HELP! I think I made a horrible mistake!!
Hello all; I believe I may have made an unlucky purchase. I purchased a Kelsey 6 x 10 about one month ago. I just finished removing rust, etc. while reassembling, I noticed that the platen is completely misaligned and does not make intact with the chase. Is there any way to repair this? My son is a welder by trade and he tells me it can be repaired. My fear is that I have wasted $600! So angry at myself!! Enclosed is a pic so that everyone has an idea what I am dealing with. Any suggestions? Thank you so much. Sigh!
image.jpg
It might be fine…
The platen shouldn’t actually contact the chase. The packing and tympan layered on the platen contact the forme (type, furniture, cuts or base and plate), which gets locked in the chase.
If the picture were a bit wider view, we could see if the proper adjusting hardware is in place; that being the means to orient the platen the proper distance from the forme.
Chime back with a wider picture if possible, and google the term “type high” for insight into the distance the platen needs to be.
Lorrie,
Relax.
Don’t beat yourself up. Enjoy Christmas.
Can’t tell much from your photo. The platen and chase are not intended to contact. The empty chase is about .625” high. With a printing form in the chase, the form is .918”. Lots of difference. That plus there will be an additional thickness of packing on the platen.
Unless something has been broken, there should be no need to weld. If it ain’t broke ……..
Learn how the platen may be adjusted. Better, find someone near who knows how to do it.
Relax. Breathe deeply. Enjoy Christmas. After Christmas
Get some ink on your shirt
Thanks everyone. I will adjust and re-post tomorrow.
I still have some concerns because my son is certain that
The press may have been dropped or mishandled at one time or another. If he were with me that day, I may have passed on the deal. I already own a 5x8 and it works beautifully. It’s now with my daughter in Toronto do I could not remember if both platen and chase made contact. Thanks again and we will speak soon!
They almost certainly did not make contact.
The platen actually shouldn’t contact anything but the type or form you are trying to pull impressions from. It shouldn’t thouch the rails, the chase, or a base if you’re using one. It should only contact things that are type high.
(Just to be clear: Even then, the platen without anything dressing it- no packing, no topsheet- shouldn’t actually touch your type. It should be adjusted level so it is a certain distance away from the type to allow for both paper AND packing to be attached. Say, .050” for instance, or .065” if you wanna print heavy-weight things.)
If it was dropped, it would be broken. Cast iron doesn’t bend.
I’ll chime in with the others — the platen shouldn’t contact the chase.
Thank you all for your expertise! I had taken one weekend workshop and fell in love with letterpress. And, as you are all aware I am no expert. The Kelsey 5x8 that I had purchased from a member of Briar is a gem and worked so well. The second which is the Kelsey 6x10 I am discussing here, I purchased from an antique dealer in Ontario. The press was in a dark room and while I tested various aspects of it, I could not see it’s many flaws (nor was I fully aware what to look for). It indeed is showing areas of repair such as various welds and bric-a-brack strapping. I am learning that is for sure. But in future, I will be dealing with all of the wonderful individuals here and not from someone who has no knowledge of various letterpress machines and their schematics. So over the holidays I will be getting a little bit ‘inky’ and will keep everyone posted on the progress. I believe because I had to restore it (the rust was just caked on) I began to panick a little bit and thought I was out of my league! More confident today though…Happy Holidays everyone and Thank you. :-)