The Common Press

This is a box set of two publications:

1. A book describing a printing press obtained by the Smithsonian, believed to have been owned by Benjamin Franklin or one of his satellite shops;
2. A folder of eight sheets of plans for said press, that they drew from it once they took it apart and measured all the parts.

It’s indispensable for anyone contemplating making their own press! I did some preliminary work on building my own, dividing all the dimensions in half. The central piece, the screw that turns the lever’s motion into downward pressure, was cost-prohibitive.

Still, it’s a hell of a publication! There must have been a flurry of builds from these plans in the ensuing years; one is at the Ephrata Cloister in Lancaster County, PA.