Hand Setting a Circle

[Dave Hughes]

Being an ex-newspaper Linotype operator, I can't say that I have ever been asked to produce anything like this.

Here, Emily Hancock, from St. Brigid Press, shows us a technique for successfully locking up type in a circular arrangement.

Her print shop is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, and now that I've read that I'm going to have that "Trail of the Lonesome Pine" Laurel and Hardy song going round in my head for the rest of the day!

Anyone done anything like this?

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[printsmurf]

As an apprentice compositor in the 1970's I attended Berkshire College of Art and Design in Maidenhead.

One of our lessons involved just this technique, setting the type (I think it was 12pt size) in a stick and then using masking tape to hold the type whilst wrapping it around a circle of wood.

We used cardboard strips around the outside of the type and then used a variety of quads and spaces to hold it tight before tightening the quoins. They needed very careful tightening, a very small amount evenly around the circle.

I remember that none of us achieved a really successful result in the allotted time and a lot of type and spaces ended up loose on the bench and on the machine bed.

We never tried it again and I think that if 'Trail of The Lonesome Pine' had been playing in the background I think we would have all been saying 'That's another fine mess you have got me into!'

[Emily at St Brigid Press]

Thanks for sharing this, and for the comments.

printsmurf is right to say that a key to the technique is "very careful tightening, a small amount evenly around the circle."

With all these details attended to, the circle print turned out very nice. I was surprised and happy with the results. Hope others give it a try.

All best,
Emily
St Brigid Press,
in the snowy lonesome pines of Virginia