help with identifying this

this was found in a old print shop
i have had it about 10 years
i need help what is it. the top and mid
plate are heated it has a 110 volt plug
there are two chases
any help would be appreciated

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Mike,
I would say this is a vulcanizing press for making rubberstamps. Keep the matrix with the rubbersheet on it between the heated plates - press the two levers at the side down to clamp it together and wait till the rubber ist vulcanized.

Regards
Hans

Yep…. Hans is correct. A friend of mine makes rubber stamps and he has one just like it sitting in a corner. I pondered whether or not it could be made into handpress, with inconclusive results.

Winking cat press,
the handpress I don’t know - maybe for blockprinting. What can be done with it is to make a hotfoil/gilding press out of it. A friend of mine has done this with such a press from Lord. Now he makes small runs of book covers on it.

Regards
Hans

Yes to all the above. In the late 1940s I made a similar contraption, but a little taller.
Start with 3 - 3/4” thick aluminum plates approx 9x12. Bore 4 - ¾”inch holes in the corners. Clamp the three plates and drill together. Using ¾” all-thread with nuts and washers assemble the press. The middle plate moves up and down. The middle plate corner holes may need easing with a 25/32” or 13/16” bit for better movement. A small automotive type scissor jack under the middle plate easily controlled pressure. A household iron on the top plate set to hottest/linen was used for making both the rubber stamp impression in the matrix and for vulcanization. If anyone is interested I can provide other details and techniques.
There is no reason why the same machine couldn’t be used for printing, foil or embossing.
Dick

It is a press to make molds, stamps maker. A chase with type is put in the center piece facing up, looked, then a sheet of resin over the forme. The resin is a sort of plastic at touch. I don’t know exactly what it is, we called baquelite; the top piece was then put atop the baquelite and pressed (see the bolts atop). In the bottom there is a resistance that hits up while the pressure on the baquelite forces down by the top piece. As the baquelite hits up, one would tie the bolds forcing the top down and pressing the resin into the form bellow. The operation would take 15 minutes or so to completely produce the mold. Then mold is pressed atop rubber sheet, making the stamp.
This thing is a type killer. The metal warms a great deal. I think that this *maybe can be used with photopolymer plates to produce stamps. Just a matter of experimenting to figure what resin to use to produce the mold.
What years is this, if you know?
Foil and embossing. You could possibly make embossing with this but it would be 4 impressions per hour :) You can experiment and try the embossing, why not. Cheers!