Adana Eight-Five: dimensions of roller stocks / shafts

You are correct about no locking runners on you 85 Adana’s, They are larger then the diameter of your rollers. click on my name and get your self some high grade rubber rollers. They are ready to ship.

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I recently purchased a set of rollers and trucks from Caslon LTD, and was very happy with the purchase.

http://www.caslon.co.uk/html/adanar_letterpress.html

The ones I acquired had set screws in the roller trucks (runners), which seem to hold nicely. I would much rather have the roller trucks attached so they don’t roll freely, it reduces the chance that the roller or truck wouldn’t skid across the type or ink plate. In fact I can’t think of any press that I’ve ever operated where a free-wheeling truck would be a good thing. I think manufacturers today just don’t want to make them the way they used to be made, and if your market is convinced then you don’t have that extra little bit of pesky work to do.

The UK is the home of the Adana. Google the “British printing Society” or Google “Caslon.UK” You can easily get lockable trucks/runners. I only locked one side initially at first and then did them all I use a polyeurethane rollers whichare very good which I tracked down this way years ago. Brilliant! Also, Caslon sell a very good rubber set essential for Photopolymer plates with such shallow depth of etch. You REALLY NEED lockable trucks! After that, the Adana is a real pleasure to use. We take ours to markets and fairs, and use Von Son inks as the can be left on the press days and it is working very well. But good rollers are the key, plus leveling the bed/platen of course.

Another good address: ellievans.myshopify.com

@ toddspresstime: after taking the cost of transatlantic shipping into account I doubt that you’d compete with UK roller suppliers, I’m sorry.

@ Devils Tail Press: I was aware of the extent of Caslon’s online catalogue. Being parsimonious and having access to machine toools, I’d prefer to make as many components as I can however.

@ Lasimp: I’ve been a a member of BPS for 18 years and have posted the same enquiry concerning dimensions of roller runners / trucks and roller shafts / stocks on the BPS website. I also posted on the Briarpress forum because I’ve been very impressed by the breadth of technical replies to queries on this forum.

@ thomasgravemaker: I was aware of Ellie Evans, thanks.

So - two votes for lockable roller runners / trucks and one against. Lasimp confirms that the original Adana specification roller runners / trucks are indeed lockable (as I distantly recalled), so I’ll follow the original manufacturers’ design.

Please is anyone able to measure the needed dimensions? Many thanks in anticipation of assistance.

shaft length overall on set 8 x 5 rollers I have =12 and 1/8th inches

plain shafts .31 inch diam no dimples

If you are turning your own roller bearers (trucks) to run on an adana i would advise you make them from a composite plastic or turn down some stinking resalite , the bed bearers on adana presses (platens) are made of monkey metal and brass or steel bearers on the rollers will soon wreck the bearers on the bed .This is the case with the smaller presses although i cant remember what the larger ones are made from .

Robert at The Free Presse and others possibly (UK based) follows:- may be of interest, lived and breathed Monotype since 1954 and still going!! but of late acquired some serious engineering equipment, and cramming in some serious learning, already making parts for obsolete or hard to find press fittings. Already made stocks from scratch, (for recovering) and several bearers from brass, bronze and aluminium, as an experiment made a composite bearer, with aluminium as base, with brass tyre on top which could be treated as replaceable ring, to act as type high plus or minus to suit vagaries of individual machine???When turning stocks from scratch, (and one lathe will accomodate from as little as 3 inches up to and beyond full size Platen roller stock) I invariably use the centre column from ex car MacPherson strut suspension unit. It is beautiful precision material and turns with tipped tools to an excellent finish, including knurling to accept cord wound roller base support. I can incorporate grub screw locating pimples or milled flats , plus turned down exposed ends at any stated length. I am at present (with a little professional guidance) constructing a high speed grinding attachment to mount on my lathe, to facilitate grinding (not turning) nylon bearers, conventional turning does not work. Fibre has been used for bearers in the past as has bakelite, Resalite has a perfect grain and would split on turning or boring. Just dispatched pair of rubber rollers, after machining down in length and turning bearers to instructions, for use on an unspecified machine the rollers appear to have come from a small litho machine and it is at the owners judgement and discretion, but may be a useful adaptation, with the price of rollers in mind. B.P. Will I am sure relay messages if needs be.

@ jonathaneclipse: many thanks for the dimensions! There is one outstanding dimension with regard to the roller runners / trucks: whilst I have their two different diameters (27.5mm / 30.4mm) and (by inference from the roller stock / shaft diameter that you provided) their internal bore, I still lack their width - i.e. the sum of the (two equal) widths of the two slightly different diameter running surfaces.

@Peter Luckhurst: good point! I must admit that I hadn’t recognised this.

@ monotype mick: food for thought - thanks.

got sent home from work today so cannot check until next week, basically everything must fit in between the roller saddles, and the roller big enough to go over the platten and ink the form, but not so big both won’t fit within the saddles if you see what I mean…………roller runners must run on the roller bearers…..http://www.ip.co.za/idyllic/files/Adana%208%20x%205%20Operating%20Instructions%200207.pdf

Hi Robert, just found 2 old shafts and 1 runner for 8x5 if it is any help I can send them to you at your address, look on it as a late Christmas present, just let me know if you want them.
John.

the width of the runner is 18mm, 10mm for the smaller diameter and 8mm for the larger diameter running surfaces.

John.

roller 9”wide, width of roller runner 5/16ths plus 1/2 ” for locking screw

@ jonathaneclipse - thank you very much for checking dimensions.

@ John Sones - thank you very much for checking dimensions; I’ve emailed you concerning your very generous offer.