‘Swiss Style’ Packing

The N^o 1 Best Seller

From £2.10

The stores are now closed - but if you're struggling to source something then please do get in touch and we'll try to help.

Top Layer Packing

Now better than ever, sheets of thin, glass clear polyester. It spreads the load and resists indentation like absolutely nothing else (short of metal!) and will reduce, or even eliminate, that embossing effect you tend to get towards the end of a run when normal packing begins to give. Trim to fit your press.

Pack of two sheets.
Small fits platens up to
258 x 181 mm
Large is now a whopping
450 x 350 mm
Thickness: approx 7½ thousandths of an inch.
Can last for several jobs totalling over 1000 impressions, with care.
Trim with scissors, or a stanley knife for accuracy.
Recycled.
Skill level: All
UK delivery only.

Bottom Blanket

Out of Stock

As worn by the Adana above, this resiliant blanket goes next to the metal platen and stays there. It's slightly squishy which reduces stress on both type and printer.

You'll need to trim it down and tailor it a bit, to suit your press (as we've done slots for the little Adana in the photo).

Small fits platens up to
258 x 181 mm
Large fits platens up to
355 x 278 mm
Thickness: approx 75 thousandths of an inch uncompressed.
You only need one per press and with care it should last for years.
Trim with a stanley knife.
Recycled.
Skill level: All
UK delivery only.

Tympan Manilla

‘Tympan Manilla’ is the ideal middle layer packing for many jobs. This is 220gsm hard calendered manilla board, just over ten thou thick. You can oil your manilla to help keep it drum-tight in damper conditions (such as a garden shed) – email us for instructions.

The Top Layer and Bottom Blanket are best used together, with your own packing in between to suit the job (eg hard bond or card for text or something softer for lino-cuts). There's a more detailed guide to using Swiss Style packing in our new Printing Tips section.

This was the last new packing approach introduced before the end of large-scale commercial letterpress and the advantages are many. It's in every day use at The Happy Dragons’ Press and it's our best selling line, too. Many thanks to Jacqui Sharples for this photo of her beautifully restored Kelsey modelling our packing.

What Size Do I Need?

Measure the platen (not the chase, which is smaller) in millimetres and compare with the dimensions given below. If in doubt, choose the larger size and trim down.

The ‘Small’ size is suitable for platens up to:
258 x 181 mm (which is just over 10" x 7")

The ‘Larger’ size is suitable for platens up to:
355 x 278 mm (which is just over 13½" x 10½")

The later versions of the Adana Eight Five to be manufactured have a complex spring-loaded clamp for the bottom lay-bar which doesn't allow enough depth to comfortably hold our bottom blanket. This isn't a problem, just trim the blanket ¼" short of the platen width on both sides.

Find out more in our Swiss Style Packing Guide.

All sizes and weights are approximate.

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