Printers since 1923
Three generations of letterpress printers – we understand ink and paper.
Founded in 1923, we have been printing using our current traditional Heidelberg Platens for over 60 years and our knowledge is unmatched in the industry with our oldest employee celebrating his 65th year with the company this year! Our original plant was installed new in 1954 and has been in continuous use ever since. Our stock of cold metal type (and original wooden fonts) is extensive and only matched by our expertise and quality of service.
Letterpress Printing
Invented by Johannes Gutenberg in the mid-15th-century letterpress printing was the normal form of printing until the 19th century and remained in wide use for books and other items until the second half of the 20th century when lithographic printing becomes more widely used.
The process of creating a printing block is either a photographic process in which the image and text is etched into a metal plate or by the traditional ‘setting’ of the type and any graphics to be incorporated in the design. The finished block is then clamped into the ‘chase’ and locked in place with ‘coins’. This block is then inked and then stamped against the material. For nearly 500 years, this was the only printing technique and although the printing process is largely unchanged, the technology for the printing plates has improved considerably. Instead of using the traditional movable lead type, we now use a photo-magnesium plate. This new plate material allows us to print more than just typography, enabling the use of imagery to create beautifully handcrafted items.
The letterpress printing method will always result in unique print results; with a vintage look and feel it will definitely make an impression! Please be aware, because this is a traditional handcrafted process, so do not expect the same colour accuracy that you would get with offset or digital printing. Through the print run there is a good possibility of colour variations but equally, this is what creates the ‘vintage’ style of this process. On solid areas of colour, please be aware that you will see some ‘mottling’ (another vintage effect).
The line screen is quite coarse (50 lines per inch), so we recommended that you do not use monochrome, duotones or tritones unless used in a basic way (lines, dots, diamonds, etc). We advise you to produce simple and bold colours, as tints and colour graduations aren’t Letterpress’ strong point. A word of caution: As you can see this is a centuries old technique and therefore it’s likely that some imperfections will occur on the final print. Hopefully, you will recognise these problems as adding to the character of the process to give it the “vintage” look and feel.