I've been looking around for a typewriter for a while. I wanted something that looked good and worked. Mostly I was finding either unusable machines or nice ones way out of my price range.
Here we have a beautiful, compact, portable Smith-Corona Silent-Super model. Wow, it kind of just fell in my lap. I found it at my favourite reuse shop here in Portland
ReClaimIt!. It looked very clean and well cared for. I put a sheet of paper in it and found four slow keys, two on either end at the top, but no sticking keys. The ribbon was worn out with faded print.
After a couple of days I found a shop,
Ace Typewriter in St. Johns, North Portland, again, Wow! What a place! Anyway the shop owner had ribbons and he had a look at the mechanisms and added a few drops of oil to the slow keys. They freed up immediately. Yes! He praised the machine, and said I got a very good deal. My internet research proves that out.
It also has it's own hard carrying case, he said it was made in such a way that the mechanism that holds the typewriter in place could be removed and the case which was made by Samsonite could be and was intended to be used as a small suitcase. Yes!
The machine (I'm going to have to name it) near as I can tell was made in 1956. I paid $35, the new ribbon was $8 and I tipped the shop owner $2 for his evaluation and the oil. He told me the best way to keep it in working order was to use it. I think he said that four times.
Um, can you tell I'm excited?
