Sunday, May 6, 2012

The Big Reveal: Olivetti Graphika

Remember the big acquisition I mentioned in a previous typecast? Here she is:

Seeing this, and realizing it wasn't all that huge, actually made me appreciate how large the Studio 44 was!
The character spacing lever is right next to the ribbon color selector. Quite handy.
The ridging on the back is reminiscent of the Lettera 32.
The keyboard, also quite similar to the Studio 44's.
The Swiss-French keyboard, with degree sign on the 1 key. 

Here is a link to Richard's write-up on his own Graphika, as well as the computer fonts he created from his own Graphika's Cassandre typeface and the Imre Reiner typeface that's on my Graphika.

21 comments:

  1. Oh! My! Goodness! This! Is! An! Awesome! Typewriter!

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  2. Congratulations on yet another great find! I'm happy that your big reveal turns out to be an Olivetti. ( :

    What's really surprising for me to know is that its not too much bigger than a Studio 44, although you did mention "footprint" and not height and weight. The keys do seem to match the Studio 44. I am curious if the stiff typing feel is somehow close to the desirable- for me at least -resistance of a Studio 44 as well.

    I noticed that some of your pics look more blue-gray than olive green, the latter is more accurate, right? It looks stunning, especially in the first pic.

    I've set my limit at semi-standards although I've always been drawn to the Olivetti Graphika and the magical Diaspron. Your post has whetted my appetite!

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    1. Ton, it's definitely olive-green - the sun has been playing hide-and-seek in Geneva today and I suppose my camera picked up on all the light changes.

      Of course, it is significantly taller and heavier than a Studio 44: not twice the height, but I would say 1.5 times (I just measured and it is just barely 9 inches tall, from the rubber feet to the top of the carriage release lever). Can't recall how much a Studio 44 weighs, but I put this on the scale and it came up at 15kg (33lbs). No featherweight to be sure, but I'd bet a Hermes Ambassador weighs quite a bit more.

      As for the typing feel, I just realized I forgot to adjust the tension - the resistance was firm but fine, and I look forward to trying the other settings as well.

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  3. Wonderful, simply wonderful!!!
    The Graphika (with Italian QZERTY layout) is on my wish-list :-D

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  4. Wow! That is an impressive beast of a typewriter. Congratulations on scoring a distinct typeface.

    I'm with you on wanting to stick to the portable machines. Our Oliver 9 is a significant space investment. I'm glad that such a special machine found a good home with someone who will actually use it.

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  5. Very interesting! I don't think I will ever find one lying about a goodwill. I sure hope to try one some day.

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  6. My jealousy is palpable. Is this your first desktop monster? I know people love their portables, but you have not known the joys of typing until you use a desktop standard. Congrats!

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  7. Fantastic find! It seems to type really well, and I like the look of this typeface. (I hadn't yet seen an extensive typing sample.) Congratulations!

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  8. Congratulations! What a superb find! I envy you. We do not get such machines in Florida. I love that typeface. Reminds me quite a bit of Hermes Apoca.

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  9. Greets... that's BIG... I just got an Olympia SG-1, and am having site location issues....!
    Speaking of exclamation points -- there is a "cheat", maybe... after the sentence, hit and hold the spacebar down and the shift ket--which gets you 1/2 a space... while holding it down, type an apostrophe, then a period... and you should have an exclamation point....
    --mike
    aka phillytyper

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  10. Olivetti continues to amaze me with their variety of ideas. No other manufacturer seems to have produced as many noteworthy machines.

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  11. "[A]n exclamation mark … requires the apostrophe, two backspaces, and then a period." --- AhhH'haha-ha. That's great! Dig the Richard P. fonts link too! Have "learned so much" in the past three weekends from/about the typosphere! RTG, CTP, MOLG, CambridgeTypewriter, MrMartin, MrTW, VintageTWShoppe, TWHeaven, MagicMargin, ... Etsy, eBay, .PDFs. [maschinengeschrieben?!]

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  12. An intoxicating reveal and a wide dolphin smile on the Graphika, beautiful.

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  13. PS: Somehow I have two standards. The best performing lives under the spare bed in a black refuse bag. Worth making room for.

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  14. This is one of the most unique typefaces I've seen in the Typosphere. You really scored on this one, Adwoa! What a lovely machine to add to your very interesting collection.

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  15. Congratulations, what a beautiful find!

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  16. Beautiful! I love the carriage-return arm in that distinctive spoon-bill shape, like on the Studio 44 (but, presumably, without the fold-back joint). Thanks for sharing this outstanding machine.

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  17. Beautiful typewriter! It's a very good find!

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  18. That's a really exclusive typeface. And an amazing machine. It almost makes me want to have one :)

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  19. Thanks, again, for your post! I guess the degree sign is mostly for writing French numéro = n°, but yes, these days it comes in handy as a degree sign.

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