Papermaking machine

“ The patient striving toward something better, which has marked all the centuries since man first learned to carve his rude records, finds its consummation in the process of making paper in a continuous web. This result is accomplished by a machine first invented by Louis Robert, a workman in a mill at Enonnes, France, who obtained a French patent, with a bounty of eight thousand francs for its development. ”

“ It must be remembered, however, that most modern printing is done by machinery on soft paper, and not by the hand press, and these somewhat wiry letters are suitable for the machine process, which would not do justice to letters of more generous design. ”

“ It increases the possible printing output largely because presses of large size can now print many duplicates of a single design on a single sheet, and many of these sheets piled can be separated at a single cut, whereas a fly or rotating cutter cuts but one sheet at a time.
The importance of the paper-cutting machine can hardly be overestimated. The correct position of the printed matter, the widths of head, tail, and fore edge may be destroyed by careless cutting. Friendly coöperation with every department is necessary to produce good work. ”

“ The drawing represents the modern paper-machine as manufactured by Bertrams, Limited, who supplied one of these machines to Mr. Edward Lloyd, for the Daily Chronicle Mill, at Sittingbourne, which runs a wire 40 feet long by 126 inches wide, this being, we believe, the largest and widest paper-machine in the world. It is provided with 20 cylinders, chilled calenders, double-drum reeling motion, with slitting appliance for preparing webs to go direct to the printer's office without the assistance of a re-reeling machine, and is driven by a pair of coupled condensing steam-engines. ”

“ But the printing machine would have worked feebly and imperfectly without the paper machine. That most complete invention has not only cheapened paper itself, but it has cheapened the subsequent operations of printing, in a remarkable degree. It has enabled one revolution of the cylinder of the printing machine to produce four sheets instead of one, or a surface of print equal to four sheets. ”

“ This copper reproduction of the woodcut is filled in at the back with metal, mounted on wood, and is then ready for the printer, who has his ‘overlays’ all ready, and the business of printing begins.
There is nothing more wonderful in the history of printing than the rapid development of the printing machine and the extraordinary increase of its productive power. The ordinary press, though greatly improved, was found quite inadequate to the demands made upon it; and, the attention of practical men being directed to some more rapid means of production, the steam printing machine was invented. ”

“ One great difficulty of most printing machines is that of securing perfect register (the exact coincidence of the printing on opposite sides of the paper) . This was anticipated and met by the patent. The one thing the inventor failed to do was to overcome the resistance the collectors of the stamp duty presented to this printing on a continuous roll, and to the affixing of the stamps to the newspapers at the proper intervals during their passage through the machine. ”

“ In some cases the paper is hung over lines, about a quire at a time, exposed to the atmosphere and dust of the machine-room. Hanging frames are supplied by vendors of printers' supplies, in which the paper is clipped by a ball or swinging lever, and about a quire is held in each of the clips, a perpendicular position minimising the danger of dirt. By use of these frames a large quantity of paper can be treated in a comparatively small space. The "Swift" machine is another method of maturing paper. The claim made for the machine is that it matures large quantities of paper in a short time. ”

“ Other colours are required in the manufacture of papers of different tints, and with one or two exceptions they must be mixed with the pulp in the beater.
There are two distinct processes of producing the finished paper from the pulp, known respectively as “hand-made” and “machine-made.” The expense of manufacture of hand-made paper and the consequent high price render it too costly for ordinary use; the entire process on the machine occupies a few minutes, while in the ordinaryPaper Machine. ”

“ Letterpress printers prepared to execute all classes of work must of necessity carry a more varied stock of papers than one who specialises in one or two lines. It is convenient to have printing papers in several qualities and weights, the sizes being governed by the sizes of machines available. With a double demy cylinder machine it is not wise to stock quad demy paper ”

“ The new Walter Press does not in the least resemble any existing printing machine, unless it be the calendering machine which furnished its type. At the printing end it looks like a collection of small cylinders or rollers. The first thing to be observed is the continuous roll of paper four miles long, tightly mounted on a reel, which, when the machine is going, flies round with immense rapidity. The web of paper taken up by the first roller is led into a series of small hollow cylinders filled with water and steam, perforated with thousands of minute holes. ”

“ The expense of manufacturing paper in this way is very much greater than by machinery; but the gain in strength, partly owing to the time allowed to the fibres to knit together, and partly to the free expansion and contraction permitted them in drying, still maintains a steady demand for this class of paper.
The paper-machine (fig. 12) consists essentially of an endless mould of fine wire-cloth on which the pulp flows and on which a continuous sheet of paper is formed; the sheet then passes through a series of press rolls and over a number of steam-heated cylinders until it is dry. ”

“ This can be accomplished to so fine a degree, by a skilful man, that the difference between the two sides of the paper is scarcely discernible. The fineness of weave of the one cloth also is an important bearing in securing an even sided sheet.
Thus we see that it is well-nigh impossible to reduce the making of paper to an exact science, and a reasonable variation must be expected, both in weight and finish. The successful management of a paper-machine depends, from start to finish, on careful, experienced judgment and alert attention. ”

“ Now the chief marvel of a modern combined printing press is its power of being used to print separately a large number of small sized papers or by leading the paper through the press in a slightly different way to print a mammoth paper folded all together and receiving contributions from all six reels at once. In the particular machine in question, which is used to print a comparatively small sized paper, any six of the separate machines can be run separately, if a small paper and a small output only is wanted. ”

“ It is not possible within so small a book to give complete detailed instructions for all the different conditions which may arise in the many kinds of work done in establishments where paper-cutting machines are used. Each of these places has its own particular requirements; and while the machine can do its part quickly and efficiently it needs the intelligent and skillful operator to get good results. ”

“ From the sand settlers the stock runs on to a screen, through which it is drawn by means of suction. This process prevents fibres which are lumpy and too long from getting on to the machine, and allows only those of a certain size and length to go forward to be made into paper. An endless and very fine wire cloth, which is continually moving at the same rate of speed as the rest of the paper machine, takes the stock after it has been screened. This is the first step toward making the material into actual paper. Thick rubber straps on each side of the wire determine the width of the paper. ”

“ By the use of steam and of improved machinery, this inequality is put almost beyond comparison. The typographic single-cylinder type-printing machine can print fifteen hundred impressions in an hour, and the new newspaper perfecting press can print fifteen thousand perfect sheets in an hour. ”

“ The manufacture of four or five hundred square feet of paper per minute, and 12,000 impressions per hour, are now matters of every day occurrence, although it should be borne in mind, that without the paper machine, pouring forth its miles of web, these corresponding advantages in printing could not have been developed. ”

“ The quantity of ink daily consumed in the printing is upwards of two hundredweight. The machine is worked by two steam engines, each of 16-horse power; and the noise of the numerous wheels and rapidly revolving cylinders is almost deafening.
The great rapidity and the comparative cheapness of printing by machines, together with the greater facility of making paper by machinery, have been the means of creating a demand for books which it would be impossible to supply, unless those means were at command. ”

“ The “wet” end of this machine is a Fourdrinier type.
The arrangement and number of smoothing and calender rolls is also dependent on the class of paper to be made. Most writing-paper machines have no calenders at all as the surface is obtained on special machinery such as platers and sheet calenders after the paper comes from the drying loft. One can easily appreciate that, while the general principles of all paper-making are identical, there is a call for a wide variety of arrangements, such as those cited, to meet the varying requirements of different classes of paper. ”

“ Single Web Winding Machine.—This machine (Fig. 47) is constructed for preparing webs of paper for continuous printing-presses. The roll of paper to be prepared is carried by brass bearings having vertical and horizontal screw adjustments attached to standards mounted on a slide, and movable by a screw transversely on the machine to accommodate the deckle edges. ”

“ The Lanston machine by different apparatus casts and composes isolated types with nearly equal speed. Either machine, in the hands of a skilled operator, can produce as much composed type in one hour as was done in a day by the hand compositor. See Type-Setting Machines.
Paper. Improvements in paper-making have been great aids in the development of printing. In 1827 the Fourdrinier paper machine, that produced paper in the so-called endless roll needed for rapid newspaper printing, was introduced in the United States. ”

“ From this the great advantage of the modern engine over the old fashioned mortar machine, in turning out a quantity of paper pulp, will be at once apparent.
The operation of paper making, after the rags or materials to be used have been thus reduced and prepared, may be divided into two kinds; that which is carried on in hand-mills, where the formation of the sheet is performed by manual labour; and that which is carried on in machine-mills, where the paper is produced upon the machine wire-cloth in one continuous web. ”

“ The preparation of getting the machine colours in position, and setting the machine ready for printing, necessitates the turning out of at least a ream, or a half ream (five hundred or two hundred and fifty rolls) at once; whilst the equivalent in hand-printing is fifty to sixty rolls. It often happens that the design of a machine paper is approved of, whilst the colourings it is printed in are unsuited to the scheme. By the hand process, room quantities of even ten to fifteen pieces can be printed specially at from 15 per cent. ”

“ Bertrams' Large Paper Machine.—The principal aim in the construction of the paper-making machine has been to imitate, and in some particulars to improve, the operations involved in the art of making paper by hand, but apart from the greater width and length of paper which can be produced by the machine, the increased rapidity of its powers of production are so great that one machine can turn out as much paper in three minutes as could be accomplished by the older system in as many weeks. ”

“ Paper is fed, one sheet at a time, against the paper guide, and the roller, passing over, produces the desired printing impression. When the roller is returned, the sheet is automatically ejected and counted. The pressure and shade of the printing are regulated by the adjustment of impression screws.
An advantage claimed for this type of machine is that electrotypes and zinc etchings can be used, or regular printers' job type can be substituted for printing small circulars and office forms. If a letter or form is used frequently, it can be electrotyped and held permanently, releasing the type. ”

“ No true mechanic can contrast the immense American ten-cylinder presses of The Times with the simple calico-printing machine, without feeling that the latter furnishes the true type to which the mechanism for newspaper printing should as much as possible approximate. ”

“ The old soft blanket kept the cylinder or the flat press in contact with the type, in spite of the weak construction of much printing machinery. The new method of work made no allowance for such construction; and the new machinery, to meet the new conditions, had to be very perfect in manufacture. About the old machines there was a lack of solidity, which allowed vibration. Modern work demands absolute rigidity in the machine; and a chief characteristic of the best modern printing machinery is strength and solidity, admitting of precision of impression. ”

“ The first man to make a continuous web of paper was Nicholas Louis Robert, a Frenchman who received a reward of 8,000 francs from his government for his invention. Robert’s patent rights were acquired by the Fourdrinier Brothers (Henry and Sealy) , of England. They developed and perfected the machine and to them is ascribed the honor of founding the modern paper industry.
USES OF PAPER
Paper is more commonly and extensively used to-day than any other product of manufacture and is employed for an astonishing variety of purposes, ranging from milk bottles to suits of clothing. ”