Mark Hurst will air an interview with me on Techtonic, his great show about the dangers of big tech, at 6 pm Eastern time on April 15. You can listen here, which is also where you can catch the show after its live broadcast: https://wfmu.org/playlists/shows/138921 ..read more

Kristen Skovira of local TV station WCPO visited my basement last week for a story on WordPlay Cincy, the kids' creative writing center that my typewriter repair work helps to support. You can see the story here ..read more

This 1895 Jewett no. 2 is a recent addition to my collection. I haven't bought a 19th-century typewriter for years—much less a big one—but this was so pretty that I couldn't resist. It's in near-mint condition, with the original pinstripes and hand-painted details. There's even an original purple ribbon. This serial number looks like 8113: But note the 6113 painted inside the front frame: That interesting notched wheel is part of the ribbon mechanism. As the carriage moves, the shaft of the ribbon spools moves horizontally, and the wheel turns one notch, ensuring that the ..read more

The left Magic Margin stop on a customer's Royal Quiet De Luxe wasn't working. When I peeked at it, the problem was evident. I removed the carriage's back panel and took a closer look. Evidently, the device had lost a screw like the one you can see here on the right margin stop. Did I have such a screw? No. But I realized that the problem might be solvable with a cotter pin, also known as a split pin. Here's where the magic of paper clips comes in. They are easy to bend, but very unlikely to break unless you bend them repeatedly back and forth. I've used them to replace the C-shaped li ..read more

Many thanks to Rex Wale of the Leicester Museum and Art Gallery for permission to publish these photos of an extraordinary Imperial portable, made in Leicester. This is a Model T, serial 2N 634 (1940), with a three-row telegrapher's keyboard. You can click on any photo to see a high-resolution image. In the back, there is room for a roll of paper. The keyboard includes a FIGS shift on the left and a LTRS key to return the carriage to the unshifted position.  The CAR RET key is mysterious, as one would presumably use the usual lever to return the carriage. The lever with the arrow is f ..read more

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Jones Typewriter Co. is—or rather, was—a St. Louis institution, full of the glorious chaos that I know from my own workshop. At least, so I understand; sadly, I never got the opportunity to visit the shop myself. Now owners Charlie May and Vern Trampe have closed the shop, after 59 years in business (see more great information and photos in a St. Louis Post-Dispatch story). However, a new typewriter business is arising to fill the demand: Clickety Clack! Owned by husband and wife Shane and Amanda Byrne, who plan to open their own brick-and-mortar location in Rolla, Missouri, CC pro ..read more

Well, sorta. Many bits of my recent conversation with reporter Kevin Mitchell of the Saskatoon Star-Phoenix (now there's a proper newspaper name for you) made it into his recent article. There's even a selfie I sent him. As I mention in the article, back in the early days of this blog I acquired a Speedwriter from Saskatoon. I'm happy to make another connection to Saskatchewan ..read more

My eye was just caught by this item on eBay.  It's a contemporary agglomeration based on an old clock and an Ideal-keyboard Hammond typewriter, like this one from Geoff Flash's collection. The intricacy and oddity of the "typewriter" clock almost make me suspect that its design was generated by AI, but I think it's more likely that it was created by some Chinese designer who was looking for ways to appeal to the insatiable Western hunger for antiquity. Tacky? Yes. Illogical? Yes. Nevertheless, kinda cool as yet another sign of the durable appeal of typewriters. Would you agree? P ..read more

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