I bought a Mini Halfwood etching press a while back, and am really loving it. The bed of this little press is 6" x 16." I'm planning to use it to make miniature books, so it's just the right size for me. I've had huge fun using it, and I must confess I've gotten embarrassingly attached to the little beast -- almost to the point of giving it a name. I haven't done it yet. But.
Printmaker Bill Ritchie invented the Mini Halfwood, as well as other tabletop presses. He says on his website that he wanted his presses to have the feel of a sailing ship interior, and his presses are wonderfully elegant looking, as well as functional.
I've been playing around with different tools to see what kind of drypoint marks they make. Above is one of my scribblings, printed on the Mini Halfwood using Arches 88 paper. I've found that some of my bookbinding awls make interesting lines.
Below, I printed the same plate on handmade paper:
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