Before I begin, let me say: I do not need a motor and do not anticipate that I will need one anytime soon (or hope that I don’t). I am posting in hopes of inspiring some knowledgeable comments about replacement motors. In recent weeks, Katie Harper successfully replaced Sp15 motor. There was another post by […]
Morelooking for a universal 1 in san francisco (not to buy)
hello! i am visiting san francisco this week, and want to take a gander at a universal 1. i have one in mexico, and it has several very strange quirks that i can’t seem to get figured out. i’m hoping that seeing one in good condition (and meeting with a fellow printer) will help illuminate […]
MoreL.W. Claybourn
Leslie William “Lex” Claybourn (1883–1956) was a printing process pioneer who was issued over 200 U.S. patents. Like Horace Hacker and R.O. Vandercook, Claybourn worked to improve photoengraving and process plates and to reduce makeready. In 1921, he established Claybourn Process Corp. in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which made, among other machines, a multicolor press that printed […]
MoreModerator’s News
I want to share two recent developments in my professional life that may be of interest to Vanderblog readers. First, I’m pleased to share that I have been awarded a short-term fellowship at the Newberry Library in Chicago. I will study its collection of printing trade journals as one of my efforts to expand a […]
MoreUniversal I – Replacement Motor
In response to the recent post regarding an SP- 15 needing a replacement motor, I thought I’d add my experience this week with our Universal I. This press had been hesitating at start-up for some time. On start-up, the drive roller would need a little nudge to get it going. (I believe the capacitor was […]
MoreTympan Sources
I’m looking for a source for tympan to use on my Vandercooks. I don’t mind having to cut it down. Are there any suppliers that still stock or produce .006 oiled tympan like the old Cromwell material? Thanks, Daniel Morris The Arm Letterpress Brooklyn, NY
MoreSP-20 roller height problem
I’m having trouble with inconsistent roller height on my SP-20. I’ve set them to type high using my gauge. When I move the cylinder a few more inches down the bed, the rollers are now above height and no longer contact the gauge. When I roll it back towards the dead bar, the return to […]
MoreVandercook #3 hand inking roller assembly
I recently acquired a # 3, circa 1939, missing the feed roller frame assembly, part M-134. This is the roller to which ink is applied to and then hand cranked to distribute the ink to the vibrator and the form rollers. Has any one come up with a substitute method for inking the #3, or […]
MoreVanderpurge circa 1965
When folks lament that there are no replacement parts for their ancient press, there’s a reason. Fritz Klinke, owner of NA Graphics and the Vandercook archives, sent me this jpeg showing a Vandercook Engineering Change Order for the 325 series. “This particular change order is about nine pages long, and includes other models. I just grabbed that one and […]
MoreSP-15 Cylinder issue
Greetings! This is my first time posting on here. I have small issue with my SP-15, on the return it’s printing on the cylinder on the side that is closest to me (I guess that would be the left side of the cylinder). I know it has something to do with the return because this doesn’t […]
MoreSP-15 Motor Gear Box Issue
One of our SP-15 motors (Vandercook # 22155) quit last week. It has been noisy (our other SP-15 is about as loud as a sewing machine) but lately the noise was worse, and then the motor just stopped, smelling burned. The motor refurbishing place (Evans) tells me that there is a seal in the gear […]
MoreMe and my No. 4
Hi all, Over the past couple years I’ve visited this wonderful resource often and just wanted to go legit and introduce myself here. I found my No. 4 by pure coincidence two years ago deep in the warehouse of a folding carton plant where I worked in suburban Los Angeles. I had been in production, […]
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