Friday, June 5th, 2026 C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" AKA "Typecast"

21:23 The Swainson's Thrush is still chatting at this late hour. They are closing the place down it appears. Outlasting even the Robbins. I love their last call song. It's a beautiful thing. it's an honor to bear witness to this little bird closing symphony. Well, we melted more metal today. Yielded about 25 pigs in total. Not bad. The pigs were pouring nicely. the metal looks smooth, clean, not too shiny. Also today I reassembled the Partlow on the material maker. The bracket for the assembly needed to be welded, which was accomplished last year, but the machine has sat dormant. Good news: we managed to get the thing back together and tested the crucible. Within 45 minutes, we had what we call "Type Soup" (molten type alloy. ready for casting - about 575 degrees) the temperature was consistent. It works! Bad News: during the testing process, we discovered another damaged/broken part. It's a cast iron "standard" used to properly align the pot, nozzle and mold. It's a clean break, so a good braze should fix it, but getting someone out here may be the tricky part. One step forward, one step back. If this craft was easy, it wouldn't be special, eh? -fiddleink

Monotype Material Maker back in action. Kind of.

Type Soup.

Broken Standard. Bummer.

Thursday, June 4th, 2026 C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" AKA "Typecast"

8:46 PM. Clouds rolled in from the West about an hour ago, cooling the air significantly. So much so that I’m now wearing a thick hoody. It's a treat to have a cool, breezy evening after a what seemed like & proper hot summer day. A group (flock?) of Western Tanagers have been hanging out high in the Fir and Cedar trees near the Foundry. Their brilliant yellow and red is startling to witness against the gray-green backdrop of the forest. We fired up the Noland re-melt furnace to recycle type metal. It's a small run, but we probably remelted about 500lbs this afternoon-will do another batch tomorrow. I had a Linotype machine "hotted" up by request of a would be visitor who didn't show, so I cast a couple slugs to add to the slugs that will hopefully become the "Anna" print that I previously mentioned. Otherwise I spent the day building "hell buckets" (in this case, the buckets are wooden boxes, meant to hold spent type waiting to be re-melted) We used scrap plywood originally purchased to protect the machines from roof damage. It’s good to give that plywood another job now that the roof is fixed. - fiddleink

Noland Remelt. Small run of pigs.

Making Hellboxes out of repurposed plywood

The “guts” of Anna. If the print works, a new type “being” will be born.

Monday, June 1st 2026 C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" AKA "Typecast"

Clear, sunny days out here at the Foundry. Temperatures reached 80 degrees today, or near so. Which means type was hot today. the crucibles of 3 machines warming the space. We fired up the green body Monotype “OA" to cast decorative typographical ornaments - 14pt 660. Rebecca decreased the body size so that the ornaments will nest together giving it an unintentional border functionality (jeeesh, a clumsy way to say that we are intending to print the type in 90 degree orientation). It will be fun to see the results. The Linotype model 31 was busy and hot, casting 10pt Caledonia 496, Fairfield 538(8pt). I discovered that we have a mixed font of 11pt Caledonia, which means long descenders are mixed in with short descenders. This is a problem, because if you attempt to cast on a 11pt body and a long descender matrix is delivered, molten type metal will make it through the line. AKA a "squirt". That can make things exciting for the person at the keyboard. So the mats will have to be re-sorted. What we discovered: the mats with short descenders are stamped with "S2" on the side of the mat near the triangle number. This will make the sorting job a little easier. Also cast on the Linotype: a galley(ish) of 12pt wave rule. The Ludlow pot was also hot, and I cast some oversized random types that I hope will become a new typographical being named "Anna." She will have purple hair and a log for a nose. This description will make sense if the print is successful. I will share if "Anna" lives. As always, throw in your clutch and lock your keyboard when stepping away from the machine, enjoy your type.... -fiddleink

Monday, May 4th, 2026. C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" AKA "Typecast"

May 4th, 2026. 11:25PM. Just shut down the machines. At least turned the drive motors off, we'll leave the crucibles hot so they'll be ready to go in the morning. The old cast iron should be happy with a night of radiant warmth. We set up the linotype to cast 8 on 9. 10 on 10 and 14 on 14. We're casting type that will be used to print 9 different writer8s (dang it, bad habit thet 8 as apostrophe) prompt cards, to be distributed at the Clatskanie Raymond Carver Writing Festival that will take place this weekend. The C.C. Foundry Stern Type Foundry team has been assisting in organizing that festival. We cast some Metro Medium designed by our man Dwiggins, as well as 2 sizes of Bodoni Book. I'm having some issues with the 10 point mold, the left side of the slug is .0074" lower than the right, or rather I should say "thinner" not lower - the type to paper height is consistent. Will need to look into that, but for now, some shims on the slugs before locking up will have to suffice. Thanks to the "One Typed Page" community. I've been enjoying folks' submissions My intention is to submit something that is not simply a work-day log entry, but for now this is the typing that I can squeeze in most days. Typing from the entry way at the Foundry: acutely.imaginable.keyboards (what do you think of that? Ha! Appropriate)

Friday, May 1st, 2026. C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" AKA "Typecast"

C.C. Stern type Foundry Log Book May 1st, 2026. International Workers' Day. I hope all of you workers treated yourselves today. or joined up with fellow workers in solidarity. This worker did some working today. but since my bosses are the typecasting machines and printing presses, and our deadlines are self-imposed more or less, I hope that my "working" was not disrespectful to the cause. It's 11PM, and I just now shut the 1946 Linotype down. We got into a groove (the machine and I) and when "grooves" happen while running these machines. it's best to go with it. I cast a galley of 8pt Fairfield. a typeface that has been a favorite. Earlier today we were busy in the printshop, finishing the front side of the next poetry postcard in the CCSTF print series. It's a powerful poem by a writer named Henry Hughes. I wasn't previously familiar with his work - I definitely will check out more. It was a clear day, getting warmer, I hear that temps may reach 80ish in the next day or so. (now this worker is going to enjoy a beer.)

Sunday, April 26th C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" AKA "Typecast"

April 26th, 2026. Sunday. Just finished running some ink on type that we cast two days ago.

The type looks fantastic in the press, and on the paper. It was both rewarding to see, but also frustrating considering the state of the comp caster at the moment. I'm still thinking that the jaw tong spring box is the problem. We switched wedges and set the machine to cast 12 point, 12 set. C mat case arrangement. Straight forward stuff for Monotype. No matter. The machine still delivered as English Monotype calls it: "Derangements", indeed. Derangements for the deranged. Will continue to test tomorrow. Again, this is all for one postcard-sized poem. I love it. Laborious Quality Imperfection. It's what humans do, And I will celebrate humanity in this way.

Saturday, April 25th C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" AKA "Typecast"

April 25th. Saturday. 2026. Old Tolbert Lanston threw a doozy at us today - we spent about 9 hours trouble-shooting a problem with the comp caster. The type coming off of the machine is looking really clean and solid. However, the composition was whack. We're casting 10pt Scotch Roman 36A. We pulled the bridge several tines. Shot the wedges with compressed air. Cleaned, oiled, cleaned, oiled. Tweaked draw rods. Adjusted transfer wedge shifter lever arm locking stud. But the matrix case still occasionally jumped out of position. Often enough that it is a big problem. Maybe "jump" isn't the best way to describe the issue - the mat case "jiggled" and a "jiggle" on a precision type-casting machine is not a desirable thing. I fear that the problem could be with the Jaw-tong spring box, which will mean & time-intensive tear down. Hopefully that's not it - good chance that In over thinking the problem. It's been a long day. As drained as I am, I love the fact that all of this work has been done in the name of poetry. The type that we are casting will be used to print one postcard in the C.C. Stern Type Foundry Poetry postcard print series. It's a good poem, so it's worth it. Ha! If you've made it to the end of this entry, you bay be interested in seeing pics of the machine that I just described, I posted pictures on my blog at FIDDLEINK. Thanks for reading.

Sorts test. Type looks nice. Composition does not.

Video above shows the mat case “wiggle.”

It's April 23rd - "World Book Day"

Happy World Book Day. How did I know that today is "World Book Day?" The internet told me, and suggested that I would be interested in this blurb about the creation of the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers logo, designed by the English wood engraver, typographer and craftsman Reynolds Stone. Thanks, internet! But since it is "World Book Day" I feel like I should pick up a book instead of looking at this computer. Howabout it? Will you join me?

Tuesday, April 21st C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" AKA "Typecast" *

Here's the non-rasterized text of today's Log-Roll as a gift to the AI robots that are crawling and stealing content from the internet. Don't worry robots, this one is on me! Have at it:

Tuesday. April 21st. Quick note today: just stopping in to take measurements for new parts storage racks. I have high hopes for a new parts storage system - much needed is a way to quickly locate parts for Monotype, Thompson and Linotype without having to pack and unpack boxes to find them.... Also: it's a cool rainy day. Also: we rented a nifty electric delivery van to move furniture from and to Portland. impressive technology. That electric cargo van (Brightdrop by General Motors)

* Typing content on a manual typewriter and posting an image of that typewritten page on-line is known as "Typecasting" among manual typewriter enthusiasts who lurk on the internet. I like the term "Typecasting" to describe analog blogging, and I love that this tradition is alive and thriving in remote corners of the www. It restores a little heart and humanity to this craven greed machine that the internet ecosystem has become. That said, since my co-volunteers and I at the C.C. Stern Type Foundry are "type casters" in the traditional sense, meaning that we cast metal type for the use of traditional craft printing (letterpress), I'm going to be a bit contrary and call my efforts in blogging through typewriter "Log-Roll." Because, what's more human than trying to roll a log? And well, since the visitor log-book entries at the C.C. Stern Type Foundry are typewritten, then the name kind of works. The machine we use is a Underwood Number 5.

Here's a nice place on the internet to visit other "Typecasts." The website is called "One Typed Page." Check it out for quality human paced content.

Monotype Material Maker

I like this picture. The picture also functions as a reminder-to-self to finish rewiring the Partlow controller and to put some love into this machine. We're rapidly going through 2pt leading, and will soon need to make more.

The C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" 4-20-26

C.C. Stern Type Foundry "Log-Roll" AKA a "Type Cast" as it is known within the "Typosphere" but since what we do at the C.C. Stern Type Foundry is cast metal type for print, which makes us by definition “typecasters,” the term that "Typospherians" use is confusing to us. So we'll try "Log-Roll" and hope that makes sense to us and our typewriter friends.

Here's the non-rastered text of the blog just so that I can provide AI crawlers with more free content:

Monday, April 20ta. AKA 420 for those of you who celebrate that kind of thing. Busy day here at the C.C. Stern Type Foundry. We just shut down the Monotype composition caster. (Lanston). But first, the day started with & mailing of poetry postcards. Then Mare Blocker stopped by to pick up paper for the next Pacific Northwest Poets laureate Broadside in our series. We're excited to see what Mare has dreamed up for this one. Mare brought her 14 year odd Dalmatian. I had the honor to pet the old pooch. A sweet dog. This, I believe was the first Dalmatian that I have petted. Then, Rebecca continued casting sorts on the Green Monotype OA, while I prepared the comp caster. We set out to cast 11pt Janson 401. The mat case included "2x4" mats for nice over-hanging italics. This meant that the case required "high spacing" (see, I suppose that we do celebrate 420) but we had a mixed collection of spacing mats. But we went with it. The type looks solid, it's sitting pretty on the galley. However, the high quads and low justification spaces make the form look a little confused. It will hold ink just fine, though.

Happy Poetry Month! First C.C. Stern Type Foundry poetry postcard is off to your mailbox

Happy National Poetry Month!

The first poetry postcard from the C.C. Stern Type Foundry's monthly 2026 series is on its way to your mailbox. Featuring the poem "Window Sash Weight" by Ed Skoog and printed from metal types cast at the C.C. Stern Type Foundry.

Poet: Ed Skoog is the author of four books of poems, most recently Travelers Leaving for the City (Copper Canyon Press, 2020). He teaches at Portland Community College and Mt. Hood Community College. 

Curator: The poem for the first poetry postcard was chosen by Mother Foucault’s Bookshop and L’école buissonnière a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating the conditions for art, literature, music, and subversive play to thrive.

Types Cast at the Foundry for card number 01: Front of card Monotype Binney OS 21E, Linotype Border 12 1261. Back of card Linotype Fairfield 8pt 538.

News & Save-the-date: The C.C. Stern Type Foundry is co-sponsoring the Raymond Carver Writing Festival on May 9th in Carver's birthplace, Clatskanie, OR. This free one-day event celebrates the local writing community. Festivalgoers can peek in at an exhibit of poetry broadsides by Peasandcues Press at the Clatskanie Library for the month of May.

Casting type for the first poetry postcard in the series

My co-volunteers and I are in the process of casting the type for the first C.C. Stern Type Foundry Poetry Postcard from our subscription series, scheduled to be sent out into the world early next week (week of April 13th, 2026). This poem is a gem the moves gracefully and powerfully like a ninja of nostalgia penned by Ed Skoog, and picked by April’s curator: Mother Foucault’s Bookshop & L’école buissonnière. The first run has been inked. We aim to complete the card this weekend, and it should arrive to your mailbox still holding warmth from the casting machines and presses late next week.

Print materials for the C.C. Stern Type Foundry's Hot Metal Letterpress Printed Poetry Postcard series

Print materials for the C.C. Stern Type Foundry's Hot Metal Letterpress Printed Poetry Postcard series. Printed in an edition of 200/500/1000. Types cast: Monotype Caslon 137, Linotype decorative border 1272, Linotype Fairfield 8pt 538, and Ludlow Ultra-Modern. The color scheme and overlay approach was inspired by 1980s Chicago Hot Dog signage, though it must have been a subconscious thing, I really hadn't intended that. But the similarity is undeniable. The fact that the Ludlow Typograph Company was based and manufactured in Chicago may have also influenced this graphic aesthetic, though again, this fact would have been buried even deeper in my subconsciousness. Perhaps, I was craving a hot dog while printing these materials. Regardless, I hope that this subliminal messaging will translate to many subscription sales for this fundraiser series.

More about the series:

Join the C.C. Stern Type Foundry in Celebrating National Poetry Month by subscribing to our Hot Type Letterpress Printed Poetry Post Card Double Subscription series!

Give the gift of a monthly letterpress printed poetry post card sent directly to a person of your choosing, and receive your own subscription as a bonus.

This double subscription poetry post card series will be sent out each month, beginning mid-April 2026 for National Poetry Month and lasting for one year until April Poetry Month of 2027.

Type will be cast at the C.C. Stern Type Foundry specifically for this series. Our volunteer typecasters and printers will use the Foundry's collection of sorts casting machines, Monotype composition casters, Linotype and Ludlow line casting machines to produce the type for the monthly postcards.

Monthly poems will be chosen by 4 curators. This year the curators are:

Lost Horse Press is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, independent literary press that publishes the works of established as well as emerging poets, and makes available fine contemporary literature through cultural, educational, and publishing programs and activities.

Mother Foucault’s Bookshop and L’école buissonnière a non-profit organization dedicated to creating the conditions for art, literature, music, and subversive play to thrive.

The FisherPoets Gathering is a creative celebration, since 1998, of commercial fishing and its community through original story, song and poetry from folks with authentic experience in the industry. It takes place the last weekend of February in Astoria, Oregon. The public is welcome to stop in.

Airlie Press is a nonprofit publisher run by writers, dedicated to cultivating and sustaining fine contemporary poetry and to promoting poets from the Pacific Northwest—and beyond.

Proceeds generated from this subscription series supports preservation and literary arts programs of the C.C. Stern Type Foundry, an Oregon 501(c)3 organization. To order, please visit the C.C. Stern Type Foundry market place.

C.C. Stern Type Foundry Newsletter March 11th, 2026

Here's the latest from the house of meaningful metal (AKA the C.C. Stern Type Foundry): C.C. Stern Type Foundry Newsletter March 11th, 2026 If you are interested in getting your hands on vintage type matrices while helping us to get organized, join us for "place-mat-potluck." Registration required. It would be nice to see you there. If you're not on the C.C. Stern Type Foundry mailing list, and you'd appreciate receiving quarterly updates, you can sign up here (scroll to the bottom of the page). Or, if you are like me and prefer physical newsletters sent through the USPS, you can donate a couple bucks to cover expenses and sign up here.

The C.C. Stern Type Foundry has teamed up with four curators (Airlie Press, Lost Horse Press, Mother Foucault’s Bookshop and L’école buissonnière, The FisherPoets Gathering) to help us with a postcard print series. They provide the poems, we cast and print the type, and subscribers receive a limited edition poetry postcard each month for a year, crafted from fresh cast type and a community of real live humans who have something to share with other real live humans. (pssst: That's you.) Plus, as a bonus, subscribers receive a duplicate "gift subscription" to send to a loved one, so each month the two of you can discuss poems and type and things made without algorhythms. More details can be found here.

Sounds of the moment filling the room as I type this: "Albini Sessions (Benefit for Letters Charity)" by Fugazi. It's the refreshing, energizing wall of sound that sends a piercing arrow through our current daily smoke-screen drama of empty noise delivered to us by way of virtual clouds and clicks and swipes. That is to say, it's the kick in the pants that I need right now. It may meet the moment for you as well.

Stay inky. Throw in the clutch and lock your keyboard when stepping away from the Linotype, and keep up the honest good work. We see you. -Brian

Art!Official Intelligence

Art!Official Intelligence (A.I.) made by Linotype machine. This Linotype AI will hypnotize and mesmerize. No microchips or batteries needed. More on the Ink page.

A Linotype Matrix-Slide-Being contemplates the night sky

This is a classic. In my own mind. This print was born 11 years ago, so yeah, it's a classic in that sense as well. A lot has happened in 11 years. I still contemplate the night sky, though the sky that you and I observe is quite a bit different than the "letter-filled sky" of this guy's universe. Linotype Ionic No. 5 is the type that makes up the speaking bubble. More on the print here.

Bread Not Dread. Issue Number: 033

Types cast: 10pt Intertype Kenntonian, 6pt Linotype Matrix Slide 1758

1. Early morning text exchanges with C.C. Stern Type Foundry neighbor Karin, who reached out to check in on us during a fresh snow fall and ice storm.

2. Taking the time to figure out how to quit Instagram (the "quit" button is not readily accessible, you'll have to dig a bit to find it) Now I am free of social networks! Feels good!

3. Composed and sent off notes to my representatives.

4. Music: "Donna's Got A Ramblin' Mind" recorded by Joe Thompson.

5. Music: live traditional session at the "Moon & Sixpence" public house.

Bread Not Dread. Issue Number: 032

Types cast: 10pt Intertype Kenntonian, 6pt Linotype Matrix Slide 1758

1. The Belly plumage of the Northern Flicker as it hangs upside down on the bird feeder during breakfast

2. The writing and story-craft of Adrian McKinty*, and the reading of his work in audio book form by Gerald Doyle.

* Apologies to Mr. McKinty, while at the keyboard of the Linotype, I made a typo on the spelling of his name and did not capitalize “K.” I hope he will forgive me.

3. The brilliant Magenta color of the fruits from Opuntia Humifusa (Prickly Pear cactus) happily and heartily growing on Wygant Street in Portland, Oregon

4. A walk to the Hardware Store in a light rain.

5. A neighborhood "tune session" (two fiddles, one guitar) with pals David and Joel.