Gauging Interest
I am not a printer, but my sister and I possess a large quantity of metal type in various wooden drawers and cabinets (still fairly well-organized) as well as a non-working 20th Century Reliance Printing Press manufactured by Paul Shniedewend & Co. in Chicago. It was fully functional in the 1970s and maybe early 1980s, and my parents used it to make various printed items for our community and family, but it has not worked since then.
I am posting to gauge the interest any individual or group may have in purchasing any of these items. Once I gauge interest, if any, I will proceed from there.
Thanks in advance! What an amazing community this is!
HB
Hillary, I think interest will largely be gauged by cost and location. Same with the metal type. Plenty of us keep this art form living, and I know we’d all love to see your equipment put back to it’s intended use.
Personally I’d love to own a hand press like that some day, but cost is the largest issue. They’re amazing pieces of equipment. I’m sure you can find someone interested.
Brent
moving is a huge issue, Time labor distance size. can you add your location some photos to think about size, smaller size photos with simple all letter name will upload easer.
Welcome to Briarpress, Hillary. You came to the right place. This forum is read by thousands of printers and people across the world.
1. I would recommend you follow the advice of toddspresstime and upload some photos. Simple photos facing the press and the type cases are ok, plus any other tools or equipment available.
2. A list of the fonts in the cases helps tremendously for establishing value, if possible.
3. Also include the city, state and country where the press is located. Will you be the point of contact? Will someone else be the point of contact?
4. It also helps to know the location of the press relative to where someone will retrieve it. Is it on the same level as the ground outside? Is there a special consideration such as the press being in a basement? Is it in the second floor of a house?
5. Is there any urgency in getting the press now, such as a lease about to expire or a building to be demolished? All these can help a prospective buyer.
6. Can you share the name of your parents who used it? This is a site with many connections. Very likely, someone on here knows the history of your press through your parents.
7. Bob Oldham created and oversees the Iron Hand Press Registry of North America. He is a living treasure and an invaluable source of information about all things iron hand press. You may wish to reach out to him with questions. He has a profile on this site and has chimed in this thread in the next post after this one.
8. Do you know the production number of your press? Facing the wording on your press (a top piece called the staple), it is a stamped number that appears on the same piece of iron with the words but near the bottom.
The cost of moving such presses is minimal compared to their longterm value in a printer who wishes to own one. Two people may easily handle the job.
The 20th Century Reliance is a known press. In the U.S., iron hand presses may be disassembled, strapped to pallets and hauled across the country in a rental trailer.
Properly placed over the axles, the driver won’t even feel the weight at the steering wheel.
This press should be recorded in the Worldwide Hand Press Database. Can you contact me with information about the press, the deceased owner, and where the press is, so I can check the Database (I have nothing recorded under the name Bishop). A photo of the entire press as seen from the front would make possible an assessment of condition and workability. There are a couple of hand press printer email groups and also Facebook groups where there might be interest. The press’s value is mostly a function of condition as they are not very rare. They are excellent for printing large engraved, woodcut or linocut, images.
Bob
Thanks for the welcome, info, suggestions, and replies. I’m testing uploading photos. I think I need to make them smaller. I have a bunch from last summer that were taken in a hurry.
Note that for Briar Press, photos need to be relatively small size files, with simple names that do mot use any special characters but that can identify the photos individually. Usually the site will resize them if they are not too big, but the file name has to conform: Cabinet1.jpg for example.
Bob
Accidental duplicate
Thanks for the info. I am indeed having difficulty uploading the photos I currently have, so it may have to wait until I am there (after June 20th) so I can take new photos.
The type and press are located in Rockland County, New York.
I have posted an ad regarding the metal type, reliance press, one other press, and type cabinets I have for sale, and I am waiting for the ad to publish! These items are for sale in Rockland County, NY, and will only be for sale for a limited time. Thanks so much!