A recently engaged friend asked me to explain how our letterpress wedding invitation printing press actually works. Trying to demonstrate the process using my hands, a couple pieces of paper and a whole lot of descriptive words, I quickly remembered what my high school English teacher used to always tell me: “Show, don’t tell.”
This trip down memory lane not only made me realize how silly I must have looked trying to play charades as a printing press, but it also got my cinematic juices flowing.
I decided to create a short but sweet video that shows the details behind the movements, exquisite German engineering and printing process of a Heidelberg windmill platen press.
For those of you who do not have access to sound currently, I will include the most important text below:
But trust me, coming from someone who has tried to ‘charade’ this whole process out, without sound the spectacular mechanical labor of this platen press will be slightly diminished.
The Heidelberg windmill letterpress is the culmination of over 100 years of refinement and development by Heidelberg.
Many other platen presses feed the paper with the same motion that it is delivered, the windmill had two arms so that one could be feeding paper and the other delivering paper, thus making the press nearly twice as fast as other platen presses.
The movement of these arms with the sheets of paper in the grippers lead to its name, windmill, as it resembles the arms of a windmill with their sails and fins.
Unlike foot-treadle letterpresses, this Heidelberg is powered by an electric motor. This not only gives a more consistent impression and improves printing quality, but is much faster and more precise too.
The motor spins the fly wheel which creates a large amount of force to provide the power needed to make a firm impression into the paper.
The platen is what comes in contact with the plate, which is held by the chaise. These two surfaces meet at the exact moment that one of the arms places a piece of paper into the proper position.
After the impression is created, the same arm then removes the printed piece and places it in the delivery area. The final product is complete.
If you still want to know more, please feel free to email us at ajalon@ajalon.com or visit our media library for additional instructional videos and information.
Written by Nick
Invitations by Ajalon
View our letterpress wedding invitation gallery.
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