Underwood

As well as the pair of Boots, i also got this Underwood 315 for Christmas. It's a nice typewriter though the case is a little awkward to get the typewriter in and out! The typewriter is pleasingly beige and white.

A pair of Boots

Two of the typewriters i received for Christmas carry the Boots name, if you are UK based then you may be thinking "Boots the chemist?!" and you would be correct! The pharmacy and healthcare chain also sold goods in a number of tangental and unexpected areas until bean counters with MBAs no doubt told them they could squeeze more money out of the business without such fripperies like music (the first LP i ever bought was from Boots indeed) and typewriters. 

Boots sourced their typewriters from a number of places. The Boots Model 42 is an Erika 42 with an extra name label. Built in the German Democratic Republic. It types pretty well.

Later in the 1970s, Boots switched supplier to Silver-Reed for the PT800 which is a very similar typewriter to the Silverette and WH Smith branded Red Fox. Like those others, it is a wonderful little typewriter. These are numbers 16 and 17 in the collection.

Three new kings...

Merry christmas, nadolig llawen to you all. Santa has delivered three new typewriters to the collection (which seems apt). They are the Boots 42 and PT800 and an Underwood 315. We'll cover them in more detail over the coming days.

KOFA look at this

The latest typewriter to join the collection is here! Number 15 is this KOFA 300. Now, this typewriter is nowhere near as old as some of the others in the collection. The company's website, which looks like it was last updated in 1998, still lists it as available so maybe the typewriter was made in the 1990s. It works pretty well.

Update: i've just noticed the typewriter has the euro symbol so that would indicate late 1990s or early 2000s!

Showcase (4) : WH Smith Red Fox

From the late 1970s is this rather fine WH Smith branded typewriter, the Red Fox. It was actually made by Silver-Reed and is very similar to the Silver-Reed Silverette and SEVENTY typewriters which are also in the collection. One key difference is this typewriter is the red colour of course! The Red Fox works pretty well and has some rather tasteful grey keys.

If you are not UK based then you maybe have not heard of WH Smith before, they are a famous British newsagent and stationery store. They used to be one of the main places to go for office materials and hence selling their own typewriters was, as they say, probably a "no brainer". WH Smith also sold this same typewriter in grey (perhaps for companies who found a red office machine too garish), unfortunately our Grey Fox is rather broken but we will examine that in a future entry in the Showcase series.

Learning to touch type

If you have seen any of my typing videos then you know that i can type quite quickly though not proper touch typing. I have bought this book therefore and am thinking of learning how to type the proper way. I'm not sure how i am going to do this yet, i might document each lesson or just do a summary at the end. Then i might re-record those videos.

Listing the collection

As the collection has been growing fast (ten this year alone and three pending!) i decided it was time to create a listing page for my typewriter collection. It shows which year the typewriters joined the collection and also their status. You can see the page here.

A trio of typefaces

As we established in the post on typewriter forensics, all typewriter models had a unique "fingerprint", even down to the individual typewriters themselves. But how much did the different typefaces and typing quality of typewriter models vary? To demonstrate, i typed the same line of text on three of the typewriters in my collection and the results speak for themselves (yes i know i got the name of one of them wrong!) 

Typing on a Brother Deluxe 1350

Another typing video, this typewriter was the first one in my collection. It all started here.

Mysterious keys (3) : Margin-release

The margins on a typewriter stop you from typing off the edge of the paper. The margins are usually set using a pair of sliders (called margin stops) at the back of the carriage. You would set these taking into account where the paper is loaded and how much space you want either side of the text on the page. Generally, you want a reasonable bit of a margin either side of the text (at least a centimeter) to make your document look a bit more professional and also for ease of handling. Below is one of the margin stops on a WH Smith Grey Fox, notice also a scale for precise measurement!

But what if you needed to override the margin stops? There are occasions when you may need to type in the margins, for example in an academic work with numbered paragraphs for referencing purposes. In this case you use the margin-release key which helps the carriage pop over the limits set by the margin stops. What is written on the margin-release key seems to vary between typewriter manufactures (some just have "M-R" on it). Below is the key on a Silver-Reed SEVENTY, the design is pretty descriptive!

Electric 14

My Mum changed her mind and said i could have the Smith-Corona XE1630 already. The only condition being that if she needs anything typing i have to do it for her. Well that is a condition i am easily willing to accept (and i didn't say which typewriter i would use!) So here it is, typewriter number fourteen in the collection. It works very well actually, though i still don't like the soft keyboard.

I'll CC you in

Nowadays, with computers and printers you can print off as many copies off of a document as you like (paper supply and toner depending of course). However, what about in the days when documents were created on typewriters? If a copy was needed did you have to type the document twice?

No of course not, you used carbon paper. These were sheets of (basically) ink which you inserted between a couple of sheets of paper and then loaded into the typewriter. When the hammer hits the top sheet (through the ribbon) the impact also makes a mark on the bottom sheet. By magic you now have two copies of the document, one to send to the client and the other to languish in a grey filing cabinet.

I bought some carbon paper and had a play with it using my Silver-Reed SEVENTY. I think my copy needs only to be filed in the shredder. Carbon copy paper is not used so much these days with typed documents (though is used elsewhere such as on written order sheets) but the term has survived into the computer age. When you "CC" someone into an e-mail you are "carbon copying" them in. And everyone loves receiving those copies don't they?

Showcase (3) : Adsit Graduate

This is an attractive and light weight portable typewriter from the 1970s, the Adsit Graduate is in fact a product of Smith-Corona as it states on the back of the machine. The typewriter is a British made and locally branded version of the Smith-Corona Corsair. 

The typewriter doesn't work too well unfortunately, a number of hammers get stuck including the letter A which is awkward (especially as you can't even type the word). The typewriter looks to be overall in decent condition though and largely mechanically sound so it may be fixable.

Typing on an Erika 105

Another typing video, this time on my Erika 105 which was made in the German Democratic Republic. 

One day we'll be electric

I found my Mum's last typewriter (well she might buy another though it would be pretty unlikely now) earlier today at her house. One day it will be part of my collection, though not yet as she wants to keep it for now, just in case. 

When i do get my hands on it though it will be a Bob Dylan moment of the collection as the typewriter is a Smith Corona XE1630 and is... gasp... electric! I think it works OK and may give it a try out soon. I don't really like the keyboard though as it is rather soft and quiet. I like loud keyboards (obviously), even my Mac mini has a clicky keyboard that is louder than the Big Bang.

Tagging and videoing

At the weekend i recorded some more videos where i type on the typewriters in my collection. I think everything that can be typed on has now been videoed, these videos will appear here over the next few months. I have also completed the name tags on the typewriters in the collection. Maybe i have been watching too many horror films but it does kind of remind me of a morgue.

Typewriter forensics

Every typewriter is unique. Each model has it's own characteristics, including the typeface of course. Individual typewriters would also gain their own characteristics. A certain letter might become slightly out of alignment compared to the others, spacing might vary a tiny amount. Even the way someone typed was different. This allowed typewriters to be a focus for forensic examiners sometimes in criminal investigation as the typewriter of a suspect could be linked to a crime.

This is illustrated in the decent early 1940s crime drama The Panther's Claw. A man is suspected of being a blackmailer. One of the pieces of evidence the police seek out is an example of typing from the suspect's typewriter so they can compare it against the ransom note. Of course criminals also knew that typewriters could be used to identify them and link them to crimes, in the late 1930s film The League of Frightened Men a suspect manages to prevent a detective from getting a type sample from their machine.

So the moral of this is, if you are intending to commit a crime make sure you use someone else's typewriter!

New ribbon for the Imperial 201

As i said in an earlier post, the latest typewriter to join the collection - a Litton Imperial 201 - mechanically works very well. Or seemed to anyway. The ribbon was completely dead so i couldn't be completely sure as nothing much appeared when typing! Today i received a new ribbon for the typewriter and happily i can report that it types very well indeed. It is also pretty quiet compared to some of the others, especially the way i bang the keys.

Mysterious keys (2) : Where is number 1?

Someone more used to a microcomputer keyboard than a typewriter, will find the inclusion of various symbols on a typewriter somewhat mysterious or confusing, as we are exploring in this series. They may find what is NOT included even more mysterious. Many typewriters, especially portables such as my Silver-Reed SEVENTY (as shown below) do not have the number 1!

Space was a premium on a typewriter keyboard. Unlike a microcomputer, each key cannot have extra characters and symbols mapped to it after the fact, you are largely stuck with what you have when the typewriter was bought (though the typewriter could be modified if your need/budget was big enough). 

With limited space, especially for hammers, the number 1 is an easy one to miss out even though you would think it would be pretty fundamental. This is because a lowercase l works pretty well as a 1. You can also use a capital I perhaps though a lowercase l more looks the part. Not all portable typewriters lack a number 1 but many do.

Typewriter 13

The 13th typewriter has joined the collection and it is rather nice. It is an Imperial typewriter but from the end of the brand's life when it was owned by Litton and the typewriters were made in Japan. It is a Litton Imperial 201 and works pretty well though is a bit grubby and needs a new ribbon.

More cake labels

More cakes have been baked by my wife, so of course that means my Olympiette needs to do some more labels.

Showcase (2) : Imperial 2002

From the 1970s is this Imperial 2002, and very of it's time it is too. Its in a rather nice cream with a space age font for the model name (very 1970s!) The typewriter is in good condition and rather clean too unlike some of the others in the collection.

Imperial was a typewriter manufacturer based in Leicester. However, in 1966 it was bought by Litton Industries and it's products became based on the Royal Typewriter Company's range. Production ceased in the UK in 1975. The 2002 was built in Portugal in the late 1970s and by now the "Imperial" brand had little in it which was British. This doesn't stop my 2002 being a very fine typewriter.

All tagged up

The typewriter collection is steadily growing, in double figures now. One problem is a number of the typewriters look very similar in their cases so i was thinking of a way to tell them apart without having to go through them opening them up trying to find the typewriter i need. I did not want to put stickers on or deface the cases. My bright idea is to use tags! This does not damage the typewriters in any way and also makes it look like some kind of important archive collection. Which maybe it is.

Magnetic Tape Selectric Typewriter

Nowadays anyone can have a pretty powerful word processor in their web browser and before that the likes of Microsoft Word and Wordstar were essential software installed on millions of computers. But before the electronic word processor there was of course the typewriter, with companies having rooms full of typists typing away. Typewriters had a number of disadvantages (apparently). To amend a document (to fix some typos or change some details like a date or address) often meant it had to be typed out again entirely. However, there was a technology developed by IBM which could solve this problem.

The Magnetic Tape Selectric Typewriter was a version of the highly popular IBM Selectric electric typewriter and was the first device to be marketed as a word processor in 1964. The MT/ST stored documents on magnetic tape. Each tape cartridge could store up to 25K which doesn't sound a lot these days but was perfectly adequate for a page of text. Later on IBM released the MagCard system, these were punched card sized magnetic cards which could store up to 8, 000 characters.

Documents could be edited by the typist by loading the document onto the typewriter (which being electric could print it out from storage) and then the typist would amend the document by crossing out or overwriting text. These changes were then stored on the tape cartridge or card. Once the edits had been made onto draft copies then the final version could be printed out on the nice paper. With two drives even mail merge could be performed.

The IBM MT/ST was successful in the 1960s but by the 1970s the technology was obsolete and had been surpassed by screen based word processors by the likes of Wang, however this is where the road to Word, Apple Pages et cetera began.

Image from IBM Mag Card Composer manual

Typing on a Silver-Reed Silverette

I thought i might post a few videos of me typing on some of the typewriters in my collection. Here is the first, more will follow... when i actually record them!

Working on the Grey Fox

As mentioned earlier, the Grey Fox typewriter doesn't work really at all. Today i began some repairs on it, not really knowing what i was doing of course but it is all part of the learning process. I've managed to improve matters with the Grey Fox anyway, it now can type reasonably well. Though red only. Work will continue...

The Grey Fox

The latest typewriter to join the collection is this Grey Fox, like my Red Fox it is WH Smith branded and looks to be a Silver-Reed product. Unlike my Red Fox though the Grey Fox needs quite a lot of work, it is missing a key (number 8), some of the hammers are bent. That doesn't really matter as the ribbon doesn't lift so nothing is typed anyway! We'll see if we can get this working one day, for the moment it is just there looking pretty!

What can you actually use your typewriters for? Cake labels!

So you have a typewriter collection, you are justly proud of it and often get one of the typewriters out to play with. But what can you use your typewriters for, in a proper useful sense? Well, one use i have found is to do ingredient labels for the cakes my wife makes. In the past i used to write down the ingredients on a sticky label but where is the fun in that? My beloved Olympia Olympiette, the best typewriter i have, makes a much better job of it. 

This isn't the first time i've used a typewriter "in anger". Once i had to write a very official letter, while the letter itself was done on my computer and laser printed i needed something to write the address on the envelope. My Brother Deluxe 1350 did a good job, as did it's distant cousin my Brother laser printer on the actual letter!

Mysterious keys (1) : Silver-Reed bullet points

If you are used to modern microcomputer keyboards, with over a hundred keys, then a typewriter with about half of that will seem quite odd. Many keys you may take for granted on a microcomputer keyboard do not exist on a usual typewriter, plus there are plenty of keys you'll never see on a computer too as this series will explore. 

An example is the bullet point key which my Silver-Reed typewriters both have. A standard bullet point key on a microcomputer keyboard would probably be a good thing considering the mess Word makes out of them.

Showcase (1) : Silver-Reed SEVENTY

Beginning the Showcase of my typewriter collection. A monthly feature where one of the typewriters in the collection is... well, showcased!

We will start with the Silver-Reed SEVENTY, this typewriter is similar to a few others i have got, including my Silver-Reed Silverette. It is a nice compact little portable typewriter that is in remarkable condition. When i first received it i thought it was brand new! It was only after a closer inspection that i could see there was a little wear and tear here and there, though not much. The typewriter looks like it has not been used much or, if it has it has, it has been very well cared for.

It types pretty well, a couple of keys on the fringes are a bit awkward but that might just require a little correction. It only types in one colour (black).

Welcome to the Typewriter Museum

Welcome to the Typewriter Museum, a blog dedicated to my steadily growing typewriter collection and other items of interest from the typewriter world.