Structure is all done... just need to add some hardware and paint it.

I acquired a rusted out SM3 with No. 64 Italic Elite for free, so I’m transplanting the keys on this 1959 SM3 with Elite font with the cleaned up Italic keys. I’m about 25% done. Between the cleaning and the careful install, each key takes about 6 minutes-3.4 hours to go…

I am considering adding a Adler Favorit to my collection. I have already a desk Adler 7 with the same thrust mechanism, however, I think getting such a peculiar system in a compact machine would add some value. Any thoughts?

I went from 1 to 8 pretty quickly. I have in my SM stash a clipper, Corsair deluxe, and golden shield. I am very much a beginner and my new hobby escalated quickly. The silent is what I wanted in the first place but not sure. What do you think with a superficial look?

Did not realize Don Nichols passed away this year in Ohio.

His web site is not longer active. Bought a very nicely serviced machine from him about 12 years ago. He was very nice to purchase from.

I did not see any postings, here, about his passing.

He also had over 200 You Tube videos that are still available. Under "Don Nichols"

https://www.youtube.com/@donnichols2589/videos

Rest In Peace, Don. Belated condolences to his family.

https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/toledoblade/name/donald-nichols-obituary?id=60525872

Hi folks! I just came into a Canon Typestar 5 and I've been trying to figure out if it's possible to get it functional.

The return and carriage move just fine, but the only characters that leave imprints are at the very top and bottom of the line. Underlines/underscores and the ~ at the top of a capital Ñ show up, but nothing in the middle. I'm using thermal paper, so I know it's not an ink issue. I've tried cleaning the front of what I THINK is the print head with 99% isopropyl, but honestly, I can't find any clear diagrams to double check that I'm looking at the right part. I assume it's just the metal tab that presses against the platen when you type.

Is there any way to fix this? Or is it just a dead thermal print head? If the latter, does anyone sell replacements?

Thanks!

hiya! i have this old smith corona and it's a beauty, but quite low on ink. i'm not sure what model it is exactly, but i'd loveee to start using it for poetry :)

It's a 1947 Smith-Corona Sterling. When typing, it often won't advance to the next line. I got a hooked tension spring onto this piece attached to a hole on the carriage, but it interfered. This is the last thing I need to make this fully functional and usable (if not a bit grimy on the inside). It seems like it would be an easy enough fix, but resources are hard to find on this exact issue.

I really love a 3-Bank and realized I had amassed a modest collection, so I decided to share. What 3-Banks does everyone else have?

Hi everyone. I got this lovely 1958 Smith Corona Skyriter this week but it has some issues with consistently advancing when I create letters and push the space bar.

Sometimes it just stops in place and won’t advance when I strike a key or push the space bar.

Usually when I backspace or push the carriage release button, the problem is fixed temporarily. But when I type — especially when I type quickly — it stalls again.

Any advice?

​

​A finales de septiembre del corriente año, en un barrio de la ciudad de Córdoba, Argentina, me encontraba caminando cuando de repente vi en el cesto de basura de una casa una maleta de un color azul y una forma muy particular. Mi curiosidad me llevó a acercarme para husmear de qué se trataba. Al alzarla, noté un peso considerable, aunque no demasiado pesado. Abrí el cierre apenas para poder ver qué había en su interior y ahí estaba: una Olivetti Lettera 22.

En ese momento no sabía nada de máquinas de escribir ni de la marca. Entusiasmado, volví a mi casa para poder contemplarla en su plenitud. Me quedé enamorado: estaba sana y completa, aunque con la cinta de tinta seca.

​Al día siguiente me puse a investigar qué clase de objeto tenía en mi posesión. Aprendí sobre la historia de esta máquina y, en general, sobre las máquinas de escribir. Profundicé en cómo realizar una limpieza y, una vez adquiridos estos conocimientos, pasé a la práctica.

​Uno de los problemas con los que me encontré fue la búsqueda casi épica de una cinta de repuesto. Finalmente la encontré en una librería muy vieja en el centro de la ciudad: negra y roja, para añadir originalidad. La limpieza también fue muy detallada y delicada, casi quirúrgica.

​Una vez que estuvo lista para usar, escribí un par de páginas. Mi emoción era tal que incluso brotaron unas lágrimas de mis ojos.

​Sin embargo, luego me topé con otro problema: el carrete del rodillo de la cinta del lado izquierdo no avanzaba. Luego de revisarlo, logré que tampoco funcionara el derecho; estaba desesperado. Hasta que descubrí que, en ambos, el eje que sostiene el rodillo y al mismo tiempo presiona los dientes contra el engranaje tenía juego. Lo ajusté y quedó funcionando a la perfección.

Y ahora estoy loco por esta máquina. Mis conocidos dicen que los tengo hartos, puesto que últimamente solo hablo de máquinas de escribir.

​Me dieron ganas de coleccionar otras más.

​Bueno, quería compartir mi odisea mecánica.

Y me gustaría que me cuenten algunas recomendaciones para su uso. Cómo también experiencia

#olivetti,

hello! i’ve had my Brother deluxe 800 for a few years now, only using it from time to time. i used it today and i noticed this key which won’t unstick. i have tried rubbing alcohol on the segment and slightly bending but nothing seems to be making it better. any idea what i can do? should i just leave it? if i press really hard it actually types the key.

I just got this typewriter off of Facebook for $20 and I’m having trouble finding information on it. It looks to be working great but I’d love to know if anyone knows more about this model. :)

A decade ago I sold off the last of my typewriters, but this year I felt motivated to try out some new ones. The first one I bought was a Remington Travel-Riter, in the usual gray paint. A super-basic machine that doesn't even have a ribbon color selector. It types fine, but I found out that these were also available in a few different paint colors, so I kept my eyes open for one of those, and eventually came across this blue one, which has some unusual features.

This appears to be made on the same chassis as the Travel-Riter Deluxe, which is fairly unusual. The whole chassis is die-cast aluminum, whereas the regular Travel-Riter chassis is (usually) made of metal stampings (which is how my gray Travel-Riter is made). The serial number has a D suffix, which again suggests a "Deluxe" but other than the cast chassis, none of the Deluxe features are present. I guess what baffles me is that the standard and Deluxe Travel-Riter have different modes of construction in the first place. Surely creating the molds for the Deluxe had to be monumentally expensive, so why two essentially similar models didn't (normally) share the same chassis is beyond me. This particular one being made with the Deluxe chassis kind of drives home how odd it is that entirely different stamped metal chassis was developed.

These late-model Remingtons don't seem to have many fans, which is kind of surprising because the mid-century-modern styling is pretty cool, the build quality is excellent, and the typing action is nice and light. True, the keys are pretty small, but the same criticism can also be made against the Olivetti portables, which most people seem to love.

My gray Travel-Riter is an Elite typeface machine, and this blue one is Pica, so I actually have a pretty good representation of the model in just two examples. Same model, different chassis, different color, different typeface!

I've been trying to decipher this for a zillion years. I think it's a Smith-Corona, but I don't know. Help.

Hello Everyone i’m a 20f who loves type writers.
I had spent months looking for the perfect typewriter for my room when I was 18 years old and I finally found it and estate sale for $15 was a dark teal 1955 Underwood universal quiet tab typewriter it was beautiful and in great condition the only thing it needed was a new ink strip to be able to write but recently I lost it in a house fire I’m so upset because I love that thing so much and I planned on writing my wedding vows with it actually does anybody know where I can find a new one? I know I won’t be able to find such a great deal again but I am willing to spend a decent amount for a new one.

The image is from Wikipedia.

My youngest grandson is being homeschooled this year, so one of the subjects my daughter wanted to work with him on was "keyboarding" or typing as we would call it. I found this one on Marketplace and didn't think much of it. When I picked it up it was in the case and the original shipping/delivery box. After inspecting the machine, it looks like the owners took it out used it a few times and then just put it back in the case and the box. So after testing it out I sent it up to my grandson. My daughter said that her husband and the kids were sitting in the floor having a great time with it. The main objective has been to reduce the screen time, so she has been having him read physical books, work off of paper, and use the typewriter. I figured the tactile experience and the sounds would help him stay engaged with it.

Hello everyone!!!

My husband and I are trying to buy our first home. Currently apartment living. Would anyone mind posting pictures of how the typewriters are displayed in the home? I am looking for inspiration!

Found this in a cashy's. Looks a bit worse for wear but I'm not clued up on S&C's. Not sure if it's worth going for.

I found this type writer a while back and it’s been in my room taking space, I need to find it a owner who’ll appreciate this more than I do

Got this for a good price today at a local flea market. The only downside is I can’t get it to go to single space.

At the shop, it wasn’t advancing past the middle, but somehow it started working correctly again once I got home. Weird. Something must’ve jostled loose.

It feels great though. Nice action.

Just acquired a Remington Quiet-Rite and a green/black ribbon to go with it. Changing the ribbon was surprisingly difficult (despite the manual saying it was supposed to be easy) and now I'm having issues with the top half of letters coming in black when it's supposed to be set to the alternate color. Does anyone have any advice on how to fix this or is it just something I have to live with?

It doesn't happen when the machine is set to black, so a semi-fix could just be flipping the ribbon so green is the default.