Skyline Type Foundry

On my way to the Wayzgoose, I stopped by Skyline Type Foundry to visit Sky & Johanna. Wonderful new home, and the print shop is immaculate. The typecasting building is full of the most incredible matrices and machines. I helped box a new border (pinecones & needles), printed sample cards for it, and hung out with Sky. Fun day!

APA Wayzegoose

Sorry, no pics til I get home, but here in Lansing, MI, I'm having a great time hanging with fellow APA members. That's Amalgamated Printers' Association, a group of hobby and other printers.

I'm sometimes not sure how I qualify to hang with such witty and talented folks. It's nice to be able to talk shop, swap stories, and admire other printers' work though. Today we all enjoyed a trip to Owosso Graphic Arts, a company that makes printing plates and commercial dies. Very nice people and an excellent service for printers. They deal with huge businesses and hobby printers alike.

After lunch, we visited a steam train museum whose line has the name of Pere Marquette. What the crossover between letterpress and steam is I can't say, but there is a strong connection. My highlight was riding on a caboose as it was switched from one track to another.

This evening, Joe Warren talked about scoring and die cutting on a platen press. It was a highly useful talk for those of us who have only printed on our presses. Joe showed us examples of scoring matrix, explained the use of a jacket for die cutting, and demystified die cutting with sample dies and their products.

Then Arie Koelwyn gave a talk about using unusual materials to print with. He has used bent rule, children's suncatchers, thin foam cutouts, wood letter cutouts, nature materials, and almost anything flat he can fine, mounted type high, inked, and printed. His printing is always well executed and attractive, so his use of these materials is encouraging.

And that's just the first day of the Wayzegoose. Stay tuned. Tomorrow begins the feeding frenzy: the yard sale in the morning, followed by the auction in the afternoon.

Chase Lifter, Part the Second

Done! And it works. Not bad for a mechanical non-genius. Photo shows the pulley suspended from the "rail rider," with the hooks hanging limply in place. Since I live alone, I don't have a photo of my device in use. Too bad. But here's the photo of the completed device:

To use it: I rest the chase (form) on the left arm of the press, near the counter you can see in the photo. Using one hand to steady it and the other to place the hooks, I engage the hooks under the edge of the chase, in the open areas of the lockup.

To lift the chase, I hold firmly on to the loop (in the photo, it's looped over the counter) with my right hand, and ease the chase into position with my left. Once the chase rests on its ledge, I release the hooks with one hand and engage the chase clamp. (I made the hand loop a more reasonable size after this photo was taken. No danglies.)

The tricky part is when I release the hooks. They want to drop, making the hand loop zoom to the very top of the pulley. With one hand, I have to get one hook end into the hand loop so that the hook ropes form an upside-down Y engaged by the loop. Once the chase clamp is engaged, I can slide the entire lifter assembly back along the rail so it doesn't interfere with the press.

Inspired by Rachel's description of Duane Scott's chase lifter, this is what I came up with. I'm quite happy with it and expect to use it a lot.

Surprise, I'm posting again: Chase Lifter, Partially assembled

On the Letpress List, there has been recent discussion about a helper tool for installing a form into a 10x15 C&P. The form and chase can be very heavy, and installing it to print requires lifting it, leaning forward, and lowering it gently into its bed.

My hands aren't all that strong, and a heavy chase strains the back muscles a bit. What better idea than to install a chase-lifting pulley assembly!

When I went out to survey the territory, I realized I had an advantage: the rail for the rollup garage door runs right over the press. All I needed was some sort of angle iron to rest over the rail, and I could then suspend a pulley and hooks. When I need to open the garage door, the chase lifter can slide back out of the way.

Finding the correct vocabulary for the the hardware store employees was less than easy, but I was lucky enough to be assisted by a couple of young guys who were capable of thinking outside the (tool) box. I had a drawing of what I wanted to do and asked them what parts might function as I desired.

One of them had a brilliant thought: he went into the wood yard and returned with a stud anchor: a piece of strap iron bent into a U with flanges (dare I say "serifs?"). I straightened out the flanges and lo, the sides hang down and the chain links fit into them.

Photo 1 is what I have dubbed the "rail rider," AKA "deck post tie." Attached to it are some links with screw-threaded closures. They meet in a plain ring, and a third screw-threaded closure attaches the pulley to it.

Photo 2 is a view of the rope and hooks. Tomorrow I will cut about 1/4 inch off the end of the hooks to allow the jaws to be large enough to admit the chase. The rope holding the hooks will loop into the pulley rope.

Note: the rope "ferrules" still need to be crushed to hold the ends of the rope from slipping. I will do that in the vice tomorrow.

I don't expect this device to hold the entire weight of the chase/form for long; it is simply a tool which will bear part of the weight of the chase while I jockey it into place. I'm very excited about testing it tomorrow afternoon! Stay tuned: by tomorrow night I hope to have results and a photo of the finished device.

Chasing a Dream, err a. . . Chase

Ever since acquiring my 1886 Golding Official (a tabletop 8 x 12!), I've wanted a second chase. They seem even more rare than Pearl chases by the same maker. So I asked Robert to saw me a chase-size piece of plywood.

A chase needs shaping before it can seat in the bed of a press: there are lugs which hold it in place which require corresponding notches in the chase. There is also a spring-loaded clamp to hold the chase securely. The chase edge must be the correct shape for the clamp.

We accomplished shaping a few days ago. I began by trying to match the original chase's lug bevel on all four corners, with rounded-over edge in the center. But the crude tools we were using (belt sander & rasp) weren't up to detail. We ended up with one whole edge beveled and the other one rounded. That's all it really needs-- roundness to match the chase clamp, and a bevel to fit snugly into the lugs. Below is the result:

Right side bevelled to correspond with the lug bevel; left side rounded for clamp.

Bevel matches lug bevel, but it's not an exact science.

Chase fits exactly, with no side play. Rounded top fits clamp. Success!

Next month I will have a chance to put this chase to the test! Needless to say, it will not carry work which I have to lock up too tightly. I'm thinking it will be the perfect thing to hold cuts or second-color infills for jobs locked up in the original chase. Done- is beautiful!

Another Font ID

Several years ago I bought out a hobby shop which was long disused. It had not been well-kept, and it has taken me this long to begin taking a closer look at what was in the cases.

One case was labeled "Antique Egyptian Shaded," but I looked more closely at it while cleaning up today. Oh my-- it is an old face, and the pinmark tells me it's from Johnson typefoundry in Philadelphia. I'm posting the photo so my listward friends can see it, and determine if the name on the case was correct. I don't have a Johnson specimen book to check it against.

Stay tuned. Under all that dirt, the font is in pretty good shape.

CLICK TO BIGGIFY (and hopefully see the entire font!)


And the rest of THIS story, courtesy of Letpress and Steve Saxe:

Your type is Radiant No. 1, designed by Herman Ihlenburg, patented 18 July 1876 for MacKellar Smiths & Jordan. (I'm happy to say that it's in my new book, Loy's  "Nineteenth-Century American Designers and Engravers of Type".) [ SHAMELESS PLUG: $59.95, Oak Knoll Press, with 800 high-resolution scans of typefaces pictorial borders.]   It's very similar to Condensed Ray Shaded, the Bruce foundry's competing face. . It's not an Antique or Egyptian - no slab serifs, they are bracketed.

After the death of Lawrence Johnson, the new owners, who had been his former employees, continued to call the new company ( MacKellar, Smiths & Jordan) "The Johnson Foundry" out of affection for their former employer. This type was designed well after the new owners were in place, from 1868 on.

Baltimorean: it's a press, not a place

So a couple of years ago I purchased this little press, sight unseen. I trust the friend who had it. But things are busy, and I didn't get around to ordering up new rollers, which it needed. They usually do. A few weeks ago I ordered my rollers, trucks, and cores (the bar the roller is cast on) from Tarheel Roller. They came this week, and I made the decision to print the very last job this press ever printed.

The press is a Baltimorean No. 2, which it proclaims in the platen casting. Proabably made before 1890, it was once highly decorated, with gold pinstriping. The cast scrollwork front and back was gilt, too. What matters is how well it prints, and that is nicely indeed. Some photos will do right here. As always, click to biggify any of them:

Baltimorean inked for printing

 

Baltimorean's last printing job before moving to California

Baltimorean's first job for Three Toad and APA- you can see the

type on the left; the rollers; and the printed card on the platen.

I'm sure you can imagine how pleased I am with this new toy. It is bigger than the little "Chicago" No. 9 I have, and much better made. I suspect that this press will be with me a long, long time. It is the perfect retirement-size press: big enough to print many sorts of things but small enough to move easily to a bookshelf location. I'd have to limit my type selection, but this would be an admirable solution.

I am not planning on downsizing any time soon, though. I just got the Vandercook and haven't had the 10x15 C&P very long. Those are big presses, so I don't plan on moving with them on hand!

Happy November First. Amazing how the year has whizzed by. In case I don't get to it later, I'll wish you a Happy Thanksgiving, too. I am very grateful for a wonderful milestone year.

The Big Vandercook Caper

This just in: A larger Vandercook, swapping out the smaller No. 1 for a No. 3. Today, the second stage of my Vandercook move took place. [For those of you waiting to hear about the Wayzegoose, please forgive the diversion. Tomorrow is another day!]

First stage I did not see: Mark Barbour of the International Printing Museum moved my "new" No. 3 from Orange County to the International Printing Museum in LA County, where I worked at cleaning the "back" side-- which I will never see again, now that the press is against the wall of my composing room (aka shed!).

Second stage was today. Mark loaded up the No. 3 and hit the road for Santa Barbara (about 120 miles from the Museum), arriving at my home about 2:00.

First step of the move was to move the little Vandercook No. 1 proof press out to the driveway. Bye-bye, little Vandy! Mark and the pallet jack rolled little Vandy over 4x8 sheets of 3/4 inch plywood alongside my garage to the asphalt driveway, then down to the trailer.


Then, the big job: jacking up the big No. 3 and rolling it along the same route: down the driveway to the garage, turn left, turn right, and down the plywood road back to the composing room. A bit of an extra push/pull, and No. 3 was inside, where Mark manipulated the pallet jack perfectly and got No. 3 placed. Hello, big Vandercook!

A few more photos are at http://tinyurl.com/yc54kh5. All that's left to do is to clean her "near" side and re-attach the feed board. Then let 'er roll!

Second Book

Book two is "Ocean." It is an accordian book whose covers I have not yet foil stamped. The wavy band holding it closed is cut from book cloth. Only one end of the accordian is anchored; the loose end has a panel to pull out the text.





Pulled out text is two-sided. The first is marbled paper whose edges reminded me of waves breaking; the torn bottom edge represents the meeting of ocean and sand. The second side is my brief handwritten poem about the colors I see in the ocean near home.

Bookaholic

Yep. It's true. There is nothing like a book for me. Technophile that I may be, I can't snuggle up with a kindle and be happy. But give me a cat (or two) and a good book, and I'm a champion napper, err.... reader!

So now you know why this little bookshelf is beginning to fill.

I made all of these miniature books in one weekend- a workshop at the International Printing Museum (Carson, CA) with Peter Thomas of Santa Cruz. Despite my binding & repair of full size books, I took the class with an eye to having some fun, and fun it was indeed. I'll have to do subsequent posts to show them all off. The shorthand version of the weekend was that Peter, who is internationally known as a book artist, papermaker, and binder, is also a teacher extraordinaire. He leads workshops with humor, serious discussions about the future of the book and print, tales of his learning curve, and ukelele serenades. Each of us in the workshop had no trouble keeping up, from the beginner sitting next to me to the experienced printer/binder on my other side. The pacing was great and our output of learning samples impressive.




This one is the travel journal, designed to fit into a shirt pocket as a small souvenir collector- pockets on each page of it, with room to write notes. I think two views of it are enough for the first post. I hope to have time tomorrow to add the other books.

Travel journal open:



I wonder what delights will fill this when I've actually travelled with it!

Printer Jam!

Barely before Christmas, I composed my annual (almost-sent) Christmas letter and sent it to the laser printer. The annoying thing was that the paper took the opportunity to jam. I was just tired enough, and mad enough, and it was late enough, that I walked away and went directly to bed. Knowing how difficult the paper path is to clear, I simply avoided the issue until today.

Since I had something to print out today, and my friends Dave and Angeliq are staying the weekend, Dave said he'd take a look at the printer for me. He's had years of experience in computer lab situations and I knew if anybody could clear the paper path, it would be Dave.

Presto! Dave got the rest of the paper out, but when he tipped the machine to make sure he'd gotten it all, we heard a small clunk on the table. "I think your type is falling out of the printer," quipped Dave, as he retrieved not one, but two sorts of metal type.

Only another letterpress printer would have laughed like Dave and I did.




The type actually fell from a ledge in the outside back of the printer's case, in case you're wondering.

Meowy Christmas

Ok, it's December, and I'll admit to going to the local shelters just in case a nice little red kitty shows up. I wanted to get a boy, so Miss Flora's adjustment would be easier, and a red guy in memory of my dear Goldie of childhood memory.

So dontcha know... none showed up. Well, no: one did, and was taken almost immediately. Good for him- not so great for me. But there was another little red guy whose sister was in sick bay... but no, I was told they must go together, period.

I kept going back, and Friday this little guy flirted outrageously with me. And I knew I had to ask about him. And whaddya know- the vet in charge decided they'd been apart so long already, he could go!

Without further ado, I introduce little Cicero- named after a printers' measure and a fine 19th century typeface. This is his "I am Tiger, see my claws" pose. When not posing for Tiger, he's a sweet purr monster.

Green Socks and Consolidation. Yep.

Redickle, but I'm still going on about the Green Sock. However long that ankle was, it is now vanquished-- I'm halfway through with the heel flap. Whee! Do I know how to have fun or what!

I have an excuse. Many of them, in fact. Back in August I bought out someone's hobby printing studio. I have been moving type cases filled with, what else, type. And cabinets. And all the detritus that comes with a shop of that nature, which means galleys of former jobs (now exhausted, fallen over and begging to be put back in their cases), rusty tools, and at least one mouse-poop filled case of type. About which more later.

But wait. there's more. I also foolishly committed myself to moving my storage. Not too bright an idea, but good will come of it. Good MUST come of it. I have two medium units; I am consolidating into one large unit, which is the equivalent of one and a HALF medium units. I can do this, but it requires me to get strict with myself and actually throw out stuff. And donate stuff. Because I WILL shoehorn into that unit! It will save me $100 a month, so that's good motivation.

So the weatherman almost throws me into a panic Tuesday night. He predicts RAIN by Thursday night or Friday-- and I still have a wooden type cabinet out in my _yard_ ferpetessakes, and some half-sheets of plywood out there, and I really MUST get all that stuff under cover. Assuming, of course, that this weatherman actually is correct. Here in central California, you can't always depend on it to rain when predicted. Usually it doesn't bother.

But... if I didn't get that stuff all in, of course it _would_ rain. So, scrambling around the yard like a madwoman, I managed to get the wooden stuff under cover, the outside sunshades rolled up, tarps on the Print Shop galleys leftover from the move, and other wonders. My hatches are battened. Let it rain! (and I hope it does).

Meanwhile, back in storage, I have moved about half the stuff I need to move. Hopefully I will get a tough high school kid on Saturday to help me with the rest. And I'll gloat right here in public about consolidating, and saving money, and finally finding some of my long-buried costuming supplies.

Hopefully I'll be back to sorting type and actually printing with it within 2 weeks' time. Stay tuned.