Getting close to having too many home made printing press's.

So my friends Cara and Ben are out antiquing this morning while I'm freezing my butt off working in the garage working on my cheap and dirty gravity printing press.

They send me a photo of an old large box camera vertical adjuster and ask me if this would work as a printing press. $43.00 bucks! Dang right it will and the traveling bed is 12" x 28". Sweet! Now I just have to rig up an adjustable top roller to apply pressure and then turn the crank!

I will continue to work on my cheap and dirty gravity printing press's since its designed to print plates just under 2 x 4 FEET.

In the mean time I will work on both types of presses. 

Above is what they saw at the antique store this morning.

Here I took off all the bits that I didn't need

Here you can see the bed that moves back and forth when you turn the crank. Super!

Now I just have to add a top roller to apply pressure like from this picture and I have a printing press.

Well I had to give up on this one and toss the block.

Well I had to toss this woodblock print. After washing off the ink and rinsing it off with soap and water too many times..... the MDF fibers swelled up and filled all the cut lines and the last proof was all fuzzy.

Guess that I will have to figure out how to seal the MDF in between proofs or get the print done in one state.

Back to the drawing board for another subject!

Way to fuzzy!! Scratched the plate with a chisel. Done and done.

For all my Geek Friends! Here is a short version of the computer build.

Here is the case with the old mother board etc. on the wood block carving table.

Here is the cover off to show whats in side. A rats nest of cables and junk.

Lay it on its side and start to take all the old stuff out.

I number my Sata cables since they have to go back into the new mother board in the same way as the old. Keeps me sane and reminds me of changing the spark plugs and wires on my Mustang.

I then use the manual for the new mother board to number the Sata connectors so I can keep track of them.

 Time to put the new AMD A10 CPU and heat sink into the new mother board.

Then I add the memory while the motherboard is not in the case and use the anti-static bag to not punch holes in my fingers from the thru hole parts with sharp bits sticking out of the bottom.

All the good stuff is in and almost ready to put in the old case.

Pop out the old back panel filler and put in the new one for the new motherboard.

After that I put the new motherboard into the case and since it is smaller than the old one I will have to move around the screw standoffs that are used to secure the motherboard into the computer case.

Here is what the case looks like with no motherboard.

I use a pencil in the holes in the motherboard so that I can then put the standoffs in the right place. Quick cheap trick.

Here is one of the standoff that have to be moved.

 Now that the motherboard is all in and screwed down. We get to attach and tuck away all those ugly cables.

Cables all connected and tucked away from fans etc., funny that this mother board uses less cables than the last one.

 Now to re-install Windows 7 and then restore from my backup disk and off we go!!

Heads up! Computer going down for mother board upgrade today.

Well its time for a new motherboard. The old dual core CPU would not take Windows 7, Photoshop, Chrome browser and iTunes running all at once. Memory is maxed out most of the day and it takes too long to do anything.

So here is what is going in the computer case!

This should help things out!!

First state of MiG 15 - 17 x 13 inches.

Got to love the old jets too! 

The Russian MiG-15 was one of the first successful swept-wing jet fighters, and it achieved fame in the skies over Korea, where early in the war, it outclassed all straight-winged enemy fighters in most applications. The MiG-15 is believed to have been the most widely produced jet aircraft ever made, with over 12,000 built. The MiG-15 is often mentioned along with the North American F-86 Sabre as among the best fighter aircraft of the Korean War and in comparisons with fighters of other eras.

First state of MiG 15 - 17 x 13 inches.

Polikarpov I-16 is done!

Well here is the third and final state of the Polikarpov I-16 woodblock print.

Polikarpov I-16 - Woodblock print - 18 x 10 inches

New work and images. USS Politics, aground

Well I've been working hard and have some images to share.

I should not read the paper and watch news but it does have an effect on what I create.

First State of - USS Politics, aground - 20 x 12 inches 

I will post the rest of my proofs later.

Looking for a simple and cheap Proof Press!

OK! Here is a call out for anyone that can help me out.

This is a strange question but... I'm looking for a Morgan Co Line-O-Scribe sign printing press. Or a low cost Proofing press. Looking to spend $200 to $300.

I need one to do my woodblock prints. An etching press would be nice but they are often to big, heavy and very expensive.

A lot of grocery stores used Line-O-Scribes to print their own signage. I found one in Alabama but .... shipping will cost more than the printing press. ($200.00 for the press, set up and letters)

Any help would be appreciated. (Yes I've checked Craigs list, EBay etc..)

BTW there is one for sale on EBay but they want over $3 grand for it. Crazy, it's been for sale for over 6 months for a reason. :-)

I'm located in Rochester New York and since proof presses are rather heavy I would have to drive out and pick it up if anyone can help me find one. Shipping would cost more than the press! So NY, NJ, PA, OH would be OK if its within a days drive from here.

Thanks!

Here is a pic of what a Line-O-Scribe it looks like.