Do you consider a C&P 10x15 with treadle a short run press?
Just wondering because I have spent a lot of time lately reading through posts here on the forum (both new and old) and I see some people refer to a C&P 10x15 as a longer run press, and others say it’s a good short run press. Maybe it’s the treadle that makes the difference in being short vs long, and a motor turns it into a better long run press?
What are the general thoughts on this? Or is it a “depends on who you ask” question?
it depends on the person and the work you plan on doing. I have done mostly commercial work, if I’m only running under 500 copies I like to hand feed it, I also hand feed any work that will give me a headache on the automatic presses. I don’t like to treadle anything bigger than an 8x12, my 10x15 has a motor and I can hand feed it at about 1200 copies an hour, my bigger hand fed press runs at 800 an hour, the windmills will run from 1500 up to about 2500 an hour, and the press does all the work, I have a large job (for me) that I run on a kluge every year, it runs about 1800 an hour, the job is 220,000 sheets and takes a long time to run. The automatic presses will run faster, especially the windmills but as they (and I) age I find that pushing them too hard causes more problems than its worth. Hope this helps, Dick G.
any hand fed press, IMO, is considered a short run press… operator fatigue is the most dangerous situation… long runs, 5,000 or more, deserve an auto feed press. The big plus with auto feeding is the ability to run multiple presses..
I think it depends on the press. A treadle 10x15? Sure, that’s short run to me.
A motorized Model N 10x15 with a fountain and a rider roller?
That’s a long run press, even hand fed. It’s just not as fast or efficient as the auto, but it can get the job done.
What is considered a short run today, and what was considered a short run when the press was made are different things. It was normal back then for teen apprentices to treadle away on long runs, quite illegal today. And treadling was probably a better way for the apprentice to get the feel of the process than starting on a press with overhead belt drive or motor.
Contemporary letterpress instruction has been constricted by fear of motors, injuries and lawsuits. The fact that so many learn on proof presses and tabletop platens now, really distorts the conception of what was not just normal in the trade but what is even possible.
Add that they didn’t even have an eight-hour day then… .