I need some feedback please. We use a Reprex II in our studio. During the last class, last 15 minutes the carriage would stop mid travel like it hit a brick. Checked all the usual culprits- something on the gear track, high furniture, bad lock up, etc. Even changed some furniture to make sure none of the form was too high. Could not find the cause. Then I looked inside the carriage and noticed the slotted “holding pin” (photo attached) sticking up high enough to catch the guide bar when the carriage reached one complete turn down the track. I was able to push it down so it cleared the bar and we finished printing. Later I went back and screwed it all the way down. It is part of what I would call a collar or clutch which is supposed to be free moving and part of the guide release mechanism. It did not seem that the main shaft had a groove for it to fit in nor should it be screwed all the way down because the collar could not move. It probably has a spring in it. My question is does any Vandercook have a similar mechanism and what is it function? Thanks.
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What about tightening the hex screws (red ones) at either end of the collar/clutch area?
Thanks Paul. I printed out a few pages from an SP15 manual but it doesn’t really show this screw.
Maysorum, thanks for your response. My press does exactly like you described. Collar moves left and right but also rotates a few degrees around the shaft. Maybe this is normal wear for a 50 year old press. Odd that the screw doesn’t act as a position lock. I suspect there must be a slot(s) on the main shaft that doesn’t show but keep the collar in position. Thanks very much for the response about a non-Vandercook press.
Sorry for the late response… My slotted screw seems to be all the way tightened. The head is just slightly below the surface of the “collar/clutch.” If I look at the other end of the slotted screw it has about 1/16-1/8in space before it protrudes from the “collar/clutch.” I stuck my finger and touched the “collar/clutch” area and it moves ever so slightly. I hope that is helpful.
I’m not sure about this, so I asked other Reprex people to comment. But I can tell you that the cavity of all Vandercook impression cylinders have a reel rod and a means to lift the grippers. SP series presses have a built-in shaft with cams and a spring while earlier models have a short push rod that contacts a trip bar on the bottom of the gripper bar.