I like making changes to some of my machines.

When I do, I try to get my inspiration from colours in Nature.

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The first Tappa Tappa event was awesome! People showed up, we had a great time, and already have the next one planned!

If you're interested in my thoughts you can check out this blog article.

TL:DR of the article: Put yourself out there -- the fear and nerves are worth the chance of finding a community you feel a part of, especially in person.

Saw a bloke earlier about to throw this in thr skip and convinced him i should have it instead. Just seemed like a bit of history was getting thrown away before my eyes. My SO is not completely impressed as apparently we have too much 'clutter' already but i would like to put this firmly in the non-clutter department by knowing a little more about it. It is so bloody heavy! As far as I can tell it is a Olivetti M40 but some of the pics online don't seem to have the top piece which seems for bigger A3 style paper but who knows.. any information qould be most welcome.

This typewriter belonged to my grandfather and was living in my parents' basement for the last 30 years. I picked it up yesterday and when i tried it out this problem came up.

I haven't tried to touch anything yet because I'm scared of making it worse. I asked around for help and could get some but for 300-400$. Maybe someone knows something and i could use the money instead for food this month.

Thank yoou!!

My partner noticed these while we were taking a look at the tab stops (I posted about some repair help in this other thread). They look like dates. We know the machine was built in 1931, but we don't know anything about its provenance. The dates seem to be prefixed with either 'O' or 'P'. Maybe a service record?

I saw Weaver has a 31-piece gunsmithing screwdriver set that I've read some people using for their typewriters and wanted to know if anyone had any experience with them, especially with regards to quality. It says they're made in China which doesn't instill a lot of confidence, but I'm happy to be wrong.

I recently bought this beautiful 1931 LC Smith & Corona #8 for an absolute steal. When I got it there were a couple problems (which I was aware of), but most of them were surface level and I've already fixed them. I have some questions though. I'll lay out what the issues were and how I've attempted to remedy them. Thanks!

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A few keys were "stuck"

The keybars would not return after the key press on E, O, and L. The Comma and Period keys were unable to be struck all the way, and sometimes the keybar wouldn't travel all the way to the platen.

My Fix:

For the E, I just worked it a few times until it loosened up a bit. Had some luck doing that with my 1963 Smith Corona Portable Electric, and it seemed to work here.

However, that method didn't work for the other keys. The O, Comma, and Period keys were being prevented from traveling all the way down by a pair of weird little clamps that had been installed at the bottom. I used a flathead screwdriver to remove these clamps. Some research showed that they were typically installed on the internal frame, but in this case they seemed to have been haphazardly wedged onto the bottom in between some loose spaces.

The L key was a bit of a different story. I noticed that it seemed to be freed up when I would push the space bar to the right. It turned out, there's this little clip slot that holds the space bar's typebars in place. One on either side. The space bar seemed to have come out of the one on the right side, and the slot was wedged in between the space bar and the L key, which meant that both typebars would struggle to return, but L was much worse (probably because the Space key had help on the left side from an unhindered slot and bar). I managed to get the typebar for the space key back into its little slot on the right side, and this freed up L a lot. However, as you can see in the pictures, the L typebar and space typebar seem to bend inward toward each other, so it still causes sporadic issues. Seems like it's more bowed than anything.

My question: Should I try to carefully bend the space typebar back to the right a little so it stops making contact with the L?

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The Tab Stop bar is bent

I suspect this machine must have been dropped at some point, or something like that, because the tab stop bar is literally bent, but on top of that, the entire platen assembly seems to be slightly crooked. This doesn't cause any issues except that the tab stop buttons (the ., 1, 10, 100, and 1000 buttons on the top of the keyboard) don't work. They just release completely, and the tab stop never actually stops them.

Question: Is this something that's even fixable? I'm not too worried about it, but curious.

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Noticed some strange green discoloration on the keys.

Not sure if this is paint or patina / "rust" of some kind. Some of it wiped off with a damp paper towel, most of it did not. It's on a few keys but these ones were the worst of it.

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Two of the tabulation keys are missing typebars

This is an obvious one. The bars are just straight up gone. I'm not super worried about it since the tab stops don't work anyway, but it causes the keys to forever be "pressed". Was wondering A) if it's worth hunting down bars to replace them, and B) how expensive / difficult that might be, since these bars are unique for these specific keys (compared to other keys on the keyboard).

Thank you for your insights!

Seller said it has all its original paperwork, manual, and buyers receipt from 1957. It looks to be in very good condition. Is there anything I should look out for when buying this writer?

Perhaps slightly off-topic but certainly adjacent.

I’m guessing most of us here have an affinity for analog things. I’m considering making my own paper to type on and am curious if anyone here has gone down this path.

I’d be interested in specific recipes or techniques for producing paper that can be typed on. I think it adds to the idea that a typed letter is a one of a kind original signed by the artist.

Thanks in advance| ✌🏻

I just bought a Olivetti lettera 32 but it's missing both spool nuts. Does anyone knows where I can buy them without spending too much? I'm not looking for the original part, just something that will work. Thanks

Hello everyone! Attached is the issue with the description.

This is the book I learned with in the 1960s. It is very much oriented to secretaries as that advanced lesson shows; by then it was teaching spacing and format, not typing.

So here’s some pics of my machines. Nothing special as far as I know. Most came from my dad who used to frequent auctions and estate sales. The black smith Corona was a machine an extended family member used to use to type up his invoices for his handmade sign/logo business a long time ago.

On several of them you’ll see the weird white on the keys. What is this and how can it best be cleaned off?

Hi

I won this in a auction, and when I opened the hard case. this fell out I have no idea where it is supposed to go. Thank you

i’m looking to pick up an electric typewriter and was wondering what models/brands are good to get

She wide.

One of many versions of the Brother JP-1 ultra-portable. This 1969 model has held up well, as most do. Almost always, the platen and feeds are good. The cases survive at a much higher rate than, say, anything Olympia or Adler made. Introduced in 1961 and still being sold as the Charger 11 as late as 1987.

Brother Valiant, Bradford, Brother Deluxe, Wizard TrueType Signature 100 Deluxe 1350, Valiant 391, Webster XL-747, Wedgefield 100, Majestic 812

Hello and thanks to those of you who already helped me with a separate issue! I have another question. The cover for my Smith-Corona Corsair Deluxe interferes with the tops of the type bars/slugs. The end keys swing up and down freely, but the center keys don't move at all (highlighted in red in my second picture). I considered the cause being one of the following, and would appreciate any help! I have considered the possible cause to be: A. A warped cover sagging down into the way, B. A worn down felt pad that doesn't hold the bars high enough out of the way, C. All the center bars are out of alignment (this seems unlikely) or, D. Something different entirely. Open to any and all suggestions! TIA!

Update: I fiddled with the rest that the felt pad is attached to which all the type bars rest on. I put the cover back and everything was moving as it should. With a little typing, certain keys got stuck again. I filed slightly at the spot where B and H are interfering, and it did not solve the problem. Going to fiddle with it more. Thanks everyone for your suggestions!

Did I spend too much on this TW? Bought in upstate NY yesterday everything seems to work but it’s quite dusty inside!

Hello! I am a writer (hobbyist) and would love to buy my first typewriter. I know very little about them and would love some advice from this community.

I'd love to buy a typewriter that is:

- relatively easy to get parts for / get repaired (parts are still being manufactured, so maybe something new and not vintage)

- user friendly for a beginner

- somewhere in the mid range, price-wise

Thank you to anyone who takes the time to comment with their recommendation!

So exciting...

I write with a lead foot.
Like a person speeding down Hollywood Blvd and not stopping at a single red light, stop sign or pedestrian. I write like a person being chased by the cops on the 10. I just abandon the laws, risks, words and frequently, the idea of a words - this is when I am having trouble finding the precise words or feelings I’m looking for at that particular moment and plan on circling back to it once I remember where I put them. I just haul ass.
It’s a process that has worked for me throughout the years. However, as cliche as it sounds, I am attempting to write a novel 🥴
And now I am tasked with having to revise what I wrote. You can’t begin to imagine the wreckage, the carnage on those sheets of paper. It’s brutal.

Sometimes I look back at what I wrote and i laugh because it reminds me of those passionate mediums who practice automatic writing. They believe in it so much! And I truly believe I am channeling something, finally, and the words are just pouring out of me and it’s so gratifying!
Then it’s time to see what the spirit has revealed through me, I look with excitement at the pages ready to be amazed by what was intended to be communicated through me and on the paper is just a bunch of smudges and swirlies.

My penmanship, or lack thereof, is now proving to be a problem. The content is fine, maybe, but the medium and the instruments I am utilizing to construct this little world that lives in my head are not.

I’m here asking for general information regarding typewriters. I looked at the digital ones and they seem cool, well some of them seem cool, others make me cringe. They look like they were created by a tech nerd who high jacked Frankensteins laboratory and plans to exhibit their monstrosity in an art gallery dedicated to masturbatory young straight male conceptual artists who make odd things exclusively for one another like some inside joke or something.

That is rude. I apologize to those who enjoy that hobby and I applaud your creativity.

I was thinking of going to a few thrift stores. Any luck finding typewriters at places like that?
Or have most of them been scooped up by hipsters or have not made it out of granny’s basement yet?

Are they expensive? I’m sure the actual machine itself isnt cheap. But what about the ink they require? Is it hard to find?

Thank you!!!
-Lorenzo

Hi all,

I recently picked up a Corona 3 from around 1923, and it has a keyboard layout that I haven’t been able to identify.

It’s clearly not standard QWERTY, nor does it seem to match the usual Dutch, German, French, or other European layouts I’ve looked at.

Q W X R T Y L J Z P
A H D E N M I K U
B S C V O G F

What I think makes it interesting is that where normally the E and the number 3 would be this is now an X with the number 3. This made me think that it could have been made to order.

It also has some interesting special characters, including a £ sign and what appears to be a A(Dutch) florin/guilder-related symbol, which makes me wonder whether the machine may have been configured for a particular profession, company, or type of commercial work.

Does anyone recognize this layout, or have an idea what kind of work might have required a keyboard like this in the early 1920s?

I’d be very interested in any theories — especially if anyone has seen another Corona with a similar keyboard.

Probably unrelated but the front under the Corona logo seems to be bent up..

I’ll add a clear photo of the keyboard below.

Thanks!

Tom