I am pleased to announce a letterpress intensive to be held over President’s Day weekend in February in Denver, Colorado for instruction in either the Heidelberg Platen or Vandercook presses. The Vandercook portion on Saturday and Sunday, February 16 and 17, will be conducted by Paul Moxon. Paul teaches both maintenance and printing classes throughout […]
MoreVandercook 4 repairing clutch plate
A prelude leading up to a repair question- I am restoring a Vandercook 4, serial # 10877, that I’ve had for a few years now. I’ve been mostly removing accumulated layers of ink, grease/dust and mild rust, and lubricating moving parts. With a couple of exceptions nearly everything appears in order. One of the first […]
MoreMoving a Vandercook 3
I’m planning to move during the next year and I’m concerned about getting the right people to move my Vandercook 3 (serial no. 99-10800). I want to be well prepared in advance. The press is in the basement of my home and was moved there in parts (cabinet, bed, and cylinder carriage). I assembled it […]
MoreWorm Gear Fixed!
A few weeks back, I wrote about a worm gear with a blunted point that was causing my oscillating roller to stop during it’s run back and forth. I tried filing the point down myself, and while I was able to get it smooth, I was not able to make a nice, sharp point. Last […]
MoreVandercook inking system diagram
I have just done a very quick drawing of the inking system for my Vandercook 215/4. This is for my upcoming book, “Print It Yourself” which is to be published late next year by F&W Publications. The diagram is a very simplified attempt to visually explain (along with a verbal explanation) how the ink gets […]
MoreInk drum side play
Do any of you #4 Vandercook owners have any side play on your ink drum? That is, when wiping from side to side, does the drum move a little, or not at all?
MorePotter Proof Press for sale (NYC area)
A friend of mine in Union City, NJ has a really nice Potter proof press for sale. This press would need to be inked with a brayer so it would be most suited for block printing, proofing engravings, monoprinting or printing wood type posters. Asking price is $750. For what Kelseys are going for on […]
MoreVandercook (or similar) in Europe
I am searching for information on where to purchase Vandercook proof presses in Europe (SP (N°4))? (I also checked the other Brands section of the site… Are there comparable european brands of flat bed cylinder proof presses you would recommand?) Thanks in advance! Greatings from Luxembourg
MoreTaking off a Universal III motor
I need to remove the motor that drives the cylinder on a Vandercook Universal III. I need to have the motor rebuilt. I worked on it a bit today and simply could not figure out how to get it off nor could I figure out how much of I should take to the motor place […]
MoreDamaged Worm gear on 4/215
The oscillating roller is hanging up at one point in its travels. Fritz wrote that this is probably due to damage somewhere on the worm gear, the center shaft of the oscillating roller. He was right; one of the points on the worm gear was chipped, and that is where the crescent rider is hanging […]
Moreuniversal I adjustable bed teardown
wanted to point you all to some pictures I took while removing, cleaning, and re-assembling the adjustable bed of my press.click here
MoreVandercook 4 cylinder carriage problem
I’ve been working on and off for several months cleaning a Vandercook 4 that I purchased this summer. The press had been unused and in an Iowa garage for 5 years. My problem: the cylinder carriage moves easily down the track in trip mode, but gets very tight in print mode once the cylinder trip […]
More