We still have our Challenge 265 power guillotine for sale. I’ve removed the VFD and converted the wiring back to plain 208V 3-phase. The problems with the VFD tripping turned out to be due to a defective current sensor in…
We still have our Challenge 265 power guillotine for sale. I’ve removed the VFD and converted the wiring back to plain 208V 3-phase. The problems with the VFD tripping turned out to be due to a defective current sensor in…
This week I was having another look at the pneumatic solenoid valves I want to use to run my Monotype from a computer. I was somewhat disappointed that the valves I had were the Normally Open (N/O) type and designed…
The Gorton 3U pantograph engraver/mill I just bought needed a bit of fixing up. Some of the bearings in the mechanism were loose, things were dry (of oil) and pretty dirty, and there was a drive belt missing. I have…
The main reason for my visit to Don Black last Friday was to pick up a new (to me) machine. This is a Gorton 3U pantograph mill/engraver, which turned up when Don and Craig were reorganizing their stock. This machine…
I got a big lot of what appeared to be justification wedges for a Monotype composition caster from Don Black last week, many of them brand new, still in the protective plastic dip from the factory. It turns out, however,…
While I was at Don Black’s today, Don mentioned that in the process of cleaning up their warehouse (a daunting project which appears to be coming along well) he found a few boxes of what he thought were Monotype parts.…
I did a round of cleaning up in the shop, partly to search for my missing mat holder, and partly because I picked up more parts from Don Black. While cleaning up, I found the box of stuff I picked…
In addition to poor flow when open, the other shortcoming of my stock of surplus Matrix pneumatic valves is poor sealing (leakage) when operated in NC mode, where the shutter spring is the only force holding back the flow of…
Looking deeper into the poor airflow observed on my stock of surplus Matrix pneumatic valves, I did a subjective measurement of the airflow on each port, on a scale from 0 to 5, using a 20PSI supply. At zero, the…
The most expensive and bulky aspect of making a system for computer control of the Monotype composition caster is the pneumatic solenoid valves. You need 31 valves, and they typically cost $30-$50 each. They are generally large enough that they…