Friday 28 November 2014

Down the typosphere rabbit hole...

How can it be that a week ago I had no interest in typewriters and now I am consumed by the thought of them? The internet strikes again... It was THIS that caught my eye and immediately became an object of desire. I thought, “How cool is that!” and I knew I had to possess one as soon as possible. I could not afford a ready-made unit, and indeed they were all sold out, but I convinced myself that a kit was the way to go. But first, I had to acquire a typewriter that would work with the kit. I started Googling and, of course, found myself in the typo sphere. For one that loves new information, it was heaven. I had to disregard all the warnings about E-bay and Etsy, since typewriters are pretty thin on the ground in the northwoods where I live. Soon I found a sweet looking Smith-Corona Sterling from the 1960s, the era when I learned to touch type, on E-bay and won the auction. It is on its way to me. But, of course, when an obsession takes hold, one is not enough. You know how it goes. I started “the wish list'” based on what appealed to me and what I was reading. I fell in love with the small, ultra portables and especially the Skywriter. What a great name! It reminded me of my childhood in the 50s watching Sky King on TV on Saturday mornings. “From out of the blue of the western skies comes Sky King!”. I always wanted to be Penny and go on those adventures. At any rate, an early Skywriter with the stripes on the top is also on the way to me. I think we share a birth year. I have gathered all the tools and equipment to do a thorough cleaning and we will see how it goes. Stay tuned! The next in line will be a Hermes 3000 script version. That may take a little longer. I know, predictable, but I don' t care. From there, who knows? I'm thinking one from each decade. The 50s may be a Smith-Corona Super Silent, blue. The 40s and 60s are covered. I have to look more for the earlier period, such a difficult task, lol.

5 comments:

Richard P said...

Welcome to the madness!

teeritz said...

Like Richard P said, welcome. I also decided on the 'one from each decade' method, but it began to get out of hand because you can never stop at just one. However, I have thinned out my collection somewhat and I have to say that the 1940s are my favourites in terms of looks, and the 1950s models have the edge in terms of usability.
Good choice with the Skyriter. I don't have one, but if it types anything like my Silent Super, then you're already off to a good start.
Best of luck and enjoy!

Unknown said...

I like the SMC Sterling from the 40s, the one with the stripes on top.

Unknown said...

Thank you!

teeritz said...

That's a solid machine. I like using it, although the rubber feet could use a light sanding or replacement because it slides a little across the desk when I type.