Built in 1921, our press is fully manual. By turning the large “flywheel” you move a series of gears that causes rollers to move over an ink-covered “platen” (thus getting themselves good and covered with ink before pressing a plate covered with type against a piece of paper, thus making an impression). The thing is set up such that moving the wheel in one direction repeatedly causes an endless string of this very same action, inking and pressing, inking and pressing.

Now, since we aim to print hundreds of copies of any given job (and given that our arms, though powerful, are the arms of mere mortals) we have decided to do what many printers do, which is hook up our press to a motor that will turn the wheel for us.

Here is the motor. Like the press, it is old, black, and greasy. And awesome.

Being unproficient in the nuances of electric wiring, we asked our friend Calvin to come by and have a look.

He wasted no time in coming up with a plan.

In addition to hooking up our motor to a wire that we can plug into the wall, Calvin installed a cutoff switch that can be reached at a moment’s notice while printing.

These machines are safe if used properly, but can be dangerous if one is not paying attention. In any case, we need a way to shut it off quickly if need be.

And so Calvin hooked us up.

Literally. 

In addition to being an old-school electrician who takes his time and does things the right way, Calvin is an old friend. If you need work done, we can’t recommend him highly enough. Write me if you’d like his number.

So now we have a plug.

And a switch.

All we need now is a belt to attach the motor to the flywheel. We have one on order from John Deere.

Fingers crossed that it’s the right size.