So mark your calendars, limber your fingers, and start tuning up your favorite typewriter(s)! More details and specifics to come shortly.
If you’re nearby and can spare some time to help volunteer, drop me a line.
03/11/25 11:54am: Deputies are in the field notifying residents of local mud/debris flow risk from EATON FIRE burn scar. The areas near the San Gabriel Foothills in Altadena are under EVACUATION WARNING until at least 3/13/25 6pm due to risk of losing access. PREPARE NOW. More info at alertla.org.
Fortunately (?) I’m still evacuated from January 7th about 6 miles south.
Serial number: D3P08521
While I wouldn’t call these rare, I don’t see them pop up very frequently, and even less frequently do I see them in the non-traditional black enamel. I’m definitely thrilled to have one with the DuPont DUCO light maroon with the contrasting panels in crackle finish rose gold. I’m hoping it’ll be a stunning workable machine when I’m done with the cleaning and restoration work.
Preparation of a typeface sample is going to require some repair work.
Serial number: 335207
A 3 bank typewriter that folds in half for portability.
The case is in reasonably good shape considering its age, but some of the fabric is coming off and a previous owner has chosen to tape portions of it together. I’ll likely do some serious restoration work to the case at some point.
The machine itself is in pretty solid shape considering the age. Someone kept the slugs clean. Things are a bit sluggish, so it’s going to need a solid cleaning which I’m hoping will bring most of the functionality back to snuff. The ribbon vibrator seems a tad slow, particularly for keys struck on the left side of the keyboard. The platen and carriage area are going to need a good scrub as there’s some dirt and grime stuck in it. I suspect that I won’t be using the manual’s suggestion of gasoline to clean things out however.
The machine came with a cleaning brush and an original instruction manual, which is somewhat useful as some of the mechanisms aren’t as straightforward as on later models as well as things unique to this particular folding machine.
This has an even smaller return/line advance mechanism than my Orga Privat 5 and is bordering on almost not existing. It’s just the tiniest little nub actuated with the forefinger and thumb to advance the line while pushing the carriage to the right. There really isn’t a carriage return lever to speak of, but the mechanism is quite clever.
This is my first machine with a “figure” key, which allows for the use of the third row of characters on the slugs. It’ll take some getting used to for using it, particularly as the keyboard seems shifted over with respect to the home row of keys which means that there isn’t a key for one’s pinky to rest on or use. As a result it’s going to be difficult doing traditional touch typing at speed.
The machine only came with a monochrome ribbon though it does have bichrome capability using a switch on the ribbon vibrator assembly which is found on the left side in an odd configuration.
I was able to eke out a typesample without too much trouble, but I’ll wait until the machine is cleaned up and back in proper order before attempting to use it for more than a minute or two. I suspect it’ll need some tensioning on the miniscule mainspring assembly.
Overall, it’s compact and clever in so many interesting ways.
Serial number: FPP-6164099
Standard platen, pica typeface, in Royaltone or Pearl Light Gray smooth
My wide carriage 1958 FPE was so nice I thought I’d try out the larger face in a more traditional carriage.
Serial number: 2613754
Congress Elite No. 84 typeface, 11 CPI (2.3 m/m)
It’s a solid looking machine aside from some small damage to the rivets at the back of the case, some paint wear on the hood from a too-low carriage return arm, and some dried out and cracked rubber feet. Even the ribbon seems usable. It’s hiding a Congress Elite No. 84 font at 11 CPI (2.3 m/m). Someone both used and loved this machine and even put it away last with clean slugs. This should be imminently restorable to it’s former glory.
Given how sought after these are as one of the best portables ever made and the generally excellent condition, I can’t bring myself to tell the pittance I found it for, particularly when I see ones in mediocre or unknown shape going for over $100 on many of the auction sites lately. Given how 2025 has been going so far, I’ll gratefully take the win. Naturally it’ll be a minute before I can clean it up properly, but I can already tell this will be a fun little machine. I can’t wait to do a direct comparison with it’s carriage shifted SM3 “little brother”.
I’ve uploaded some preliminary photos of it in its received condition including one of the bottom to show the “furriness” of the pre-serviced condition.
His struggles with writer’s block led him to create a process that favored an expressive, personal approach over rigid academic conventions that often stifled students.
For my own files, from the obituary, it looks like he was using an IBM Selectric I in some of his early work.
Serial Number: J732492 from October 1945
Pica typeface
This got delivered on the 21st, but I hadn’t had a chance to take a look at it until today. It’s not in terrible cosmetic shape, but has definitely been collecting dust and cob webs for a few decades. It seems to be in reasonable mechanical shape. There is a sticky key or two that will need either some cleaning and/or forming. The carriage is going to need some serious cleaning and possible adjustment to slide cleanly. The mainspring probably needs some tightening, but I won’t be able to tell properly until the machine is cleaned up. Some of the internal felt portions will also need some re-gluing. Beyond this, this 80 year old typewriter should come roaring back to life sometime soon. (The recent Eaton Fire means it may take a bit longer to address the underlying issues as my tools and “shop” are quarantined / uninhabitable.)
I’ve uploaded a few “before” photos for general identification, but will update in the near future with some better ones post-cleaning and adjustment.
Olympia SM3s are well-touted and excellent typewriters. They’ve recently been selling on ShopGoodwill in unknown condition for $120-150 based only on photos.
Earlier today, an Olympia SM3 sold for $334! So what gives? Why did this go for over twice as much as the average? To the uninitiated, the seasoned collector can look at this machine carefully and realize that even without seeing a type sample or a close up photo of the slugs that this machine is quietly hiding a script typeface of some kind. This means that two bidders would have paid an almost $200 premium for a script typeface, and one of them managed to snipe it for $1 with minutes left. Generally I see script machines going for $100-150 over similar machines without script.
Sadly, the high price on this machine earlier in the day may have suckered others into thinking these machines are significantly more valuable as it seems two other Olympia SM3s right after it both went for:
And they were bid over 200 by the same two people while the “smarter” money stopped with bids at $137 on both.
Of course, neither of these later two machines have a script face, but at least two bidders were potentially reeled in by the much higher sales price of the script machine earlier in the day. This means that they’ve overpaid at least $50 above market for each, possibly thinking that they may have gotten a great deal. Sadly they didn’t, they just overpaid the market average. The person who was sniped on both managed to save themselves $100+ today because I imagine they’ll be able to get equivalent machines in the coming month for closer to under $150.
Incidentally another later Olympia portable (usually in the $75-120 range) earlier in the day went for a more reasonable $232 with a stated/photographed cursive typeface. This one was a stronger deal in the current market as they only paid about $110 above average for that machine to get the script typeface. The tough part is that because the description stated “cursive”, they didn’t have the benefit of possibly picking up a script machine with less competition.
While this is an interesting microcosm example of the current (overheated?) typewriter market (at least in the US), I hope all the buyers of these machines enjoy their purchases. If they’re your first Olympias, and they need some work to get back to fighting shape, I’ve put together a guide.
Serial Number: FPE-16-66444461
16" platen, elite typeface, in Royaltone or Pearl Light Gray smooth
Octavia ButlerSaturday, February 1, 2025
WE HAD A FIRE TODAY.
