Todays find: very early Smith Corona electric typewriter

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petek

petek

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I try not to grab typewriters when I see them unless I think they might be worth a few schekles later on so I couldn't resist this one. From what I've googled it's the first Smith Corona portable electric typewriter that debuted in 1957 which makes it a year younger than moi.
I was scared to plug it in but mustered up the courage by using a power bar with a breaker. Needn't have worried since it started fine and only a few keys are sluggish which might loosen up once the machine has sat inside awhile or I'll blow the hair dryer over the joints.
Other than that it types very nicely and came with a nice case and even the case key, always a bonus cause they're usually missing.
So here it is.
Anyone else seen one before?

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Hey Petek,

In my former life, when I repaired typewriters, I revived a lot of those. They are exceptionally sturdy machines. I still have one in the same color and one in pink!

Also, once cleaned and lubricated, they are a very fast machine, especially for those of us who type fast.

Any questions, let me know. I also have the instruction manual. I can copy it and send it to you, if you'd like.

Ron
 
Here's Mine

I have a newer version of that model. I call them semi-electrics because of the manual carriage return. I got mine off of eBay, I think I paid more in shipping than I did for the typewriter itself. This one needs a good cleaning and a lube job as well, I just haven't gotten around to it yet. I have several Smith Corona portable electrics that friends gave me, even though I collect mostly IBM's.

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I met one old timer who lubricated my LC Smith desktop machine for me. He swore by automatic transmission fluid. I also had great luck using Aero-Kroil in an Underwood.

What do you recommend Ron?
 
PeteK, you find the coolest things. Sure looks like someone took care of it. i think old typewriters are comforting, and pleasing to the eye.
 
I don't have too many portables but the ones I have Smith Corona electrics. I also have a Olympia SM9 manual that a friend gave me. The bulk of my collection is 12 IBM machines from early typebar models to electronic.
 
Thanks Chuck, I've been to that page several times, it's one of my favorites. Hopefully one of these days, I will be able to subscribe to ETCetera. I would like to create a website with all my typewriters, and vintage PC's on it.
 
my parents had the same model as Autowasherfreak's model

Bought c. 1964 or 1965. I learned to type in fifth and sixth grade (honors students were pulled out of English classes for two weeks, twice a year, for two years) and given typing lessons in the hope of making them better students in middle and high school. We learned on Royal standard machines with electric tape over the keys to hide the markings.

Needless to say, with a ten year old's hands, the going was slow and I never went over twenty words per minute at school. However, I used to practice at home on mom's Smith Corona electric portable, and I could see it helped me to type way, way faster. By sixth grade I was hitting 35 wpm. So I stuck with typing as much as I could for schoolwork.

I don't think that I envisioned at the time that I might own a computer some day, but I could see even then that most likely I would own an electric typewriter in the future (I got my own machine in 1972) and that my speed was bound to increase. Today I can hammer out about 85 wpm on a computer keyboard, using my skills learned in 1966-68.

The machine I took to college was a semi-electric portable with manual carriage return. They had gold and blue versions, mine was gold. They did make an auto carriage return model but it was $150 instead of $120 and since my parents were paying for it, I didn't want them to buy the more expensive model. I got it at the start of 11th grade. I was an editor of the school paper and did a LOT of writing. That machine saw me through the last two years of high school, college, grad school, and into the PC age. I had it over twenty years and eventually gave it to a second hand charity store.

PS we were always admonished in typing class "NEVER EVER to touch the Magic Margin keys". I was scared the world would stop spinning if I touched the key, so I never did. Later I learned to set the margins and it was no big deal, she should have just taught us from the beginning.

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Learning to Type

I learned or I should say tried to learn to type on a IBM Model A or B for my first year of typing. But for some reason I couldn't learn, don't if it was because I didn't want to or because the teacher was real bitch. I ended up flunking the first semester and received a D for the second semester.

Then over summer vacation that year, I got into my savings account and bought a IBM Selectric III and ordered a set of touch typing lessons from Smith Corona, copied them on to cassette. I also covered all the keys on the Selectric with black electrical tape, and would practice for most of the day every day of the week and in about three months I learned how to type on my own. It must have been that bitchy teacher!
 
My Favorite Typewriter

This is my favorite IBM Selectric II which I repainted myself. I have a Selectric III that I'm thinking of repainting hunter green this summer.

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