A Year of Typewriters and Friends

I'll post more pictures including the $2 case, but this Lettera 22 is beautiful and types like a dream.

I was a little worried about my "new" Lettera when I tried it out and found that it would not shift and striking the keys did not make the carriage move. Ted Monk's blog pointed me in the right direction. I took off the bottom cover and applied some PB Blaster to the escapement.  After letting it sit overnight, I poked and prodded and this semi-circular piece under the segment snapped back into action. Now everything is fine and my Lettera 22 is ready for its second act.

Spreading Typewriter Joy

I am so glad that I decided to sell a few of my typewriters this Holiday Season.  They were nice machines to have for a while, but I felt it was time to let someone else enjoy them.  A man from a neighboring state asked if my Corona was still available as his little girl had given him a last minute request for a typewriter.  A few emails later and my machine was sent packing in a sea of bubble wrap.  Another gentleman called me from a nearby town asking to see my Royal.  His niece had lately become enthralled with typewriters.  Seeing these two machines go off to make two young typewriter enthusiasts happy feels great.  I'm certainly not running a typewriter shop out of the trunk of my car, but I can understand how Tom Furrier of Cambridge Typewriters must feel seeing machines leave his shop in the hands of new owners.  
~Happy Holidays to everyone who gives or receives a typewriter this season!~

A Royal Surprise

Like many, I have set a Craigslist alert to tell me about machines that come up for sale in the area.  I have gotten some really good leads that way but lately I have only gotten alerts about overpriced standards or electric machines.  Then this alert came in for a "suitcase typewriter in working order."  One glance and I knew they were selling a Royal P for a reasonable price.  I contacted the seller and found that they were seven minutes away from my office.  What are the odds of that!  I negotiated a nice deal from a young man who had bought a property and found the typewriter while cleaning out his barn.  With serial number P260534, my Royal P is from 1931. It has a few issues.  The feet are gone, but I can solve that.  The paint is a nice two-tone brown, but it has pitting on the paper tray and a bit of rust and a lot of flaking on the back.  I would welcome suggestions on the best way to address these issues as I do not plan on re-painting the machine. I was thinking of some very gentle cleaning in these areas and a bit of clear coat paint to seal things up.  I think the rest of the machine will clean up nicely and look great with a coat of wax.  Any thoughts from the typosphere?