Hand & Ink: a Mini Letterpress
by kniegmann in Craft > Printmaking
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Hand & Ink: a Mini Letterpress
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Hand and Ink is one of my on-going side projects. I started working on the idea after many visits to a letterpress company. The Original Heidelberg's were inspiring; churning out perfect impressions over and over. I wanted to make something similar but more low-tech for home experimentation.
My first prototypes were simple compound presses. They worked... sort of. I moved away from the compound press towards a toggle press design. It was much easier to control the imprint pressure in combination with leather spacers. This version of the press is by no means perfect, but it is a fun little desktop machine that you can use to print cards, etc.
Materials:
1/4" MDF - 12" x 18" sheet
1/2" steel tube - 3 inches long (home depot source)
1/4" steel rod - (home depot source)
2 Cap Nuts - (mcmaster source)
1/4" - 20 threaded rod - home depot has it cheap or (mcmaster source)
Wood glue
Leather - a few 2.5 x 4 inches
To Print:
Cotton paper - I used Lettra 120 gsm
Ink
Brayer
Letterpress plate - I made mine from acrylic. Polymer plates would probably work better
Tools:
Laser cutter
Hex screw driver
Metal saw
X-Acto knife
Prepare Your Parts
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MDF:
Download the attached illustrator file and laser cut the pieces out of 1/4" MDF.
Steel:
Use a metal saw to cut the 1/2" steel tube to 3 inches. Do the same for the 1/4" steel rod and 1/4" -20 all thread. Cut another piece of all thread about 1 inch long.
Leather:
Use an X-Acto knife to cut your leather pieces to size.
3D Print:
There is one part that needs to be 3D printed. It holds the platen plate and allows it to slide in and out for easier inking. I tried making it on a Makerbot but the results weren't so great. I ended up using a higher res FDM printer and the part worked much better. It is ready to print at http://shpws.me/LuDb or you can try it on your own printer. File is attached below.
Assemble
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Once your parts are cut out, start putting everything together. I would use a bit of wood glue to make the main frame sturdy but make sure not to glue any of the moving parts together.
Impression Plates
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There are a few options for creating impression plates. Since I had access to a laser cutter, I went to town etching plates out of 1/4" acrylic. The results were okay, but the plates warped and caused some problems while printing. All in all I was satisfied with the laser etched plates, they didn't produce professional results by any means, but it was a cheap way to experiment with different letterpress designs.
I ordered some sample polymer plates to try. Haven't gotten around to printing with them yet but I am sure the results will be superior to the etched acrylic. Boxcarpress.com makes polymer plates.
Printing
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Supplies:
You will need a thicker paper to get a good impression. I used 120 gsm cotton Lettra paper. I bought printing ink from a local art store, I prefer water based because it is so much easier to clean up than oil based.
Printing:
- Choose the design you want to print and use double sided tape to attach the inking plate to the MDF platen.
- Start by squeezing a small blob of ink out on the acrylic inking plate. Use the brayer to roll the ink to a uniform thickness and make sure the brayer is fuller covered in a thin layer of ink.
- Roll the inked brayer over your impression plate. Avoid getting anywhere that isn't raised etching.
- Slide the platen and plate into the press.
- Add your paper to the press.
- Push the lever down firmly.
- Pull out the platen and carefully peel the paper off of the ink plate.
- Let your letterpress card dry fully.
Results
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The press worked best for thin lettered designs. The impression depth was good but the ink coverage isn't perfect using acrylic printing plates. I will experiment more with polymer plates in the future to get better prints.
Feel free to iterate on this press design and share your results! I will be working on an aluminum version soon to that I can increase the pressing force for better impressions.