unpublished reply to u/kinga_forrester at https://www.reddit.com/r/vintageads/comments/1rvqt0e/comment/oayqqbd/

Rightly or wrongly I'm sure a vanishing number of people at that time would have held your view.

You've got to remember the historical context of this ad. During World War II all but one typewriter manufacturer in the US ceased production of typewriters and the one remaining was really producing machines for the military. This ad from 1943 actually says in tiny print at the bottom: "Royal is making bullets, and parts for airplane engines, propellers, machine guns, rifles." Civilian groups did drives to collect typewriters to send them to the war effort. Many of the extant and upcoming generation of typewriter repairmen went off to the war effort. All this against the backdrop of people being used to taking their machines (especially office ones in use 8 hours a day) in for service every year or so for cleaning and adjustment. Most office typewriters of the time were in use for an average of 3 years before requiring complete overhauls or replacement. In addition to all of the other things being rationed, typewriters and typewriter service were also being heavily rationed, particularly because the manpower and steel was being diverted heavily to the war effort.

At the time, most typewriters were in the $125-200 range which is the equivalent to about $1,500 now. They were trying to help people preserve their machines and functionality. This was at a time when almost any sizeable town in the US had at least one repair shop busy with work. A city the size of Chicago probably had several dozens of repair shops working full time and that likely dropped to just a few during the war. (There's only one now, and it's only been open for a few years; it also has a wait list of several months for service because it's so busy.)

The issue of typewriter preservation was so great during the war that the U.S. Navy produced a series of videos about their proper use and maintenance of them *and other expensive office machines of the time). See videos at https://boffosocko.com/2025/06/06/typewriter-use-and-maintenance-for-beginning-to-intermediate-typists/ The government also got involved in creating maintenance manuals like Basic Typewriter Care and Maintenance, Equipment Maintenance Series No. 1 (US FWIP, 1945) and repair manuals like War Department Technical Manual TM 37-305: Typewriter Maintenance (1944) which is essentially the same as the [1945 Ames manual[(https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/AmesVol1-Standards.pdf).

Comparing this with today when the general value of typewriters is almost nil and we're lucky to have a few dozen professional typewriter repair shops still operating, but the rate of retirements and deaths has long been outstripping the replacement rate and you'll understand why self-service is necessary. Even given this, the number of typewriter fora on the internet, Facebook, Reddit, etc. the amount of tinkering knowledge is almost cripplingly bad but seems to chug along. You'll notice that there are an awful lot of people just trying to identify their machines much less carry out the most basic repairs. The number of "broken machines" I've acquired in my collection that only needed the ribbon color selector set to something besides "stencil" is a sad indicator of the state of typewriter knowledge now, much less what it may have been in their heyday, tinkering or not.

Even by 1983 as typewriters were already beginning to feel the pressure from the computer business, books like Bryan Kravitz and Nancy Gorrell's Hints for a Happy Typewriter were attempting to educate people on proper maintenance and light repair before needing to rely on repair shops that were already starting to feel the pinch.

Incidentally, IBM wasn't what put most typewriter companies out of business. It was vicious competition caused by offshoring and the cheapening of parts and materials while computers in general did the rest. And as for all those typewriter repair shops: most began selling/servicing word processors, office machines like fax machines, photo copiers, dictaphones, and even computers.

via https://reddit.com/r/vintageads/comments/1rvqt0e/1943_royal_typewriter_ad_imploring_people_to_not/

Advanced Typing - Shortcuts (1943)

Advanced Typing: Shortcuts. 16 mm. Vol. MN-1512c. United States Navy Training Film, 1943. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JUJfCfqgsX0.

Correct typing posture: fingers curved<br /> arms sloping up<br /> light fast strokes<br /> steady rhythm

fast continuous motion of return lever<br /> using backing sheet (aka temping sheet ??)

Shortcuts:<br /> mise en place for office supplies (she doesn't use this phrasing though) - greater efficiency - cuts down on searching

tabulators can be helpful. There are two types:<br /> - automatic - handset

Use tabs for paragraphs, dating letters, columns of numbers, and letter closings.

To clear all tab stops, put carriage to left, hold tab clear key and move the carriage across. (Usually applies to Royal, Remington, Underwood, and Electromatic).

On LC Smith and Woodstock machines sometimes have a tab clear lever on the back.

Decimal tabulator keys help to align a variety of numbers around a decimal point. 09:43

Always have a few tabs set to prevent a flying carriage which can be hard on the machine.

When using carbon sheets which are slightly longer than the paper size, cut off a small triangle at the top left hand side. This makes it easier for one to separate the carbons from the copies by holding the top left with one hand and pulling the carbons out from the bottom of the stack.

To align multiple sheets of paper for carbon copies, use a folded sheet at the top to taco the pages into the machine. Remove the folded sheet once the carbon pack is rolled forward.

Paper bail rollers should be set to split the pages into thirds (for two rollers).

Remington noiseless machines have a pressure indicator on the front of the machine (usually above the keyboard) which can be used when using thick carbon packs that may cause the ribbon guide to stick or bind.

Only erase when the carriage is fully left or right to prevent eraser crumbs from falling into the machine. 15:26

Use a soft eraser on carbon copies. Use and insert slips of paper behind the carbons and allowing them to stick out the sides, erasing from back sheet to front so as not to allow the eraser to mark your carbon copies. For the front sheet, use a shield and ink eraser and erase with a horizontal motion. After erasing, easily pull out the inserted sheets.

When typing a correction, tap the key lightly two or three times rather than hard once.

When in a rush and it's necessary to add a word (on double spacing), underline the last letter of the prior word and type a slash (/). Then move the typing line up and type the insertion above the prior line. This creates an "arrow" of sorts for the inserted word.

Details for inserting extra letters in misspelled words using half-spacing machines. (Underwoods and Electromatics don't have this function.)

Light pencil marks at the bottom of the sheet can help to indicate the coming bottom of the sheet.

Putting up the card holders (fingers) on Underwoods and Royals. They help to hold the card and improve print quality and reduce noise.

Card holders can cause markings on carbon packs if they're not lowered.

Trick for quickly writing postcards in succession: Disengage the ratchet using the platen spring release (or variable platen switch) Type the address on the front of the card. When done give the platen a quick practiced spin. The postcard with "jump" up and stop at the paper table and be in position for rolling in the opposite direction to write the message on the back of the card! When done a faster spin of the platen will shoot the card over the back of the typewriter where it can land in a box to collect all the postcards which were written in such a manner. <br /> timestamp 23:22

Time saving methods for addressing envelopes:

• Front seat principle. Insert the envelope in the usual way and type out the address. When done, turn the envelope down through the machine with the right hand. With the left hand, place the next envelope between the top of the first envelope and the front of the platen. Feed the first envelope back through the machine (in reverse) and the second will be rolled in to place for typing. Continue in this fashion until finished. All the finished envelopes will stack up in the back at the paper table.

• Chain feeding. The first envelope is inserted and rolled partway into the machine. A second envelope is inserted between the platen and the second envelope (behind the platen). Turn the first envelope to the writing line and type the address. Take out the first envelope and insert the next the same way as before.

• Uses paper bail. Do the first envelope in the usual way. Spin it out of the machine up and behind the paper bail into a box behind the typewriter.

For quickly doing labels or small cards:<br /> Create a small zig-zag fold into a piece of paper to create a pocket slot which can be scotch taped on either side. This template paper can then be inserted so that the pocket is visible above the writing line, but the paper below it is still in the platen. The label or card can be placed into the pocket and the platen reversed to feed the label or card in backwards to the desired typing line. Using a v-groove or hole in the typing line can create a pencil line to serve as a guide for inserting many labels at the same place so that the typing lines up between labels.

Some offices had special platens for holding cards like this.

Pockets like this can also be used to hold the page to add additional lines at the bottom of pages. Deeper pockets may need to be used for doing this with carbon packs whose carbons are longer than the pages.

Alternately one can do something similar by creating a inverted u-shaped set of slits into an index card. to hold such labels.

When in the midst of a page and needing to do another piece urgently, roll back the letter until about 2 inches from the top, and then place in the new page and one between each of the carbons. Then roll forward to do the short message as necessary. Turn back to the insertion position to remove the copies and then continue with the first letter where you left off.

For drawing horizontal lines on typewriter paper, push the carriage to the extreme left and place the pencil or pen at the edge of the card guide and the scale. Then move the carriage to the right to effect the line. For vertical lines, put the carriage at the desired space and place the pencil at the card guide and scale and move the platen up/down as necessary.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/721704878218903/posts/3019304195125615/

Sarah Everett is collecting typewriter repair shop and typewriter dealer stickers

<br /> via https://www.facebook.com/groups/TypewriterCollectors/posts/10163194812329678/

via Thom Cholowski at Rebel Typewriter Workshop in Saskatoon,Saskatchewan, Canada at https://www.facebook.com/groups/typewritermaintenance/posts/4373364699567612/

Rules of Good Repair Practices:<br /> The Success of the repair depends upon the Rapairman's ability in following the rules of good repair practices. These rules can be summed up as follows:

1. Read the Service Bulletin thoroughly.
2. Know what you are looking for. Never guess. Always investigate the source of trouble. Ask, if you do not know.
3. Determine troubles by the process of elimination.
4. Every part, no matter how small, has a job to perform. Do not overlook the smallest detail.
5. Use the proper tool. Keep tools in efficient working order.
6. Carefully handle smooth, plated or bakelite parts to prevent damaging or scratching.
7. Make the repair like you would want it, if you were the customer.

https://www.typewriterfeet.com/wholesale

via https://www.facebook.com/groups/TypewriterCollectors/posts/10163194812329678/

2026-02-08

via Todd Young https://www.facebook.com/groups/TypewriterCollectors/posts/10163194812329678/

(Buying a Typewriter<br /> by [[Joe Van Cleave]] and [[Bob Marshall]] of Typewriter Muse on YouTube<br /> accessed on 2025-10-16T09:27:44

Bob Marshall prefers "extreme collector" to "hoarder" when it comes to typewriter collecting.

In July 20222, Bob Marshall was charging $60/hour for typewriter service.

https://www.instagram.com/p/DTBPyaqCe5U/

reply to u/CaliKelli989 at https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1qx43wy/smith_corona_classic_12_for_75worth_it_for_my/ on signaling by online typewriter sales

Where you're selling is one of the biggest signals of all. Selling machines for over $250 on Facebook requires way more signaling on the part of a professional or semi-professional seller. Mr&Mrs are doing a whole lot more work on restoring their machines than the average "blow and go" level that Janet and her significant other are likely doing (or that done by the average shop), as a result they're doing more work to show that, but they're occupying a dramatically different market space. Who is offering warranties on their work? Who is recovering platens? Who is explicitly stating the quality of the rest of their rubber? (Note that Janet isn't saying anything about the rubber washers on her SM3s, nor did they say anything about the rubber feet or the feet on the cases. Were they all replaced?)

Most professional shops and restorers are selling via their physical shops or their own websites instead of eBay, which takes steep cuts, or FB where it's harder for their much better quality machines to stand out amidst similarly priced dirtier machines. (Most pros also refuse or prefer not to ship when they can avoid it, so online presence doesn't "buy" them much.) There's a huge gulf in the levels of work that Walid Saad or Lucas Dul are offering in complete tear downs and restorations and the simple clean, oil, and adjust operations that are being offered by average pro shops and that's different again from what I suspect Janet is probably offering. This doesn't even get into the space of the lowest level "flippers" and vintage/antique shops whose only value add is finding and offering machines. As a point of reference, Lucas is doing less than a full restoration a month in an average year. The rest is cleaning machines for straight sale and then repairs that walk in the door. I'd suspect that he doesn't have more than a dozen machines in stock that are ready for sale today compared to a multi-person operation like Typewriter Muse which has nearly 30 machines on the shelf ready to go.

There's a huge spectrum in the level of restorations being offered out there. Very few people appreciate any of the differences.

The issue is that many people starting out don't want to pay a lot for a clean/restored machine, so they're fine with something that "works". Generally they don't know what they're missing from a finely tuned machine. At the other end are serious collectors, who often have the knowledge and expertise to service their own machines. The biggest issue with the market is the huge gulf of information imbalance between the novice buyers and novice sellers and the professionals.

Hope this helps on the differentiation that's available out there...

In the typewriter space, the closer you get to the people actually manufacturing typewriter ribbon, the cheaper it gets. As a result you can buy ribbon in bulk for about US$2 per spool versus $10-15. In America, I've had excellent experience with Baco and Fine Line: https://boffosocko.com/research/typewriter-collection/#Typewriter%20Ribbon

Mostly on Amazon and similar platforms you'll find resellers selling for top dollar. If you're going to do this, then the better route is to spend the same (or possibly a bit less) and get your ribbon from a local typewriter shop which helps keep them in business for the eventual day you'll need a more serious repair or help. Try a local shop from the list at https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/tw-repair.html

If they're close, your local shop will also help teach you how to respool ribbon and thread it properly as well as potentially other tips and tricks.

reply to https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1q095fg/just_bought_a_typewriter_any_tips/

https://www.trianglesport.com/

Potential off-label use cases for their line winders with respect to spooling typewriter ribbon?

https://typewriterdatabase.com/1926-mercedes-4.19461.typewriter via Kevin Stallaert

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1o77cpz/made_my_own_service_booklet/

https://www.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1ngt1u4/questions_about_going_into_the_typewriter_business/

Based on your original post, I thought you might have been further along with resources, but this makes me wonder a bit, so I'll add some materials for you. Start here: https://boffosocko.com/2024/10/24/learning-typewriter-maintenance-and-repair

Repair manuals:

• https://typewriterdatabase.com/manuals.php
• Munk's Printed manuals: http://www.thebookpatch.com/BookStoreResults?search=Theodore+Munk&ddl=authors
• Munk's .pdf manuals: https://sellfy.com/twdb
• Service Manuals: https://site.xavier.edu/polt/typewriters/tw-manuals.html#servicemanuals

Other resources: https://boffosocko.com/research/typewriter-collection/

Be sure to register for an account on the typewriterdatabase.com as that will give you access to more material and research than a non-logged in user.

There are a few "young" folx out there who have recently done what you're considering, and knowing a few of them may help. Reach out if you feel comfortable doing so:

• Matt Snyder of New England Typewriter (see: https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1cxjxt5/new_typewriter_shop_coming_fall_2024/)
• Lucas Dul of Typewriter Chicago
• Paul Lundy
• Antony Valoppi
• Trevor Brumfield
• Aaron Therol of Typewriter Connection
• Bob Marshall of Typewriter Muse
• See also: https://writingball.blogspot.com/2024/05/want-to-run-typewriter-shop.html

Consider a trip to QWERTY Fest which is coming up soon.

Good Luck

https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1cxjxt5/new_typewriter_shop_coming_fall_2024/

Earlier this morning, I said to someone who was worried about typing topless:

You'll be joining a log line of typists, including Wood Allen, who liked to type "naked" or "topless".

I've even seen a few typewriter shops selling typewriters without the external shells. I'd a lot harder to keep them dust free, but it can certainly be fun. It's an fun, easy, and fascinating way to sell off a machine that's missing some screws or has dented/damaged panels.

reply to u/stiff_peach at https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1mf2seo/typing_without_panels/

https://thetype.space/repair-services/

https://typespec.com/typewriter-service-apprentice-training-update-2/

Paul Lundy has a 12 week apprenticeship program for typewriter repair at Bremerton Typewriter.

https://old.reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1i0w488/do_you_tip_for_machine_servicing/

Tipping is generally not encouraged at typewriter shops.

via u/palump at https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1i1ydyz/nobody_in_boston_big_enough_to_fill_these_shoes/m7e497l/

Bremerton Typewriter has a 12 week apprentice training program as a means of helping to create the next generation of typewriter repair people.

from 2011

reply to u/SisterGoldenHair70 at https://reddit.com/r/typewriters/comments/1lbjr5f/sorry_to_say/mxz1ag2/

I'm honestly curious about your definition of a "machine that only cost $250" is? Make/Model? Where was it bought? What is the actual condition (both cosmetic exterior and mechanical interior as well as cleanliness)? Also, what is your definition of investment with respect to how you're going to use it? Is it a display machine? Is it for display and the occasional addressed envelope or grocery store list? Or is it something you're planning on giving moderate to heavy use on a daily or weekly basis as a professional writer?

Most typewriter repair shops won't spend more than $20 on purchasing a machine and typically they're getting machines donated for free (or for the cost of coming to pick them up); then they spend hours to clean, oil, adjust, repair and restore them for sale in the $400-600 range unless they've got rarer colors or typefaces. (At this level, you're probably not getting any new rubber at all.) The level of restoration is definitely a choice as there are restorers out there who can easlily charge in the $1,500+ range depending on how much work you want done and to what level.

As an example, if someone chooses to spend $120-200 pus shipping on something like an old/dirty Olympia SM3 with old gaskets from an outlet like ShopGoodwill.com (the current going rate for one in unknown condition and only using photos) that is going to need several hundred dollars of repair work, that's their choice. If they don't have the expertise, it's far better to buy one outright in the $500 range from a shop. Usually people are just keeping that $120 machine and limping along with what it offers instead of cleaning it up or they attempt to do the clean up work themselves. This work may seem "free", but it's time, effort, and expense of one sort or another. Economists call this opportunity cost.

There is a massive information imbalance in the typewriter market between buyers and sellers, because incredibly few people really have any idea of what they've got and what sort of condition it is in. This imbalance means that most professional shops are an absolute steal if you're looking for something in excellent condition that's going to be a work-a-day typewriter or be in good shape for another 50-75 years.

As a small example, an indiviual could call JJ Short and get a platen recovered for around $100 plus two way shipping, but you take it to a shop and you're probably looking at $180 because they're going to charge you for the time, effort, and cost of knowing what to do, where to ship it, taking it off, putting it back on, and doing the appropriate ring & cylinder, on-feet, and motion adjustments on

https://karlbusinessmachines.com/

Usually it might have been typewriter shop, gun shop, then cell phone store, so it's intriguing to see the opposite ordering.

From Typewriters to Futuristic Office Machines, Adapting with the Times Helped One Family Run Company Stay in Business for over a Century by Brandon Villalovos on 2017-03-15

Need typewriter repairs? This Pasadena business has been fixing them for a century by Kevin Smith

Anderson Business Technology celebrates 100 years by Jim McConnell, Staff Writer