Kluge rider roller

Good morning, I’ve been having a problem with ghost images from time to time and I’ve recently read about the “rider roller” and I now see and understand what the spring loaded “finger grabs” are on the roller saddles. These are the saddles for the rider rollers. Learn something knew every day.
So I’d like to get one or two, but so far they don’t seem to be available anymore. If someone has and uses these rollers I would greatly appreciate it if you could post some photos of the roller itself and also installed on the press so I could see what they look like. Also if you could post some measurements of the rider roller I could have something to give to a machinist to make if it comes to that. I’m curious to know if they spin in a bearing or just insert into the saddle without one and require plenty of oil.
Thank you
Bruce

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Bruce, Buddy few little suggestions for starters, not facts just from the memory banks and precursors to other info. The following as applied to British Thompson platen, but assuming that Kluge Rider roller is in essence similar to Thompson! as the Thompson only had 2 form rollers they were equipped with steel rider roller at about 20% of the circumference of the composite rollers, the rider was carried by 2 auxiliary lightly sprung arms that allowed the rider to find its own level between the form rollers. It definately improved the ink distribution, Bearings were not an option, as the rider was in most part, carried by the form rollers. In Thompson guise the steel rider did have a little reciprocater built in.?? Could your “ghost Images” be in actual fact repeat marks from slipping rollers. Thompson,s incorporated chain assisted rollers to stop slip but still had to incorporate riders for more inking power. Oiling, probably only the same amount and frequency as you would to the saddles and spindles of your form rollers, maybe the tiniest dab of copperslip grease, or your equivelant under the little carrier hooks, it will hang in longer than machine oil, especially when you hit 5,000 I.P.H. for 7 hours on the trot??? P.M.A.Good luck.

Hey thanks Mick for your comment.
I don’t think the ghost is from slippage because I can see the image from the top of the plate ghosted on the bottom of the image on the paper where there’s not enough ink left on the roller to cover. So I really want to try the rider roller. I can imagine how that would be the fix for this problem. The 12x18 kluge model N’s that we have do have the spring loaded saddle /housing that the rider roller would slip into. I just have never seen them before and if I have to have them made I would like to have mine made to the same specs as the originals were.
Thanks again

Bruce, sorry re my humble efforts, only for starters, I am sure that you will soon get more good info locally! but I might suggest that the rider would only have to be manufactured from good quality machineable steel tube with spiggot ends to fit your hooks, not too difficult for a profficient machinist/engineer. Tube as opposed to rod, less turning to waste, and probably a lot less to buy/acquire, the stock. I feel sure that there must be available to you locally or on line, archive facilities for checking out etc, but if all else fails I have a small archive of machine details mostly line drawings without technical spec, but can have access to good archives (with permission and photo copier) unfortunately not catalogued or in numerical order, but IF all else fails I could trawl through and possibly find technical specs. Regards Mick

Bruce,

You are correct, rider rollers for Kluges are nearly impossible to find. Sometimes people get lucky and the press will come with them or they know what to look for in the corners of the shop they are buying things from.

I have a few for our 10 X15 press.

See photos attached.

Tube with brass collar inserts (with a stop tab) on each end that hold the center rod which has a worm gear on one end. Notice the stop pins on each end that work in conjunction with the tab/ear on the collar . tube is approx. 25.5 mm in diameter.

It has a spline type gear as well that fits in the full circle saddle on the motor side of the press which prevents the rod prevents the from turning. The tube rotates via friction against the form rollers similar to the way a Tiegel rider works. rod is approx. 11 mm in diameter.

The rest of the dimensions you can get from your press.

Probably a little more complex of a part than you had guessed due to the oscillation action created by the worm gear. ;)

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Hello,
A set of riders as supplied by Kluge with a new press consisted of 3 riders. Two for the form rollers did oscillate, they had the worm gear as in the photos above. A set would oscillate in oposing directions.
The third rider did not oscillate, it was for the distributator (fountain to ink disc) rollers. This roller would provide good bemnefit for the problem you describe and much easier to make, no worm gear, just a roller free to rotate on a steel shaft.
As stated above these rollers are often lost in the shuffle and very hard to find now days.
Good luck.
James ‘Mac’ McGraw

Bruce:

There is a guy in Winchester, VA who may very well have a couple of Kluge 12” x 18” rider rollers he’d sell—-saw a couple of sets, I think, in his shop about a year ago. I can give you a name and number if you’d like.

Don Black may be a source as well.

Dave Lasko
Stephens City, VA

Thank you rontxhou so much for posting these pictures. That’s awesome. Now I can see what I need. I’m thinking I could make these myself without the worm gear if I can find bearings to match steel rods and tubes. That may be enough to keep ink on the rollers on the bigger images. I will proceed with an experiment and let you know.
Bruce

Question: Does anyone know if C&P Craftsman 10x15’s rider rollers also come with worm gear?