hello everyone, i have a 215 ready to print – soon as i figure out how to adjust the height of these rollers. i don’t have a manual, any other press i’d used have knobs at the ends of the rollers but this model doesn’t have anything so obvious. looks like maybe a hex key […]
MoreRocker Weekend
Here are some photos from my December visit to the Museum of Printing History in Houston, where I spoke about the Vandercook centenary and consulted on their recently acquired circa 1909 Vandercook Trip Action Proof Press, commonly known as a “rocker.” It had belonged to a company in Cincinnati whose owner said that his grandfather […]
MoreCentenary bundle
I’ve just put my contribution on flickr and thought it would be great if others could upload theirs to show the great un-washed masses what a super project it was…
MoreVandercook 219 Power Grinding
Hello! I have two pictures (pictures below) of a piece that is grinding on my vandercook 219. There are fine metal shavings under the press after about an hour of running. I see no way of adjusting this to lift it up. Any suggestions? Pictures: Nick
MoreUni III Power motor query
Dear Vandekin I am in Memphis cleaning & repairing two Vandercooks, a 4 and a Uni III. The operator of the III tells me the motor jumps (or rather jolts) itself randomly during a press run and there appears to be a little bit of slack in the chain. I tested it out and sure […]
MoreA Question about Cylinder Rack Shims
I’m having some issues with low ink distribution in the first inch or so of my form. I noticed that the area coincides with the first few inches of the cylinder rack which is separate from the rest of the rack and slightly raised with some plastic shims. Does anyone know the reason for that […]
MoreBalancing the Cylinder on an SP-20
Is anyone familiar with balancing the cylinder on an SP-20? Our 20 never seems to print well and we’ve balanced the base & made sure the rollers are seated properly to no avail. I’ve asked around locally & balancing the cylinder came up. Any instruction would be greatly appreciated–a step-by-step breakdown would be even more so. […]
MorePlease excuse the mess
This site is in redesign. The blog and the older static (html) pages have merged. This will make images and data tables load faster and give you the ability to search key words, categories, and meta tags on all pages. The page hierarchy has been reorganized, some have become sub pages while others are now […]
MoreRemove Vandercook 4 Motor
I recently bought a Vandercook 4 with an engine that doesn’t run. I plan to bring it to a local motor shop for repair early in the new year. Does anyone have any tips for successfully removing the motor and / or any essential information that should be passed on to the mechanic? Thanks, Kyle […]
Morewobbly ink drum–sp15
Hello all, My Sp15 has been put through her paces in the last two days, and tonight during cleanup I noticed that the ink drum is wobbling…or more precisely, the three screws that hold the pulley gear to the ink drum are wonky. The head to one screw is sheared off (and thus the source […]
MorePaper Towers
I scanned the assembly print for the Universal IV paper tower the other day for a customer and thought it may be of some interest. Though for the IV, it applies to the other Universals except for such things as tube length, shaft length, and the main spring (same in III and IV). These assembly […]
MoreMoving my Sp20
I need to move my SP20 to a different location in my building…(rented out my current space and moving to cheaper area) I have to remove the handle to get it out and in the doors. IS there anything special I need to be aware of in this situation–I am mechanically incapable but surrounded by […]
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