
A mimeograph machine (often abbreviated to mimeo, sometimes called a stencil duplicator or stencil machine) is a low-cost
duplicating machine that works by forcing ink through a
stencil
Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object. The holes allow the pigment to reach only some parts of the surface creatin ...
onto paper. The process is called mimeography, and a copy made by the process is a mimeograph.
Mimeographs, along with
spirit duplicator
A spirit duplicator (also Rexograph and Ditto machine in North America, Banda machine and Fordigraph machine in the U.K. and Australia) is a printing method invented in 1923 by Wilhelm Ritzerfeld, which was used for most of the 20th century. Th ...
s and
hectograph
The hectograph, gelatin duplicator or jellygraph is a printing process that involves transfer of an original, prepared with special inks, to a pan of gelatin or a gelatin pad pulled tight on a metal frame.
While the original use of the technol ...
s, were common technologies for printing small quantities of a document, as in office work, classroom materials, and church bulletins. For even smaller quantities, up to about five, a
typist would use
carbon paper. Early
fanzines
A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) for the pleas ...
were printed by mimeograph because the machines and supplies were widely available and inexpensive. Beginning in the late 1960s and continuing into the 1970s,
photocopying
A photocopier (also called copier or copy machine, and formerly Xerox machine, the generic trademark) is a machine that makes copies of documents and other visual images onto paper or plastic film quickly and cheaply. Most modern photocopiers ...
gradually displaced mimeographs, spirit duplicators, and hectographs.
Origins
Use of
stencil
Stencilling produces an image or pattern on a surface by applying pigment to a surface through an intermediate object, with designed holes in the intermediate object. The holes allow the pigment to reach only some parts of the surface creatin ...
s is an ancient art, butthrough chemistry, papers, and pressestechniques advanced rapidly in the late nineteenth century:
Papyrograph
A description of the Papyrograph method of duplication was published by David Owen:
A major beneficiary of the invention of synthetic dyes was a document reproduction technique known as stencil duplicating. Its earliest form was invented in 1874 by Eugenio de Zuccato, a young Italian studying law in London, who called his device the Papyrograph. Zuccato's system involved writing on a sheet of varnished paper with caustic ink, which ate through the varnish and paper fibers, leaving holes where the writing had been. This sheet – which had now become a stencil – was placed on a blank sheet of paper, and ink rolled over it so that the ink oozed through the holes, creating a duplicate on the second sheet.
The process was commercialized and Zuccato applied for a patent in 1895 having stencils prepared by typewriting.
Electric pen
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison (February11, 1847October18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventions, ...
received US patent 180,857 for Autographic Printing on August 8, 1876. The patent covered the electric pen, used for making the stencil, and the flatbed duplicating press. In 1880, Edison obtained a further patent, US 224,665: "Method of Preparing Autographic Stencils for Printing," which covered the making of stencils using a file plate, a grooved metal plate on which the stencil was placed which perforated the stencil when written on with a blunt metal stylus.
The word ''mimeograph'' was first used by
Albert Blake Dick when he licensed Edison's patents in 1887.
Dick received
Trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a Good (economics and accounting), product or Service (economics), service f ...
Registration no. 0356815 for the term ''mimeograph'' in the US Patent Office. It is currently listed as a dead entry, but shows the
A.B. Dick Company of
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
as the owner of the name.
Over time, the term became generic and is now an example of a
genericized trademark
A generic trademark, also known as a genericized trademark or proprietary eponym, is a trademark or brand name that, because of its popularity or significance, has become the generic term for, or synonymous with, a general class of products or ...
. (''Roneograph'', also ''Roneo machine'', was another trademark used for mimeograph machines, the name being a contraction of ''Rotary Neostyle''.)
Cyclostyle
In 1891,
David Gestetner patented his Automatic Cyclostyle. This was one of the first rotary machines that retained the flatbed, which passed back and forth under inked rollers. This invention provided for more automated, faster reproductions since the pages were produced and moved by rollers instead of pressing one single sheet at a time.
By 1900, two primary types of mimeographs had come into use: a single-drum machine and a dual-drum machine. The single-drum machine used a single drum for ink transfer to the stencil, and the dual-drum machine used two drums and silk-screens to transfer the ink to the stencils. The single drum (example Roneo) machine could be easily used for multi-color work by changing the drum – each of which contained ink of a different color. This was spot color for mastheads. Colors could not be mixed.
The mimeograph became popular because it was much cheaper than traditional print – there was neither
typesetting
Typesetting is the composition of text for publication, display, or distribution by means of arranging physical ''type'' (or ''sort'') in mechanical systems or '' glyphs'' in digital systems representing '' characters'' (letters and other ...
nor skilled labor involved. One individual with a
typewriter
A typewriter is a Machine, mechanical or electromechanical machine for typing characters. Typically, a typewriter has an array of Button (control), keys, and each one causes a different single character to be produced on paper by striking an i ...
and the necessary equipment became their own printing factory, allowing for greater circulation of printed material.
File:1889 Edison Mimeograph.jpg, Advertisement from 1889 for the Edison Mimeograph
File:Edison's* mimeograph box.jpg, A wooden Edison's mimeograph size 12"
File:Mimeograph, 1918.png, 1918 illustration of a mimeograph machine
File:Mimeograph - The National Duplicator.JPG, Jackson & O'Sullivan's "The National" Duplicator. Produced in Brisbane, Queensland during World War II.
File:Resistance mimeograph machines.JPG, Mimeograph machines used by the Belgian resistance
The Belgian Resistance (, ) collectively refers to the resistance movements opposed to the German occupation of Belgium during World War II, German occupation of Belgium during World War II. Within Belgium, resistance was fragmented between many ...
during World War II to produce underground newspapers and pamphlets
Mimeography process
The image transfer medium was originally a stencil made from
waxed
mulberry paper. Later this became an immersion-coated long-fiber paper, with the coating being a plasticized
nitrocellulose
Nitrocellulose (also known as cellulose nitrate, flash paper, flash cotton, guncotton, pyroxylin and flash string, depending on form) is a highly flammable compound formed by nitrating cellulose through exposure to a mixture of nitric acid and ...
. This flexible waxed or coated sheet is backed by a sheet of stiff card stock, with the two sheets bound at the top.
Once prepared, the stencil is wrapped around the ink-filled drum of the rotary machine. When a blank sheet of paper is drawn between the rotating drum and a pressure roller, ink is forced through the holes on the stencil onto the paper. Early flatbed machines used a kind of
squeegee.
The ink originally had a
lanolin base and later became an oil in water emulsion. This emulsion commonly uses turkey-red oil (sulfated
castor oil
Castor oil is a vegetable oil pressed from castor beans, the seeds of the plant ''Ricinus communis''. The seeds are 40 to 60 percent oil. It is a colourless or pale yellow liquid with a distinct taste and odor. Its boiling point is and its den ...
) which gives it a distinctive and heavy scent.
Preparing stencils
One uses a regular typewriter, with a stencil setting, to create a stencil. The operator loads a stencil assemblage into the typewriter like paper and uses a switch on the typewriter to put it in stencil mode. In this mode, the part of the mechanism which lifts the
ribbon
A ribbon or riband is a thin band of material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily as decorative binding and tying. Cloth ribbons are made of natural materials such as silk, cotton, and jute and of synthetic mate ...
between the type element and the paper is disabled so that the bare, sharp type element strikes the stencil directly. The impact of the type element displaces the coating, making the tissue paper permeable to the
oil-based
ink. This is called "cutting a stencil".
A variety of specialized
styluses were used on the stencil to render lettering, illustrations, or other artistic features by hand against a textured plastic backing plate.
Mistakes were corrected by brushing them out with a specially formulated
correction fluid, and retyping once it has dried. (Obliterine was a popular brand of correction fluid in Australia and the United Kingdom.)
Stencils were also made with a thermal process, an infrared method similar to that used by early photocopiers. The common machine was a
Thermofax.
Another device, called an
electrostencil machine, sometimes was used to make mimeo stencils from a typed or printed original. It worked by scanning the original on a rotating drum with a moving optical head and burning through the blank stencil with an
electric spark
An electric spark is an abrupt electrical discharge that occurs when a sufficiently high electric field creates an Ionization, ionized, Electric current, electrically conductive channel through a normally-insulating medium, often air or other ga ...
in the places where the optical head detected ink. It was slow and produced
ozone
Ozone () (or trioxygen) is an Inorganic compound, inorganic molecule with the chemical formula . It is a pale blue gas with a distinctively pungent smell. It is an allotrope of oxygen that is much less stable than the diatomic allotrope , break ...
. Text from electrostencils had lower resolution than that from typed stencils, although the process was good for reproducing illustrations. A skilled mimeo operator using an electrostencil and a very coarse
halftone
Halftone is the reprographic technique that simulates continuous tone, continuous-tone imagery through the use of dots, varying either in size or in spacing, thus generating a gradient-like effect.Campbell, Alastair. ''The Designer's Lexicon''. ...
screen could make acceptable printed copies of a photograph.
During the declining years of the mimeograph, some people made stencils with early computers and
dot-matrix impact printers.
Limitations
Unlike spirit duplicators (where the only ink available is depleted from the master image), mimeograph technology works by forcing a replenishable supply of ink through the stencil master. In theory, the mimeography process could be continued indefinitely, especially if a durable stencil master were used (e.g. a thin metal foil). In practice, most low-cost mimeo stencils gradually wear out over the course of producing several hundred copies. Typically the stencil deteriorates gradually, producing a characteristic degraded image quality until the stencil tears, abruptly ending the print run. If further copies are desired at this point, another stencil must be made.
Often, the stencil material covering the interiors of closed
letterform
A letterform, letter-form or letter form is a term used especially in typography, palaeography, calligraphy and epigraphy to mean a letter (alphabet), letter's shape. A letterform is a type of glyph, which is a specific, concrete way of writing a ...
s (e.g. ''a'', ''b'', ''d'', ''e'', ''g'', etc.) would fall away during continued printing, causing ink-filled letters in the copies. The stencil would gradually stretch, starting near the top where the mechanical forces were greatest, causing a characteristic "mid-line sag" in the textual lines of the copies, that would progress until the stencil failed completely.
The
Gestetner
The Gestetner is a type of duplicating machine named after its inventor, David Gestetner (1854–1939). During the 20th century, the term ''Gestetner'' was used as a verb—as in ''Gestetnering''. The Gestetner company established its base in Lo ...
Company (and others) devised various methods to make mimeo stencils more durable.
Compared to spirit duplication, mimeography produced a darker, more legible image. Spirit duplicated images were usually tinted a light purple or lavender, which gradually became lighter over the course of some dozens of copies. Mimeography was often considered "the next step up" in quality, capable of producing hundreds of copies. Print runs beyond that level were usually produced by professional printers or, as the technology became available,
xerographic copiers.
Durability
Mimeographed images generally have much better durability than spirit-duplicated images, since the inks are more resistant to
ultraviolet light
Ultraviolet radiation, also known as simply UV, is electromagnetic radiation of wavelengths of 10–400 nanometers, shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation is present in sunlight and constitutes about 10% of th ...
. The primary preservation challenge is the low-quality paper often used, which would yellow and degrade due to
residual acid in the treated pulp from which the paper was made. In the worst case, old copies can crumble into small particles when handled. Mimeographed copies have moderate durability when
acid-free paper is used.
Contemporary use
Gestetner
The Gestetner is a type of duplicating machine named after its inventor, David Gestetner (1854–1939). During the 20th century, the term ''Gestetner'' was used as a verb—as in ''Gestetnering''. The Gestetner company established its base in Lo ...
,
Risograph, and other companies still make and sell highly automated mimeograph-like machines that are externally similar to photocopiers. The modern version of a mimeograph, called a
digital duplicator, or
copyprinter, contains a
scanner, a thermal head for stencil cutting, and a large roll of stencil material entirely inside the unit. The stencil material consists of a very thin polymer film laminated to a long-fiber non-woven tissue. It makes the stencils and mounts and unmounts them from the print drum automatically, making it almost as easy to operate as a photocopier. The Risograph is the best known of these machines.
Although mimeographs remain more economical and energy-efficient in mid-range quantities, easier-to-use photocopying and
offset printing
Offset printing is a common printing technique in which the inked image is transferred (or "offset") from a plate to a rubber blanket and then to the printing surface. When used in combination with the lithography, lithographic process, which ...
have replaced mimeography almost entirely in
developed countries
A developed country, or advanced country, is a sovereign state that has a high quality of life, developed economy, and advanced technological infrastructure relative to other less industrialized nations. Most commonly, the criteria for eval ...
. Mimeography continues to be used in some
developing countries
A developing country is a sovereign state with a less-developed Secondary sector of the economy, industrial base and a lower Human Development Index (HDI) relative to developed countries. However, this definition is not universally agreed upon. ...
because it is a simple, cheap, and robust technology. Many mimeographs can be hand-cranked, requiring no electricity.
Uses and art
Mimeographs and the closely related but distinctly different
spirit duplicator
A spirit duplicator (also Rexograph and Ditto machine in North America, Banda machine and Fordigraph machine in the U.K. and Australia) is a printing method invented in 1923 by Wilhelm Ritzerfeld, which was used for most of the 20th century. Th ...
process were both used extensively in schools to copy homework assignments and tests. They were also commonly used for low-budget amateur
publishing
Publishing is the activities of making information, literature, music, software, and other content, physical or digital, available to the public for sale or free of charge. Traditionally, the term publishing refers to the creation and distribu ...
, including club newsletters and church bulletins. They were especially popular with
science fiction
Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
fans, who used them extensively in the production of
fanzine
A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) for the pleas ...
s in the middle 20th century, before photocopying became inexpensive.
Letters and typographical symbols were sometimes used to create illustrations, in a precursor to
ASCII art. Because changing ink color in a mimeograph could be a laborious process, involving extensively cleaning the machine or, on newer models, replacing the drum or rollers, and then running the paper through the machine a second time, some fanzine publishers experimented with techniques for painting several colors on the pad.
In addition, mimeographs were used by many resistance groups during
World War Two as a way to print illegal newspapers and publications in countries such as
Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
.
[Stone, Harry (1996). ''Writing in the Shadow: Resistance Publications in Occupied Europe'' (1st ed.). London: Cass. ISBN 0-7146-3424-7.]
In the NCIS Season 7 episode, "''Power Down''", agents McGee and DiNozzo bring a mimeograph up from the basement. McGee derisively comments, "Yeah, now all we need is a dinosaur who knows how to use it." before Agent Gibbs simply uses the device to make a number of replicants of a composite sketch. As the rest of the team looks on in amazement, Gibbs angrily shoulders past McGee.
See also
*
Duplicating machines
*
Gocco
*
List of duplicating processes
*
Mimeoscope
*
Mimeo Revolution
*
Spirit duplicator
A spirit duplicator (also Rexograph and Ditto machine in North America, Banda machine and Fordigraph machine in the U.K. and Australia) is a printing method invented in 1923 by Wilhelm Ritzerfeld, which was used for most of the 20th century. Th ...
(also known as a "Rexograph" or "Ditto machine" in the US or a "Banda machine" in the UK)
References
Further reading
* Hutchison, Howard (1979). ''Mimeograph Operation, Maintenance & Repair''. Blue Ridge Summit, PA: Tab Books. . .
External links
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Obsolete technologies
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