[an error occurred while processing this directive] [an error occurred while processing this directive] [an error occurred while processing this directive] [an error occurred while processing this directive] [an error occurred while processing this directive] METAL TYPE is the place for Printers and Typesetters who remember the old days of Letterpress Printing to come and reminisce.

The site originally concentrated on the ingenious Linotype mechanical typesetting machine invented by Ottmar Mergenthaler in 1884 which remained the mainstay of newspaper production for almost a century.

Linecasters still feature strongly on the site, but over the years the site has expanded to cover all aspects of printing trade nostalgia.

SITE HIGHLIGHTS:

Stories:
The Green Card, Fortress Wapping, Fleet Street Piecework, The Island of San Serriffe, Glossary of Printing Trade Terms, Letterpress Limericks, Wayzgoose – The Event of the Year.

Pictures: Early Linecasters, Later Linecasters, Early Intertypes, Queensland Newspapers, The Whittaker Collection of Linecasters, Printers Anatomy Cartoon, The All-Purpose Linotype, The Modern Typograph, 1891 Typesetting Competition, Early Typesetting Machines, Blue Streak Linotypes.

Videos: Linecaster Documentary (1960), Chandler & Price 10X15, Cossar Flat-Bed Web Press, Linotype Model 31, Hand-Setting (1959), Making Books (1947), Bookbinding (1961), Tele-Typesetting (1971), Miehle V50, Koenig & Bauer Rollrenner Press, Brazil Gets The News (1942).

Instruction Manuals: Instruction manuals and other reference documents, mainly in PDF format, are available from "The Library" – get to it from the Other Stuff menu on the right.

The items in the box above are just selected highlights, much more can be found by browsing the site or using the search box towards the top of this page.

Contributions welcome

Most of the material on this site has been sent in by its users. I am always on the lookout for new items to add to the site.

If you would like to contribute a story, photographs, or perhaps some video footage, please contact me by email.

Equipment Sales & Wants

The site has a "Classified Ads" section where print related items, and anything else, can be bought or sold free of charge.

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