“The ultimate Adana flatbed” is how Bob Richardson describes the Adana QH (which is also referred to as the Adana HQ). The machine is capable of a large printing area (9.75″ x 7.25″) but speed of output is slow. This dissuaded the jobbing printer from using this machine; but it was taken up by art colleges and those wishing to experiment. John Ryder’s ‘Printing for Pleasure’ makes a great case for the QH — the flat bed allows simpler locking-up; and for inking to be carried out selectively. There are many who consider the inking mechanism inadequate and remove the arms to allow hand-inking by roller.
The Adana series of flatbed machines began in 1922, and the QH was the last in that series. The immediate predecessor of the QH was the ‘QFB-1945’. The QH initially came out in 1949 without an inking disc, and a single, large roller. By 1957 this was phased out in favour of a rotating ink disc and two smaller rollers. Adana discontinued the machine in 1985.
The QH has a number of refinements: there screw in the back of the platen prevents too much force being applied to the forme; and an eccentric rod at the hinged end allows for adjustment to create a level printing surface. The press is commonly called the Adana HQ, but the firm’s catalogues state that the machine is called the ‘Adana QH’.
These machines are more sought-after and appear on the market less frequently than Adana’s vertical platen machines.