Blickensderfer 5 with custom type faces
When I first got my Blickensderfer typewriters - both with most common DHIATENSOR and (less common) CHARIENSTU keyboard layout I was thinking about converting them into QWERTY layout, simply to be able to use them as easily as my other machines.
Two elements would be needed to make such conversion: qwerty-layout type element (cylinder with fonts) and moving a few keys from the lowest row into upper rows, as qwerty has 10 keys in the highest row while dhiatensor layout, with its pyramid-shape, has only 8.
I quickly dismissed the idea of such brutal mechanical intrusion into so ancient (and mechanically magnificent) machine. After all - I have plenty “standard keyboard” machines. So instead I started to get used to dhiatensor, scientific keyboard and to my surprise it took not too long to become comfortable with it.
But the idea of interchangeable, custom fonts stayed with me. One can find original typing elements on the market, sometimes, but they tend to be rare and expensive. Besides - I liked the challenge of making my own!
At that time 3D printing technology was not mature enough to be capable to replicate such small elements as fonts. At least the machines within my budget. Instead I considered casting fonts from existing slugs, making silicon “negative” molds and then casting final letters from rubber. These would then be mounted/glued on a lightweight cylinder to fit the machine.
Yeah, lots of work and many traps where things can go wrong. Also very messy. I paused the idea and moved on with other projects.
Only recently we started to look again into 3D printing technology, to buy a machine for my factory. At the same time Facebook group member posted his results with 3D printed cylinder for Blick and it was magnificent!
Richard Polt wrote about this on his blog here. Leonard Chau, who made this happen together with Brent Carter, gave me some tips how he made his cylinders. That was enough for me to look into making one by myself.
I bought Anycubic printer, small and cheap enough for me but with DLP technology, hoping that it will be able to render very fine details as serifs and ornaments found with typefaces.
A few trials to dial in parameters for resin exposure etc plus several evenings of reading and watching YouTube clips about that and I was ready to print my own cylinders.
The original cylinder is made of rubber.
I started by making exact CAD model of my existing cylinder.
Having that I decided to modify it a bit, to make it more interesting and possibly even lighter. After all - I don’t have technological limitations similar to Blickensderfer 120 years ago and I’m using a different material so my type element can be optimized. I ended up with Japanese magnolia-style cylinder.
The first prototype lived only half a page when it broke. I was a bit harsh in my tests but they must withstand angry writer, too!
I reinforced the walls and made additional adjustments with font leveling.
Even though my CAD model was reflecting the original cylinder, the epoxy used for 3D printing is shrinking/expanding during the print process and one needs to adjust the model to accommodate that.
The next trial went better but retaining clip extrusion prove to be too weak and broke after 1 day.
After adjusting the model for that I finally arrived to a design which is as sturdy as the original and weights a bit less!
Choosing typefaces was fun. I made several cylinders and the results are promising. Hardly surprising but imprint quality is highly dependent on good platen. My Blick has it hard as stone so I use thick, double paper to achieve acceptable quality. Time to re-coat this platen!