Help! How do I move a 10x15 C&P?
Hi all,
I have no experience with moving any presses except for my C&P Pilot that I just picked up locally with my sedan. I don’t have a truck, so I’m thinking of hiring a freight company to move it for me. It’s already on a skid, not a pallet. But it’s not strapped down or anything.
Is a freight company the best way to go about this? Or are there specific movers you would recommend for transporting presses across states? Should I Craigslist and try to find someone willing to move it?
How have some of you guys moved your press? Open to any and all suggestions/advice! Thank you in advance :)
How far are you moving it? Across town, you should palletize it and call a tilt-bed wrecker. Moving cross country requires palletizing it and a competent moving company. The common theme here is palletizing it.
Here’s the Internet Archive version of Alan Runfeldt’s page on moving C&P platens. There is a lot of useful info and photos.
https://web.archive.org/web/20220309183252/http://excelsiorpress.org/ref...
James
Old Town Press
Yup Alan’s descriptions are spot on. Two additions of my own: If you have problems going up the ramp of a low trailer, either use a come-along to pull it into the trailer (attach it both high and low; presses are top heavy) or use a couple of floor jacks to lift the ramp up into a horizontal position when the press is half-way up the ramp, then just push it into place. If you’re concerned about the weight use blocks to help support the ramp. A 10x15 is about 1650 lbs.
Where are you located?
I have moved close to Dozen presses over the last 15 years.
Fabricated HD platforms out of 4x6 skids and 2x10 cross boards with places to lag bolt down the feet if they have holes. Or add d rings on corners and put straps on all 4 corners.
With good pallet jack and 20’ tilt trailer with winch makes short work on moving.
Sorry everyone! I thought I would get email notifications for replies on my post, so I didn’t check this thread until right now :(
@ Bill and Marshall: I’m moving it from Portland, OR —> Los Angeles, CA! I ended up going with a freight company to transport it for me. The press is already on a skid and is securely attached to it.
@ James and Arie: thank you so much for the info! …I’m only slightly worried because I will be using a liftgate on the truck… but hopefully it’ll withstand the weight
Two recommendations about moving a 10x15 C&P on a truck with a liftgate: First, I would remove the rollers, the inking disc, and anything related to the inking fountain to make the top lighter and the entire press lighter as well. These pieces can either get damaged if left in place, or they can get on the way while moving the press. Then tie up the plates and the flywheel so they don’t move/rotate.
And finally, make sure that the liftgate can handle more than what the press weight is. And also, when the press is on the liftgate, make sure the liftgate doesn’t jerk while you are elevating the press as it may topple down with the jerking movement. Lifting it up should be a smooth, straight shot from the bottom-up as well as from the top-down when you arrive at the destination.
Some of you may know Raleigh D’Adamo of the Cedar Cliff Press in Pleasantville, NY. He has been a member of the APA for many years. Sadly, he has chosen to close down his amazingly full shop. He has donated a large portion of his enormous collection to The Museum of Printing in Haverhill, MA.
We recently moved out the last three of 10 presses. Here is a link to a video of the removal of his 10 x 15 C&P.
https://www.southpawprinters.com/southpaw-galleries
If you’d like to see more photos and video contact me at
[email protected]
Also, look at the thread “Recommend freight shipping”.