10 x 15 Windmill Lay Guide Uses
I have a question about the “lay guides” usages on the Heidelberg windmill.
I know there are “Brass”, “Nickel” guides.
My main question is how and which guide do I use to score or perforate to the edge of the sheet. I need to have HAIRLINE register for this speial project coming up this month.
Also for scoring should I use a die jacket to hold my matrix or just mount the matrix directly to the platen?
Thank You all for your expert information.
Hi, jfitz—
If your score is running vertically in the chase and must bleed on the sheet, use the nickel guides. This will get you a score to the edge of the sheet, or close enough. (If your score is running horizontally in the chase, you will always have an unscored gripper margin of about 1/4”.) The press can be made to register on nickel guides, although some pressmen are reluctant to use them, and run such jobs “open” without exact register.
I would attach the matrix to either the die-cutting jacket or to an old packing, but not to the bare platen.
Since the nickel guides lay the sheet higher on the platen than the brass guides, the feeder side-standard should be moved in, using the gauge at its base for position.
It is important to keep the sheet from sliding under the nickel guides and misregistering. If you are scoring on packing, cut some little v’s in the tympan with your makeready knife above the guides in their raised position and bend the paper out a little to hold the edge of the sheet away from the platen. If you are scoring on a metal jacket, contrive little “ears” of paper and tape them down to the jacket above the guides in their raised position. Be sure that the arm does not lift the tape in feeding.
You may find among the attachments for this press a little “tongue” of chromed metal, bent into a checkmark shape
that slides onto a rail in the throat of the press. If placed next to the tail guide, it may help keep the sheet on the guides. I think I’ve used it only once or twice in my career, preferring the methods described above.
Good luck! Brian
A couple more thoughts—
Raise the guides and check to make sure the nickel guides come up over the edge of the die-cutting jacket and are not stopping short against the bottom edge of the jacket. If they are, you can try less packing, or filing the back edge of the guides slightly, or moving the bar that holds the guides outwards a bit, if you can figure out how to do that. Or try it on packing to see if it clears.
And slide the guides along the bar in its raised position to see that the back guide is not catching against the ear of the jacket that crimps against the underside of the platen.
Sometimes I’ve cut scoring or perfing rule at a slight angle so that the bottom edge comes below the bottom of the chase. Don’t do this if the rule hits the guides.
Mostly I use .900” scoring rule and .918” perf rule.
Brian
I’ve cut a little part of the scoring rule away so that it actuallly extends past the bottom of the chase. But I always have to make sure the guides are not in the same place as the rule. I hope this makes sense but it has worked quite well. It totally eliminates any need to cut the stock larger and the score goes all the way across the sheet. This is only for vertical work. RREEBB