Gestetner 230

Vintage Gestetner duplicator 230 printing from a master stencil made from standard digital Risograph master paper, and cut using a thermal printing fax machine. This was just a fun experiment to see whether modern Riso masters could be used with an old Gestetner, as the original stencils are no longer made. The process is not straight forward, but it is possible! Documents can be scanned using a normal fax machine loaded with Risograph master paper so that the machine 'prints' onto the shiny side, but the cut stencil then has to be attached to the silk carrier of the Gestetner with the Polyethylene side facing outwards, so the image is printed in reverse. Therefore the original document to be scanned needs to be either printed as a mirror image, or made on a typewriter with a sheet of carbon behind the typing paper, placed face-up so that the rear of the document can be scanned.

Has anyone else had any luck with using these old duplicating machines? The original stencils are easy to cut on a typewriter and they work very well. The feed mechanism on this duplicator needs some adjustment, and probably some new rubber pads, as it will often send multiple sheets of paper through.