Typecast: A Tale of Two Babies

Look at that immaculate paint finish! I couldn't be prouder of this thing if I had pulled a Hephaestus and forged it with my bare hands. I made sure to take several pictures before sending it off wistfully. And not without a twinge of regret, but that's ok.

In this and all the other pictures, New Baby is on the right - and here you can really see the difference. Old Baby seems to have a few bumps and scuffs, while New Baby is gleaming. Oh, the other thing I almost forgot to mention is that New Baby has a Swiss-French keyboard, as opposed to Old Baby's Swiss-German one. Since the Hermes 3000 was also Swiss-French, this gives Deek a perfect matching set!

The great thing about Swiss-French keyboards is that some of them inadvertently have a funny emoticon next to the backspace key... can you make it out? By the way, here is the link to the timeline of Hermes Baby evolution on typewriters.ch.

And here's the case - which I suppose looks as though it might contain snow tires? At least that is what someone at the thrift store thought... an error I am grateful for!


Retro Tech Geneva: We Might* Get It** For You If You'll Pay For Shipping***.


*If you ask nicely and we feel like it :-P


**"It" being the nice finds I sadly leave behind at thrift stores and flea markets. Do note that probability of "It" being a Hermes is quite high - with the occasional Swissa thrown in - and the probability of a QWERTZ keyboard is pretty close to 100%. And I would never want to ship anything bigger than a Hermes 3000! Even a '50s 2000 is cutting it close - those had some hefty boxes.


***Shipping plus the seller's asking price for the typewriter, of course. Current exchange rates apply.

Typewriter Ephemera: Olympia SF User Manual

 

It has been a while since I put up a typewriter manual, so I wanted to share this from the Olympia SF. It pertains to the later, more angular version, but I think the instructions should be applicable for the earlier Splendid-style ones too. I have seen this being asked for on a couple of the forums, but Machines Of Loving Grace, which is my go-to site for typewriter manuals, does not seem to have it. 

  

So that's where the carriage lock is! *Makes mental note to use it next time.* It's never been obvious to me so I'm ashamed to say I've never used it, but I'll try it out and see if it works. Also, time to 'fess up, has anyone ever made use of the convoluted instructions for correcting errors? It has never made much sense to me - doesn't this only say that I should erase the error and type over it? I suppose the instruction is also for using half-spacing to make sure the correction fits in the same space as the original phrase. I must not care about neatness.. I don't mind xxxxing over errors and just going on!

How to justify text using an Olympia SF typewriter! Again, too fussy for me, but this must have been nice to have before the days of word processors. 

I like the sensible advice for taking care of the typewriter, especially pertaining to oiling and cleaning the type slugs. I have not seen kneaded type cleaner before, but I wonder if a modern alternative could be something like plasticine or play-doh... Thoughts?

Photo Negatives: Olympia Splendid 66 Typewriters (Black/White)

The funny thing about this keyboard is how many fractions it has - I would have preferred an exclamation point instead! Nevertheless, perhaps there will be some context in which this will be useful. Otherwise, this is a completely Anglophone QWERTY keyboard, in that there are no dead keys to type umlauts or accents (which one would find on an international QWERTY keyboard). That doesn't bother me!

Why this and not the Swissa? It is never easy to explain why one $10 typewriter seems a better deal than the other when both are in pristine, hardly-used condition. It's a close call, but let's say that the unusual color scheme and qwerty keyboard gave this Olympia a distinct edge. Also important is that this is a more compact typewriter and it slides in perfectly on my 38cm high bookshelves, which the Swissa would not. Besides, the chances of finding another Swissa in Switzerland are pretty high, while one does not come across a German-made and London-sold Olympia everyday.

If you look at the larger version of this picture, you can make out the label of Olympia's business in London, which is where this machine was sold. That is also interesting - the only other place I have seen black Olympia Splendids is on eBay UK, so they must have been popular there. Once upon a time, I was contemplating purchasing one of them (it had a script font, so doubly appealing), but I decided against it due to the high postage fees. Glad it turned up over here eventually!

Sadly, this one isn't script, as you can see from the macro type slugs. Still a good buy - besides, I have a script SF already so I am covered when it comes to the lovely Olympia Typestyle 69.

In contrast to the smooth flat paint of the white Splendid, this one is slightly textured, but still glossy. It's an interesting finish - not quite as overt as "hammertone", but I like the subtlety.