Can you give a beautiful typewriter a loving home?
Monday, May 18th, 2015Long time no blog, friends! What have I been doing? Well, if you follow my Twitter you’ll know that one of the things I’ve been doing is buying typewriters. I made the mistake of joining the Facebook group Antique Typewriter Collectors not that long ago, and since then have become addicted to looking at the typewriter-related bargains my fellow collectors have scooped on ebay, Gumtree and in thrift stores. I guess it was only a matter of time before I got bitten by the bug and started picking up new machines left, right and centre.
So yeah… my collection is growing, and my house is small, and I am trying to have a one-in, one-out policy. So that means I’m looking for loving homes for a couple of my beloved typewriters. Can you help?
1. THE UNDERWOOD MASTER
This is my Underwood Master. He dates from around 1940 and is famously the model that was massively scaled up into a house-sized version for the 1939 New York World’s Fair. You can find a bit more information about the Master model — and see its typeface — here.
My Master is, admittedly, a bit scruffed up. Because he’s not one of the machines I use all that much, I’ve let him get a bit dusty, which I am rather ashamed of. He also has a bit of a wonky space bar, poor thing… but still types. You just need to get the knack.
At the moment, you’ll see there’s no ribbon fitted (the ribbon that came with this typewriter had long since dried up, and I don’t see the point of passing on a useless old ribbon to the new owner!). Ribbons are easy to come by on ebay and elsewhere, so if you wanted to get this guy typing, I don’t think it’d be difficult.
My favourite thing about this machine is the little drop-down cover on the front, that lets you see the mechanism inside. There’s also a nice ribbon-spooling mechanism, controlled by a small winder on the side of the typewriter… pretty unusual!
All in all, this typewriter is a stunner… if you just want a machine to make your office / living room / shop / cafe space look great, he’s ready to go. If you want a reliable typer, he just needs a bit of TLC to get him back in full working order. Want him? Check out the options below.
2. THE UNDERWOOD NO. 3
This is my Underwood No. 3. He’s a proper antique, dating from the mid-1920s. I’ve managed to find a serial number on this machine: it’s 688456-14. This is a cousin of the Underwood 5, the typewriter Allen Ginsberg would eventually use to write some of his best known poems. Here’s some more information about the Underwood 3, and some of the sub-models. Mine has a 14 inch carriage, which is a little wider than usual.
How pretty is this typewriter? Sadly — though perhaps not surprisingly, given its age — it’s taken some knocks and so the gilt paint and decals are not quite what they were. There’s also some rust, dammit. In its current condition, this is a display piece, for sure!
I’m told that rust remover, car polish and toothpaste can do wonders to turn a typewriter like this into a going concern once again. I don’t have the time or the mad skills, but I also don’t want to just chuck this guy. Look at those lovely white keys!
If ^this doesn’t outface you, then a) you’re awesome and b) I’d really like you to give my Underwood a good, loving home!
Although the condition isn’t as good as the Master, the price is the same… the No.3 is older, prettier, and more collectable, which is why! Here are the details:
If you really want to take one of these guys off my hands, but you’re too skint to cross my palm with quite that much silver, I will happily consider an offer. Just drop me a line to claire[at]onenightstanzas.com!
Happy typing!
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Like shiny things? Check out Edinburgh Vintage, a totally unrelated ’sister site’ full of jewels, treasures and trinkets. If you want to get in touch you can follow OneNightStanzas on Twitter, or email claire[at]onenightstanzas.com. I reply as swiftly as I can!