repairing two Vandercooks, a 4 and a Uni III. The operator of the III tells me the motor jumps (or rather jolts) itself randomly during a press run and there appears to be a little bit of slack in the chain. I tested it out and sure [...]

I recently bought a Vandercook 4 with an engine that doesn’t run. I plan to bring it to a local motor shop for repair early in the new year. Does anyone have any tips for successfully removing the motor and / or any essential information that should be passed on to the mechanic? Thanks, Kyle [...]