Many years ago when we moved house, I found an old Ewbank mangle abandoned in the garden, which was overgrown with weeds and half buried in mud. I dragged it out, and with the help of a local blacksmith, freed and cleaned up the cast iron mechanism to get it working again.
Although various parts were missing, the two rollers and winding handle plus all their cogs were in place, so I dragged it into my workshop and began to use it for printmaking. It produced quirky results, as the rubber rollers were somewhat cracked and bobbly, but for teaching myself printmaking it was lovely to use as a beginner’s press.
Fast forward the years, and with another house move, a new workshop, and the mangle left unused while the house project was taking up all my time, I eventually returned to the machine to discover that the rubber on the rollers was even more decrepit than I remembered. Age, damp or possibly ongoing corrosion from (historic) washing powders had caused the rubber rollers to crack to the cores and I felt further printmaking was not an option until the rollers could be fixed or replaced.
After searching online, I followed various suggestions to find a local commercial roller-making company, and found North West Rollers based in Runcorn, Cheshire. Danny kindly took a look at my mangle rollers, despite their usual customers being global commercial printing companies, but although he was keen to help, the verdict was doubtful. The problem was that the metal core running through the rollers was square rather than round, and all of their roller rehabbing machines were designed for re-wrapping a circular shaft. It was not possible to use a completely new roller as the shafts from the mangle had cogs attached at the ends – necessary for the winding mechanism. Various options were discussed but nothing could be promised until the rubber had been stripped from the cores and the position assessed from there.
I continued to ask around and was recommended to try Ironbridge Fine Arts, who make fabulous printmaking presses, as well as their own rollers. Jenny Gunning responded to my enquiry but again they were unable to help. However she recommended The Logan Press in Northamptonshire and this brought me to Patrick Roe who founded the company and who runs an amazing letterpress restoration workshop near Kettering.
Through Patrick’s network, the rollers were sent to another specialist, Richard Hemingway, who was able to strip off the old rubber, create new round wooden inners that enveloped the square cores, and sheath them in steel which was then welded onto the cast iron cores.
My mangle is almost unrecognisable with its stunning new rollers – and printmaking in the workshop is now all systems go!
You can find my printmaking courses here.
Huge thanks to all who helped with this historic restoration quest!!
sargiesmess.co.uk 
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