Thursday, December 16, 2010

Last Day of Finals

As today is the last day of finals I have to start packing away the ribbons for the typewriters. If I leave them out they will, of course, dry out a little too much. Right now I have cobbled together enough spools and ribbons to serve all 10 of the machines in the room. I want to get new ribbons for all the machines sometime this break. It'll be a bit pricey, but I think it will make the machines more useable. I'm going to do a summary of the semeter in typewriting and detail some of my plans for the future of the project.

Even though the semester is ending, I'll still be thinking about typewriters (much to the chagrin of my family) and working on a few projects. I haven't forgot about the DCC (Digital Carbon Copy) Project yet, I need a few bits and pieces and I'll be able to work on that some more.

In the typosphere, Philly Type-In has quickly become the big typewriter story of the moment. I'm sure a similar yet Phoenix-themed version of this event would be popular in the valley. Perhaps one of our more mid-century venues would be perfect. Anyway, check out the video.





I have to agree with Mike. A device that has one funtion and does it well is a joyous thing.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Olivetti Ivrea

I make typewriters using my scowl!
I came across this interesting photo set of the Olivetti factory in Ivrea taken around 1970. I have no idea what they are making, I am sure that a typewriter is in there somewhere. The pictures are amazing and have a wonderfully grainy composition. The photos offer a glimpse behind the svelte lines and carefully crafted industrial design of Olivetti.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jean-paul-margnac/321486277/in/set-72157594418644080/

I've never have used an Olivetti, but if I find one I'm sure that these pictures will come to mind.

Monday, December 13, 2010

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Olympia SM-3 Pic

Today I found a few moments to snap a picture of the blue Olympia. Our office is decorated in a very 50s style, so this typewriter looked right at home.


I went to the hardware store and bought some small rubber washers to replace the original squashed frame bushings. Such a small repair made the world of difference. I want to go through and clean all the eraser dust (there is enough in there to make a new eraser) and play around with the shift in hopes to make it lighter. It's a wonderful machine with a smooth action. I'm excited to see some reactions to it.

Friday, December 10, 2010

Typecast From the Front Part II

Yesterday Enrique shared his views. Richard commented that the spelling and typing were very good. I would have to agree. Today, we will be hearing from Zaul, also in my 5th period. I have gone ahead and enhanced the images using GIMP rather than wasting time rescanning each page. This sould be much more readable.

Royal Aristocrat

Thursday, December 9, 2010

The Olympia Has Arrived

When I came home from work I was greeted with a box. In this box was the new Olympia. After a little cleaning-up it looks wonderful. It's a nice heavy typewriter. I'll post a few pictures and a little commentary sometime later tomorrow.