You’d think those early printers were just smashing type by hand, but they were actually doing a lot of engineering. They built a counterweight system to keep the pressure steady—no more hand‑cranked fatigue. The bed slats were interchangeable for different paper sizes, and the ink was a low‑viscosity paste that flowed under pressure, cutting out the waiting time between runs. Basically, they optimized the cycle time, reduced setup changes, and used modular tooling so a fresh page was almost ready by the time the previous one was inked. Think of it as the first workflow automation, but with a wooden crank.

Yeah, the wood’s just a metaphor for a repeatable, tweakable system—no fancy tech needed, just a well‑timed motion and a good design. That’s what makes even a crank a pretty efficient machine.

Exactly. If you strip it down to the essentials—steady motion, repeatable steps, and a solid framework—you’re still building a system that outperforms any flashy gadget. Wood just adds a bit of charm.