Hi all, My Universal III has been chugging along beautifully for a couple of years, when all of a sudden it just quit in the middle of a job. By “quit” I mean the rollers are still moving, but the upper carriage just won’t go. I took a short video which I’ll link to here […]
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Looking for a starting point for Ink/Pressure issues UNI III AB
I recently attempted to print a very light color of borders that extended from the top of the bed about 10 inches. The ink was mostly composed of white and revealed things about the press that are perplexing. I have several issues going on, and perhaps this was, unwittingly, a test of all of them. […]
MoreUniversal IV electrical problems
I am having problems with the electrical system on my Universal IV and need advice! The cover was off the electrical control box as the carriage has not been breaking consistently on the feed board end for the last couple runs, but it was usable. Recently, when I flipped the press on, I saw a few […]
MoreUNI-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. […]
MoreUNI-1 carriage balking
Hello, this is Britt at Banshee Press in Denver. I am having a problem with my Vandercook Model UNI-I, Serial # 24389 with auto carriage. On the trip cycle, the carriage balks with an abrupt jerk – sometimes to the point of stopping – at 21 1/2″ measured from the feed-board end of the press. (It […]
MoreUniversal 1 home/start position
Hi Folks, Sorry if this has been covered before… Haven’t printed on this machine yet, but in the course of general lube and clean-up, I detect one issue: in the home/start position, the carriage doesn’t quite sit well-settled to the left/feedboard. it wants to roll off of the correct home/detente position and almost begin travel. […]
MoreGripper Cam Question
Hello All, I own a Uni I. I’m trying to move my gripper cams to accommodate thicker papers and make the gripper pins open higher. I can’t get them to budge. I’ve removed all of the set screws, used penetrating oil, and lots of elbow grease. Any suggestions? This seems so simple, and I’m worried […]
MoreAbout to embark on cylinder carriage adjustment-Universal III AB
The symptom: The top of the bed has less impression. At first I thought maybe the adjustable bed could be at fault, but a level revealed it pretty even from top to bottom center, but the operator side corner top appears to actually rise, in complete contradiction to my problem of less impression at the […]
MoreAuto washup setup for Universal 1
I’m setting up the wash-up tray for my school’s Universal 1. I’m not sure of exactly where to place two rails that form the fixed support for the tray, and I’m also not sure if the moveable support for the tray has all the parts. Also I have two long pieces of steel with triangular […]
MoreOil for Automatic inking system / Universal 1
I have taken apart the automatic inking system on a Universal 1, cleaned it, and put it back together. Behinh the machine where the threaded rod goes into when ink system is fully open has what appears to be an small oil opening with a red flip lid. There is no oil in it now, but […]
MoreUni I power carriage trip issue
Hello Vanderblog, This is my first post, and hopefully will be resolved simply. Thank you in advance for any and all feedback. My press, when set to auto cycle, does not engage the trip mechanism on the return of the carriage. The image will print ever so slightly on the tympan (depending on my packing […]
MoreUniversal III relay contacts…
We have a Vandercook Universal III. I had a few spare relay contacts, but have just burned out a couple. Anyone have an idea if there is a way to get these or does anyone know if you could adhere the actual contact? I was thinking that maybe there was a way to get the […]
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