  Printers’ rollers.—10 lbs. French or Irish heavy glue, 12 lbs. sugar or good quality molasses, and 3 lbs. glycerine. This will be sufficient to make two rollers twenty-nine by three and one-half inches, and can be readily recast by following the directions given for recasting rollers. Directions.—Soak the glue the necessary length of time that will enable it to melt with ease. After being melted, add the glycerine, and boil fifteen minutes or until thoroughly mixed, when the sugar or molasses may be added. Cook and stir continuously for fifteen minutes, the composition will then be ready for pouring. Strict attention should be given that the moulds be thoroughly cleansed and evenly oiled previous to pouring. German Preservative for Rollers.—Corrosive sublimate 2 drachms, fine table salt 2 oz.; put together in half a gallon of soft water—let it stand twenty-four hours. When rollers are clean washed with ley, sponge them with the above mixture twice a week. Directions for Recasting Rollers.—Sponge the face of the roller with hot water; scrape off the face thoroughly with a knife; take the composition off the stock and cut it up small. If the roller has been used only a short time, it may be melted about as readily as new composition; if it is older, put it in a sieve or basket and soak it in cold water for about fifteen or twenty minutes; take it out of the water, cover with a damp cloth, and leave over-night; then melt as usual. If composition Printers’ Ley.—No. 1.—Dissolve 28 lbs. of soda in 52 gallons of water, to which add 7 lbs. of soft-soap, boiled. Stir well together. Printers’ Ley.—No. 2.—Boil 3 gallons of water in a copper; throw in while boiling ½ lb. of unslacked lime and 2 lbs. of common soda; stir well for fifteen minutes. Let it settle till cold, when it must be taken out without disturbing the sediment, and the liquid is then fit for use. Printers’ Ley.—No. 3.—Table salt 2 oz., unslacked lime 2 lb., Scotch washing soda (bruised) 2 lb. Put together in 3 gallons of water, stir well; when settled, ready for use. Note.—This ley, if prepared carefully, is very strong, and will wash off almost any colour. A Strong White Paste.—Dissolve 2½ oz. of gum-arabic in 2 quarts of water, and stir it into 1 pound of wheat flour until the whole becomes of a pasty consistency. It is then to be heated, and 1½ oz. each of sugar of lead and alum dissolved in a little water added thereto, and the composition well stirred until it shows signs of boiling, when it must be removed from the fire. Add while hot 6 drops of carbolic acid. This is a very tenacious and durable paste, and may be used on almost any substance. Pastes for Fixing Labels on Glass.—No. 1.—Take of gum-arabic 1 oz., boiling water and glycerine 2 fluid ounces each. Make a solution. No. 2.—Take of gum-arabic and powdered gum tragacanth ½ oz. each, water 1½ oz., acetic acid 20 drops. Mix. The acid is used to prevent chemical change, although a stiff paste made of tragacanth alone is not inclined to spoil by fermentation. To Make a good Mucilage.—The best quality of mucilage is made by dissolving clear glue in equal volumes of water and strong vinegar, and adding one-fourth of an equal volume of alcohol, and a small quantity of a solution of alum in water. Liquid Glue.—Take some good strong glue and mix it with full proof whisky. Let it digest for three or four days, and it will be ready for use. Strong Mucilage.—The Journal de Pharmacie states that if, to a strong solution of gum-arabic measuring 8? fluid oz., a solution of 30 grains of sulphate of aluminium dissolved in ? of an oz. of water be added, a very strong mucilage is formed, capable of fastening wood together, or mending porcelain or glass. Gum for Backing Labels.—Take any quantity of clear, pure dextrine and mix it with boiling water until it assumes the consistency of ordinary mucilage. Apply thinly with a full-bodied, evenly made, and wide camel’s-hair brush. The paper should not be too thin or unsized. The preparation will dry quickly, and adhere when slightly wet. Note.—No more of the dextrine should be mixed at one time than can be used at once, as it cannot be remelted easily. Mucilage for Postage Stamps, Envelopes, etc., is composed of dextrine 2 parts, acetic acid 1 part, alcohol 1 part, water 5 parts. Common Prepared Glue.—Dissolve 2 lbs. good common glue in 3 pints warm water, and add 1 quart of strong vinegar. Ready to use after twenty-four hours. For making Magenta Surface Paper.—1½ oz. of Magenta, (aniline,) ½ oz. Bismarck brown, (aniline,) 1 cake of glue; put these into 4 gallons of boiling water. Coat the paper with this, using an 8-inch double-filled camel’s-hair brush. Quantity given will coat two reams of double-crown. A hard-sized paper must be used. Coloured Writing Inks.—The following receipts have been well tested, and are commended by good authorities as preferable to the solutions of aniline dyes, which are now so extensively used as coloured inks:— Green.—Two parts acetate of copper, one part carbonate of potash, and eight parts of water. Boil until half evaporated, and filter. Blue.—Three parts Prussian blue, one part oxalic acid, and thirty parts of water. When dissolved, add one part of gum-arabic. Yellow.—One part fine orpiment, well rubbed up with four parts thick gum water. Red.—With the aid of a gentle heat, dissolve four grains of carmine in 1 oz. of aqua ammoniÆ, and add 6 grains of gum-arabic. Gold.—Rub gold leaf, such as is used by bookbinders, with honey, till it forms a uniform mixture. When the honey has been washed out with water, the gold powder will settle at the bottom, and must be mixed with gum water in sufficient quantity. Silver.—Silver leaf treated in precisely the same manner gives a silver ink. Both these inks may be polished with ivory when dry. Black.—Three ounces crushed gall-nuts, two ounces crystallized sulphate of iron, two ounces gum-arabic, and twenty-four ounces water. White.—Fine French zinc-white, or white lead, rubbed up with gum water to the proper consistency. Fireproof Ink.—Fireproof ink, which can be used either for writing or printing:—Copal 12 grains, graphite 22 drachms, sulphate of iron 2 drachms, tincture of nut-galls 2 drachms, and sulphate of indigo 8 drachms; these are thoroughly mixed and boiled in water, and the ink so obtained is said to be both fireproof and insoluble in water. When any other colour than black is desired, the graphite is replaced by any other mineral pigment of the required colour. Printing Ink Varnish.—Printing ink varnish is made by adding 4 oz. of boiled linseed or neat’s-foot oil to 6 oz. of yellow rosin. Lithographic Transfer Ink.—Three parts gum copal, 5 parts wax, 5 purified tallow, 4 soap, 5 shellac, 5 mastic, and one-half part sulphur. The copal is to be melted in a copper vessel, mixing in a little sweet oil, add the wax and tallow, and when these are well melted, light the mass and throw in the soap, well dried and cut in small pieces, then the shellac and mastic. The flame is to be increased by the addition of the flowers of sulphur, and so a perfect mixture of the copal with the other substances will be attained. The flame is to be alternately kindled and extinguished till the whole mass is reduced to one-fourth of its former bulk. To give dark Printing Inks a Bronze or Changeable Hue.—Take 1½ lb. gum shellac and dissolve it in 1 gallon 95 per cent. alcohol spirits of cologne for 24 hours; then add 14 oz. aniline red; let it stand a few hours longer, when it will be ready for use. Add this to good blue, black, or other dark inks, as needed, in quantities to suit, when, if carefully done, they will be found to have a rich bronze or changeable hue. An Ink for Marking Tin or Zinc.—An ink composed of copper one part, dissolved in ten parts nitric acid, ten parts water being afterward added, is useful for marking on tin or zinc. Quick-drying Preparations for Printers’ Inks to be used on Bookbinders’ Cases.—1 oz. beeswax, ¼ oz. gum-arabic dissolved in sufficient acetic acid to make a thin mucilage, ¼ oz. Brown’s Japan, ½ oz. asphaltum varnish. Incorporate with 1 lb. of wood-cut ink. A Dryer.—No. 1, for fine job work. Damar varnish 6 oz., bergamot 2 drachms, balsam copaiba 2 drachms, balsam of fir 3 oz., creosote 1 drachm, copal varnish 1 drachm. To enough ink for 1000 ordinary business cards, add from 8 to 12 drops of the “Indispensable,” and to larger quantities in proportion. When used for bronze, dry colours, diamond printing, etc., take twice the quantity; and where an extra quick dryer is desired, add a few drops of dissolved gum-arabic to the ink, after it has been mixed with No. 1. In all cases, mix well with the ink before applying to the rollers. Dryer.—No. 2.—For news and poster ink. Spirits of turpentine 1 qt., balsam copaiba 6 oz. Add a sufficient quantity to the ink to thin it to a proper consistency for working. Silvering Solution for Electrotype Plates.—Nitrate of silver 2 drachms, distilled water 37 drachms. Dissolve and add sal ammoniac 1 drachm, hypophosphate of soda 4 drachms, precipitated chalk 4 drachms. Agitate the preparation occasionally for twelve hours, when it will be ready for use. Apply with a piece of fine sponge. How to coat Electrotypes with Silver.—Electrotypes can be coated with silver (for working with red ink) in the following manner: One part copper, 5 parts pure tin; this alloy to be granulated, not too fine, and mixed with water and cream of tartar into a paste. To each 200 parts of the granulated alloy add 1 part oxide silver, the electro is then laid in it, and boiled for a short time, when it will be found to be beautifully plated. Fresh oxide must be added from time to time. This coating is quite equal in durability to silver or tin. To soften Leather Belting.—Castor oil is a good article for keeping leather belting soft and pliable. How to open a Ball of Twine.—A ball of twine, if opened from the inside, will run off easily enough and give no trouble in the untwining; but if begun from the outside, it will speedily get tangled and knotted. To prevent Adhesion.—M. Garde, in l’Imprimerie, tells paper-makers how to obviate the inconvenience of the adhesion together of sized papers, on damping, by the coagulation of the size. This is effected in the mills, by dipping the sheets in a solution of alum or tannin. A secondary advantage obtained is that the paper becomes tougher. To detect ground Wood in Paper.—Mix three parts of strong nitric acid with one part of sulphuric acid: a drop of this solution will immediately turn paper containing an admixture of ground wood a brown colour. French Gold Printing.—French copal varnish 1 oz., mastic varnish ¼ of an oz.; mix together and add twenty drops to the black ink table, and distribute; take an impression and apply, with wool, gold leaf, Dutch metal, or bronze. Apply the bronze with cotton wool and rub hard over the black ink. After each fifty printed, wipe off the superfluous gold from the type with a silk handkerchief. Transfer Varnish.—Take equal quantities of fir balsam and spirits turpentine. Mix, shake well, and set in a warm place until clear. Used in decalcomania, and for maps, prints, drawings, and other articles of paper; and also to prepare tracing papers, and to transfer engravings. To make Paper Waterproof.—Dissolve 8 oz. of alum and 3? oz. of white soap in 4 pints of water. In another vessel dissolve 2 oz. of gum-arabic and 4 oz. of glue in 4 pints of water. Mix the two solutions and heat them over the fire. Then immerse the paper, sheet by sheet, in the hot liquid, then hang them up edgewise to dry, or pass them between heated cylinders. Books Preserved.—The bindings may be preserved from mildew by brushing them over with the spirits of wine. A few drops of any perfumed oil will secure libraries from the consuming effects of mould and damp. Russia leather, which is perfumed with the tar of the birch tree, never moulds or sustains injury from damp. The Romans used oil of cedar to preserve valuable manuscripts. Russia leather covered books placed in a stationer’s window will destroy flies and other insects. To restore Engravings, etc.—Old engravings, wood-cuts, or printed matter, that have turned yellow, may be rendered white by first washing carefully in water containing a little hyposulphite of soda, and then dipping for a minute in Javelle water. To prepare the latter, put 4 lbs. bicarbonate of soda in a kettle over a fire; add 1 gallon of boiling water, and let it boil for fifteen minutes. Then stir in 1 lb. of pulverized chloride of lime. When cold, the liquid can be kept in a jug ready for use. |
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