The machines here are all intended primarily to cast individual types intended for hand typesetting.
Some machines break categories, however. The Monotype Type-and-Rule Caster ("Orphan Annie") could cast, as its name suggests, both type and strip material. There was also a rule attachment for the Thompson (now exceedingly rare). These machines will be covered here as their primary purpose was casting type.
The Monotype Composition Caster also cast type, of course, but it was intended for casting composed type. While you could use it to cast type for handsetting, that wasn't it's primary purpose. It isn't covered here.
Sometimes categories break machines, so to speak. Thus the category of "pivotal caster" is a technological category describing certain kinds of machines. The category of "sorts caster" is a marketing category describing the intended purchaser or user of a machine. Mostly, pivotal casters were intended for sale to or use in professional typefoundries (except the Nuernberger-Rettig, a pivotal caster intended for sorts casting by the individual printer). Mostly, sorts casters were not pivotal casters (except, again, the Nuernberger-Rettig). The upshot of this is that there will be some entirely arbitrary decisions about classification here.
NOTE: Most of this isn't done. The parts which do have some possibly useful content are:
Types of Type Casters
[NOT ONLINE YET; I need to rethink this for clarity]
Foundry Specimens & Typography
The history of American typefounding is overwhelmingly a history of machine typefounding. Very little survives from the period before the Bruce Pivotal Typecaster. It seems best, therefore, to gather the Notebooks on foundry type design, typefoundry specimen books, and typographical publications by typefoundries here with the noncomposing typecasting machinery they use(d). (In the same way, Lanston Monotype typography and specimens are with the Monotype Notebooks in Composing Typecasters, the Linotype typography and specimens are [will be!] with the Linotype Notebooks in Composing Linecasters, etc.
Typefoundry Products
Typefoundries cast type, obviously, but what are the actual products which go out the door?
In-House Typecasting
This is an impossible topic. In this section I scrape together some of the scattered information identifying those who cast type for in-house use (but were not really "private typefoundries").
Literature
General literature about machine typecasting. Also tables of points in inches, with a program for generating their data.
Our Noncomposing Typecasters
The Thompson and Monotype display typecasters at CircuitousRoot.
Typecasting Machines Before Bruce
Most notably, the Church 1822 typecaster/typesetter/press which originated the Principle of Non-Distribution (the history of both the Linotype and the Monotype begins here).
Pivotal (Bruce) Typecasters for Foundries
Pivotal typecasters made for type foundries. Exclude here the Nuernberger-Rettig, which is a pivotal caster but which was made for end-user sorts casting (see " Noncomposing Monotype Typecasters," below).
"Foundry Automatic" Typecasters
Johnson (?), Barth, Wicks, Kustermann, Hakko (?)
Sorts Casters (excluding Monotype)
Typecasters from approximately the 1890s to the present intended for sale to individual printers (but excluding Monotype sorts casters, for which see below). The material gathered here includes manuals for both the Thompson and the Nuernberger-Rettig (Universal) typecasters (even though the Nuernberger-Rettig is a pivotal caster and Monotype bought Thompson).
Noncomposing Monotype Typecasters
Various Monotype casters which were incapable of casting composed work, but instead cast fonts and sorts. Also these machines when used in "fusion" mode to cast continuos strip material. Thus: The Type and Rule Caster. The Giant Caster. [The Supercaster.]
I'll exclude here the Thompson (see Sorts Casters (excluding Monotype), above) even though it was acquired by Monotype.
Typecasting Tools
The tools for type alignment and size (vs. caster maintenance tools).
Ancillary Equipment
[NOT DONE] [Things to keep your typecaster running. This may for the most part end up pointing to other sections, especially linecasters, for things such as remelt equipment. But I also need to include typemetal assay equipment, as well, someday.
Notes: For literature on the Margach Automatic Metal Feeder (which according to the report of one current owner was fitted to at least one Thompson caster), see: Margach Feeders in Common Casting Equipment
Other Typecasters as Parts Of Composing Machines
[NOT DONE; But perhaps just link to their treatment as composing machines?] Sears Typo-matrix (IP 31.3). Goodson Graphotype (IP 31.6). Electrotypograph (IP 31.6).
DeVinne's The Practice of Typography (1900) (from which the separating image of a type mold is taken) is in the public domain.
All portions of this document not noted otherwise are Copyright © 2008-2010 by David M. MacMillan and Rollande Krandall.
Circuitous Root is a Registered Trademark of David M. MacMillan and Rollande Krandall.
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons "Attribution - ShareAlike" license. See http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ for its terms.
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