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Attempting a repaint of a Dalton Adding Machine
They are not rare and today certainly not desirable or collectable, judging by online offers - the later-models Dalton adding machine are pretty big and 'boring' machines with, well, limited...
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Dalton Adding Machine serial numbers, estimated agelist
An estimated, approximate agelist for Dalton Adding Machines; serial numbers are start-at for the year.The ~1927 issue of Business Machines and Equipment Digest contains an estimated serial numbers...
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New typeshuttles for the Hammond - How to make
After some experimenting (and many failures), the workflow for creating new Hammond typeshuttles is starting to form. A new Hammond typeshuttle is assembled from several parts, just like the original....
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Fall 2024 typewriter safari
Last week, we did a tour of the local thrift stores - and for the first time in ages there were interesting typewriters! Right at the start, first aisle, this spread of four machines immediately caught...
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Progress in refurbishing a Dalton Adding Machine
The 'surplus' machine is mostly assembled again - and the side-frames are back, painted black.As the machine shows promise of turning out nice, decided to have another try at repairing the damper or...
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Folding Corona - as simple as closing a book
(Full-page advertisement from the February 1920 issue of Popular Science, page 153.)Or is it.It's intuitive and folding over works. Just like closing a book. Unlike a book however, the Corona should...
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Good advice for the Hammond typewriter
When delivered new in the 1910s, a Hammond typewriter would have had a 'Special Notice' card placed on its keyboard-card tray. It contains some useful advice for typing on the Hammond and especially on...
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Finishing the refurbishment of a Dalton Adding Machine
The surplus wreck Dalton is now refurbished, quite the transformation from what it was :)The machine was cleaned inside and outside. The brightwork was de-rusted and all outer parts re-painted. With a...
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How to operate the Dalton Adding Machine
The Dalton Adding Machine can add, but also subtract, multiply and more. How to operate it is not always immediately obvious today from just looking at the machine. Below will show how to do some of...
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Pencil leads and fractions
Two surprise thrift store finds. The first is a Koh-I-Noor box of red pencil leads. Well, a box with one red pencil lead - it is however still in one piece! The card sleeve-box with wooden frame...
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What are front left foot numbers on an Underwood 5 ?
The Underwood 5 typewriter has the serial number stamped on the frame-top near the right spool. The number itself is generally followed by a type-designation, so the pattern is xxxxxx-5 for a regular...
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American National 14-20 screw thread and 7/8th Inch
The rubber 'stopper' feet of Underwood 5 typewriters are almost always 'gone'. The rubber is generally hard and the weight of the machine has compressed the foot. This is bad, not just because the...
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New spacebar for an Oliver 3 typewriter
The ends of the spacebar of an older Oliver typewriter are often broken off. The spacebar is made of a 'plastic' material and the ends are relatively thin and exposed. Not surprising then that the...
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Swapping-out cellulose acetate keys on a Comptometer
To start, five columns of white keys for a Comptometer.These are genuine, old keys. Not new reproductions, but relatively good originals. They do have some yellowing and have started to deform, but...
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One mystery part - mildly disconcerting
After taking it apart and putting it back together, one spring that won't fit anywhere. This Blickensderfer 7 was also one key-lever spring short. The odd thing is, that the remaining spring will not...
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Excavating (or destroying?) a layer of history on a machine
This particular Underwood 5 was bought locally, originally meant as a reference machine to help with the restoration of an older 1920 Underwood 5.This machine was not only a newer 1928 version, it also...
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Manufacturing process for a new Blickensderfer type wheel 407
How to make a new type wheel for the Blickensderfer; in this case a reproduction 'Small Roman' type wheel catalogue number 407, codename 'Table'.To start with, take a 3D-model of the type wheel. This...
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Messing-about making new Blickensderfer ink rolls
The original ink rolls of my Blickensderfer were hard and dried out. Whilst it is written on The Internet that these can be revived, decided instead to have a go at making new ink rolls. It is also...
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Designing new type wheels for the Blickenserfer typewriter
It is possible today to create new type wheel designs for the Blickensderfer typewriter! With readily available software tools and common, low-cost 3D printing technology, functional type wheels...
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First time the covers are off in a while, it shows
When it looks like this on the inside, it's been a while since anyone removed the covers.This loose, woolly dirty dust must have taken some time to build up. It will need to wait in the shed, until a...
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Brief glimpse at the Blickensderfer lettering in gold
The case of my Blickensderfer 7 is structurally good, but was given a dousing in creosote (?) some time in its life. This had turned the outside to a sort of 'burned black'. The fittings were also...
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Ink rolls for the Blickensderfer dry out, they also did so a century ago
Old, original rolls for the Blickensderfer typewriter will still contain plenty of colorant, but be completely dry - and the typewriter will not print. Online sources mention these can be revived with...
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Silver-Reed 100 sitting on a chair
(Typed with a reproduction wheel 223 "Print Type" on a Blickensderfer - a bit blotchy from a freshly over-inked pad.)Â
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Difficult to date, timeless construction (from 1884)
Once very common and still found on flea-markets and in thrift stores, the pocket spring balance. In this instance, a Hughes Pocket Balance with the scale marked in kilos.Above the legend stating it is...
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Cut-out drawing of the Underwood 4-bank portable typewriter (why?)
Inside the lid of the carrying case of the typewriter, there is a nicely cut-out image of the typewriter itself.This label is present in more (all?) of the early Underwood 4-bank portable cases, so...
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