Thank you, that is helpful. It’s way over my head but it’s a start!

I got a stronger screwdriver and loosened the eccentric on the far side of the bed and it’s moving smoothly. With Perry’s advice I put a few pieces of paper on my boxcar base to get it just above type high and rolled the cylinder to the middle of the bed and it didn’t seem uneven. I don’t know if the little adjustment I made was the right amount, I printed something blind that I had printed before this problem started, with the same packing, and I got a decent impression that looked pretty even and was just a touch lighter than before.

I’ve posted 2 sections from the 219OS Assembly Print that may shed some light on how this press is put together and how to adjust it. The upper two large diameter bearings are not set to touch the bed rail–they serve to keep the cylinder from rocking when in motion, and this system was used up through numerous models to follow including the SP series. I guess those are called “steady” rollers and are not to be cranked down on the rails. The main center bed rail bearing has a somewhat primitive way to set the eccentric with the two screws, but take a look. Finding this print was a long time coming as there is scant 219OS material in the files.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/53177163@N00/sets/72157629223465409/

Fritz

I think the cylinder bearers and bed bearers are in full contact while in print. I don’t have a long feeler gauge, but I tried slipping .002 paper between and there no clearance. So if that’s nothing to do with the issue, is it more likely the tightness of the eccentric? Removing the plate, I see what looks like a second set screw for the main eccentric. Is it worth loosening that screw and the other set screw to loosen the eccentric without messing with the pin wrench to see if I can get the whole carriage to feel looser?

A pin wrench is just a steel rod with ends turned to a specific diameter, sometimes double-ended with one end bent at an angle. The adjustment screw has a disk with holes drilled around the perimeter, and you will need a pin wrench to match the holes.
This adjustment is unknown territory. Gerald’s instructions concern a somewhat more known area, but still one about which there is disagreement about the best way to proceed. Since there is probably nobody still alive who has done it (and if they are, they are not online, nor are there any surviving records), this adjustment should be done with the most extreme caution; don’t move more than one hole at a time and keep a record of all movements. And first use long feeler gauges to determine if there is actually any gap between bed and cylinder bearers on impression. If the cylinder bearers are in full contact with the bed beareres on impression, this is not the cause of your problem.
The point is that the impression bearings hold down the carriage and prevent bear-off during impression. This unique adjustment within the carriage of the OS 219 positions the cylinder within the carriage, a design later abandoned by Vandercook.

Thank you. Do you know the size pin wrench or would an adjustable one do?

The adjustment of impression bearingson an OS 219 is complicated by the fact that the cylinder also has adjustment relative to the carriage, and I haven’t seen that on any other Vandercook (though it was common on production flatbed cylinder presses). Take off the nameplate on the carriage and you will find the adjusting screw; it uses a pinwrench, and is present on both sides. I haven’t touched this so I can’t give any suggestions.
There are no instructions available regarding the OS 219. NA does have a parts diagram though.

Home-made presses have been discussed at length on BriarPress. Despite the encouragement you will find there, as far as I can tell only three styles of press have been made with any success: wooden platen handpresses based on historical designs, platens based on hydraulic jacks like an arbor press, and rolling pin presses based on the galley press.
Some have suggested that proof presses can be made out of stock parts like granite surface plates, but I see the cylinder as one of the greatest challenges. That’s why a simple tube filled with cement is about as good as anyone has shown so far. Using weight and gravity is much simpler than trying to hold down the cylinder with impression bearings.
People have also been creative adding frisket-and-tympan assemblies to gripperless presses like the Poco.

model: FAG SP52
owner: Officina Typo
(http://www.facebook.com/pages/Officina-Typo/187100814658941)
location: Modena, Italy

One more thing: My press seems to be printing very fine. David Seat’s setting of the roller bearings seems to be JUST RIGHT! Many thanks again to everyone for their patience and assistance. PRESS ON, Laurie

Good News everyone! I think the mystery on why my press was coming up at the end of the form is solved. The gripper bar was hitting the positive lock-up bar as the carriage reached the end of the form. I rarely use the positive lock up bar and had totally forgotten that one is not suppose to use it on long forms. This info is usually printed on the lockup bar. Mine has all the lettering rubbed off. My friend here was examining the press with me and noticed that the lock up bar had dings in it that looked fresh. I went to look it up in the manual which says nothing specific but the picture of the bar shows writing on it that says: “Lock-up bar must not be used for forms that extend more than 19 inches from the head printing line because of gripper interference”. The carriage was lifting up as the gripper buttons hit the lock-up bar.

The other issue that we found was that the gripper mechanism at the head was not working properly. I have always thought the grippers were not working right. We saw that the latch or “pin” was not going into the groove so the grippers were not opening all the way at the head, and not opening consistently at the foot nor were they opening on the way back to the feed board. This may not have anything to do with it but I am mentioning it for the record.

So, the problem was something EASY and easily overlooked. I am so happy that it was NOT the roller bearings.

Thank you to everyone for all your help. It feels great to have the support of all on the Vanderblog.
I’ll let you know how it works as prints go by, Laurie

Eric, thanks for your input. It seems I made a huge deal to show the videos, and the answers were actually simple.
I will check again on the press once it’s leveled on its final location.
Thanks again!

I don’t look at videos, but will tell you that the assembly containing motor and drum is supposed to pivot so that the drum can be deflected downward as the cylinder passes over. Otherwise there would be a stripe of ink laid on every time the cylinder moves over.
And I would say, don’t test the press until it is flat on the ground and carefully levelled. It is a lightly-built press and needs solid support, which dollies are not.