Press Furniture
Karren Bangura
Traditionally, a linen-press (or just press) is a cabinet, usually of woods such as oak, walnut, or mahogany, and designed for storing sheets, table-napkins, clothing, and other textiles. Such linen-presses were made chiefly in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries and are now considered decorative examples of antique furniture.[1] Early versions were often simple, with some exhibiting carving characteristic of Jacobean designs.[1] Examples made during the 18th and 19th centuries often featured expensive veneers and intricate inlays and were designed to occupy prominent places in early bedrooms as storage closets for clothing.
This handy set of 44 pieces of wood furniture plus 2 acrylic rings can be used to set type in curves or angles, ready for letterpress printing on cylinder or platen presses. Furniture is precisely laser cut from 5/8" thick popular, sanded by hand, and easily stored. Pieces measure in pica increments, making lock up quick and easy. The acrylic rings (3 and 2.25 inches) nest together to snugly fit 18 point type or ornaments, and with brasses and coppers the composition is stable and sturdy. Daredevil Furniture mixes easily with your existing furniture and quads, allowing you to save the cost of photopolymer plates and use the type you have for real daredevil printing.
My wife has been looking for something that is solid, easy on the eyes, multi function ironing station that she can also store related items for all of her ironing needs. She has found it in the model Press and Store 5619. While some assembly is required, the precision drilled holes and the ease of use putting together made it a simple job for me. A very nice piece of furniture!
This is my second piece of Eddycrest sewing furniture, my first being the 6540XL sewing table with power lift, left extension and additional back shelf customisation. Silvia was very helpful in helping me design the sewing table that best met my needs. I was so happy with the sewing table that I ordered the pressing station the following week. This furniture is solidly built and tooled with precision. No messing around trying to get the hardware to work or the pieces to fit together. I assembled both the sewing table and pressing station on my own. Wouldn't call it easy, but definitely achievable and even more so given the excellent instructions and well tooled components that were precision drilled. What a pleasure it was to deal with John about a few items that had been damaged during packing or transport. Although pieces were still usable, John shipped out replacements immediately. I look forward to purchasing a cutting table when I retire and my work desk is moved out of my sewing space. Can't say enough great things about this company and the products they make. Thanks for making my sewing days a pleasure Eddycrest.
The Press and Store is my third piece of Eddycrest sewing furniture. The quality of these pieces is unparalled! Perfectly finished, solid and well built! The items came securely packed with free shipping.
John Kassay taught industrial arts in junior and senior high schools and, for over thirty years, at San Francisco State University, where he is professor emeritus in the Department of Design and Industry. He is an accomplished draftsman, furniture maker, and photographer
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Press passes are available to editors, writers, reporters, bloggers, and broadcasters who are covering the High Point Market from an editorial perspective. Approval of a new press pass requires documentation, such as a masthead identifying you as a member of the editorial team or a letter from the editor confirming your assignment or editorial position.
Onsite during Market, press passes can be requested with a business card, photo ID, and documentation in our media center, MediaLink, on the second floor of the High Point Theatre in the Transportation Terminal.
High Point Market is open to the trade only. Individual exhibitors determine access to their showroom. Children under 15 years old are not allowed at High Point Market. Service dogs are the only animals permitted. No photography unless permission is granted by building or exhibitor.
On the nineteenth century platen press, this function was filled at first by bent pins inserted into the tympan, or quads pasted on the tympan, to which the sheet of paper was fed. Soon more elaborate devices were made, culminating with several varieties of gauges that clamped to the tympan paper, made by the Edward L. Megill Co. of New York (and later Brooklyn). These patented gauge pins were in general use over 100 years ago. Today they are still made and sold; the gauges have not changed over the years. Megill pins include a sharp end that punctures your tympan, and a brass tongue and square end which holds the sheet. These come in a variety of specific styles but are all essentially the same. Higher-quality guides lock into the press on both ends with a lever system and are called Quad Guides (and are sold under the brand name Kort Adjustable Quad Guides).
Take care when aligning your guides: a misplaced guide will easily crush type, a polymer plate, or damage a base. This usually breaks the pin or guide too. An alternative guide can be made using paper, cardboard, or sticky foam.
Furniture is the wooden (or occasionally metal or resin-composite) blocks that surround your form or plate base to hold it in place. Furniture is absolutely necessary for every letterpress shop, and the more complete your set, the more versatile you will be.
Furniture is commonly stored in a wedge-shaped cabinet, housing 5 or 6 pieces per size, short at the top, long at the bottom, and narrow on the left to wide on the right. Since the width and height are nearly the same, 4 pica wide furniture will usually have a groove cut down the top side signifying which side faces up. Furniture is cut to exact measurements, and should all match perfectly. Old or neglected furniture may not lock up evenly or solidly.
The architectural word quoin, denoting an angular stone or wedge-shaped block, entered the language as a printing term in 1570. Quoins are a locking tool used to hold type or bases snug on the press bed. A minimum of two are needed to lock up a form, one for vertical hold, one for horizontal.
Hempel quoins and keys are readily available on eBay and are common in most old shops. Hi-Speed quoins are still available new today but are more affordable when purchased used. Be sure to purchase a key that matches your quoins, as different series, styles, and sizes of quoins use different keys.
This metal frame is used to hold type in place while printing, usually on a platen press. Type or a base is locked up towards the center of the chase using furniture to position it and quoins to apply pressure against the X and Y axis. Lock up is done on a composing stone to assure that type is level. Before quoins are tightened a planer is tapped gently on the type surface to confirm the feet are flush against the stone, completely level.
Chases can also be useful with flatbed presses for a variety of situations. Composition of complex forms can be created on a composing stone in a large chase, then brought to the press before printing. Small chases are useful to create angled type in a flatbed press, easily locked up with triangular cut furniture and magnets.
The Pantone Matching System is a standardized system of color for printers. If you do regular work with a designer, this is essential for matching colors long distance. The books come a variety of ways and you will most likely need the book for uncoated (matte) stock. Online retailers will have the best prices, and picky printers should replace their book every few years to be sure colors have not faded.
A base is a milled block of either solid aluminum, aluminum with a magnetic face, or aluminum with embedded magnets. All work the same way, lifting an exposed polymer plate up to type high for printing.
There are a few manufacturers around the country selling bases, and often, corresponding plates. Magnetic bases work with steel-backed plates, and non-magnetic bases work with sticky-backed plates. Bases can also be manufactured by a skilled machinist, but are probably not much cheaper than buying one from a regular retailer. Plates and bases come as a matching pair. Consult with your supplier for what is appropriate for you.
Fabric is always better than paper when cleaning rollers. Rags can be anything from old t-shirts to painters rags from the hardware store to rags rented from a uniform company. These should be kept in a fire-proof container after use, and disposed of in a safe and responsible manner, depending on your state or country laws. If hung out to dry rags cease to be classified as hazardous waste and can be discarded safely. Consult your MSDS to best understand how to safely dispose of your chemicals.
The rails on a platen press wear out with time, and it is sometimes necessary to add height to return rollers to type-high. Scotch or masking tape will work, as will aluminum duct tape, those these tapes deteriorate and their adhesive will eventually stick to trucks as they do so. Specialty retailers carry thicker teflon or plastic UHMW tape in a variety of widths which will work also.
This tool measures the height of a piece of type or a form and came in a variety of styles. The most common is a forked tool into which the type is placed. A set of marks scored into the gauge note type high.
Daisy Ramos, Melanie Huerta and fellow sales associates welcomed customers on Saturday to the store that showcased a large selection of complete furniture sets for the living room, family room, dining area, office and bedroom.
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