Hi all – I’m in the last stages of cleaning up my Vandercook and I did what I told myself I never would. I ended up with 4 bolts and 8 washers that I cannot for the life of me figure out where they go. I’ve looked over the press and also the schematics and […]
MoreVandercook 1 Cylinder Removal
Hi, I have a Vandercook 1 single truss proof press, and the cylinder assembly was taken off for moving. I am wondering how to reattach and time it? Steven
MoreInstalling New Rollers — Clutch Pin Issue
While installing new rollers on the #4, I ran into an issue where the threaded pin (MR-109) won’t pass through the new clutch pin (MR-110) once in the roller. Separately, all the parts fit together just fine. Once on the roller core, the threaded pin will pass through the holes in the clutch block (MR-108), […]
MorePrinting on the front of an envelope
I’m having some trouble printing the front side of a 4bar envelope for wedding invitation reply cards. Even with all the makeready, I still end up with a little impression going through on the backside of the envelope. It’s not that big of a deal, as in the bride never notices, but I do and […]
MoreVandercook SP-20 / SP-25 Inking System Improvement From NA Graphics
New IMPROVED Form Roller Block Kit for the SP-20 / SP-25 inking system. Fritz of NA Graphics has designed and had manufactured NEW SOLID Form Roller Supports and Bearing Block Assemblies for the SP-20 and SP-25 Vandercook’s. On the fourth of July 2019 Dave and Beth Seat installed the first of these NEW inking system […]
MoreSP-15 carriage reassembly problem
Removed carriage to safeguard for moving. Now putting it back onto the bed. Forgot to mark the gear for proper line up, but I’ve done this before a couple of times, resolved that issue by trial and error. The main problem, and I don’t recall how I resolved it in the past: the nylon wheel […]
MoreLooking for a set of gripper bar extensions for a Uni III
Recently acquired a tape tower for my Uni III but didn’t realize my press doesn’t have the little cylindrical gripper bar extensions that thew tape tower bar clicks into. Anyone happen to have a spare set (I know, needle in a haystack but can’t hurt to ask). Photos showing the extensions on one of my […]
MoreBasil Head, 1924 – 2019
Basil Charles Head 23 March 1924 – 25 April 2019 We are greatly saddened to learn of the death of our dear friend and colleague Basil Head, on 25 April 2019. Upon leaving school, Basil worked and trained at a machine tool company that was contracted to manufacture two hundred letterpress proof presses by an […]
MoreReprex No 1, endguides and trip
I recently spent a day at Hazel & Violet in Phoenix but left there with two unfinished tasks: This press is missing its end guides. The channel for the end guides are ⅝” wide × 1 13⁄16” high × ½ deep. Can anyone confirm the specs and share a photo of their end guides? 2. […]
MoreSP-15 Trip issue
A student emailed me last night (I got the email this morning) that one of our SP-15s had stopped working in trip. The cylinder hits part of the trip mechanism and will not move. The cylinder moves fine in print. I cannot see any obstruction. Any help to a diagnosis appreciated.
MoreUniversal 1 automatic return tape replacement
Does anyone have experience replacing the tapes on an automatic return tower? One of ours is a bit frayed. What is a reasonable replacement tape? It looks like pretty standard flat twill tape but I’m no expert on materials like that. Thanks for any advice.
MoreSP20 Pitted Press Bed
Hi! I teach at a university that has a Vandercock SP20. I am looking for advice on how (if anyway possible) to alleviate uneven inking due to small pits in a press bed. We have a thin sheet of metal over the press bed to create the proper printing height, but we are still having […]
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