Hey Vanderfriends, the second edition of my book Vandercook Presses: Maintenance, History and Resources is available now.
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UNI-1 carriage balking continues
Britt at Banshee Press continues to have a problem with her Universal I Power. In a comment to the previous post, I asked her to check for a loose and/or warped trip rack (X-14854). It’s worth noting that Vandercook made an engineering change to a more rigid part (X-21774 ), first used on press with serial number 21857. […]
MoreFerdinand Wesel
Ferdinand Wesel (1846-1912) was the founder of the F. Wesel Manufacturing Company, which among other equipment, made some of the first flatbed cylinder proof presses. Born in Frankfurt A.M., he learned the printing-machinery trade, as The Inland Printer once put it, “in the thorough manner characteristic of his countrymen.” In 1866, he emigrated to New York and […]
MoreOrigin of the modern proof press reconsidered, Part II
In a 2010 post, I examined Vandercook’s claim to be “the originators of the modern proof press.” In it I discussed presses shown in a 1906 catalog issued by the British manufacturer Harrild & Sons (courtesy of Steven O. Saxe). In the comments, Eric Holub shared images from a 1904 catalog for Soldan’s, another British firm. Here’s another contender thanks again to Steve Saxe, with whom […]
MoreQuick Roller Diameter Gauge
Our friend Kevin Martin at the Papertrail, in New Dundee, Ontario, Canada, has developed an ingenious flexible roller diameter gauge. It’s available as a free pdf on his website.
MoreFlorida service trip
I’m planning to drive from Mobile, Alabama to Sarasota to tune up some Vandercooks at Ringling College of Art & Design May 21–22. If anyone is interested in a service call before or after these dates, please contact me as soon as possible.
MoreO.C. Geffken
Otto C. Geffken (1901–71) was an engineer at Vandercook & Sons and is named in at least one patent. The card, set in Kaufmann Bold and Stymie, is ca. 1938. Geffken appears in catalogs and model brochures of the era such as this one at right. (R.L. Pelland, another engineer, is believed to be second from the left).
MoreSoCal Sojourn
I’m making another attempt to get to SoCal in mid-March. If anyone wants a Vandercook repair consult or workshop in the area don’t delay, contact me for details. I will book a flight soon.
MoreVandercooking on the Left Coast
On Monday, January 6, I will do a slide talk and press walk around at the International Printing Museum in Los Angeles. Then, after a workshop for staff and students at Otis College of Art Design, I fly to SF for a pair of workshop at San Francisco Center for the Book, January 9-12. From there […]
MoreHappy New Year
May your bearers be clean, your rollers be true and your packing be tight Detail from a July 1963 British Printer display ad for Dayco Rubber (U.K.) Ltd. Plant: Cooper & Beatty, Ltd., Toronto.
MoreExcello Proof Press
This display ad appeared in most issues of Graphic Arts Monthly, vol. 1, 1929, but does not appear thereafter. Neither was it advertised or mentioned in The Inland Printer or Photo-Engravers Bulletin before, during, or after 1929. (Perhaps, there wasn’t enough interest in this product, and likely Black Tuesday—the infamous crash of the stock market on […]
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