Arkansas Typewriter

Typewriter Stationery

2023-11-07T23:08:00.014-06:00

What's even more awesome than sending a hand-typed letter is getting one in return. It's better to receive than to give, ha! I'm filled with pure happiness when savoring a letter from a type pal. It's better than feeling a little insecure about writing & mailing them. Is my writing too simple? Am I going overboard with the typewriter talk? Will they like the stationery? Lately I've grown confident that I'm being totally silly. We'll all adore each other's letters no matter what, because we're all neat folks and we use cool TYPEWRITERS!

Slowly but surely I'm catching up with correspondence. I've sent out several letters these past few weeks and already I've gotten a few in return. Fun! Here's an example of the typewriter-themed stationery I make, with a letter from a year ago. I meant to post it our TypePals.com community but never got around to it, much like some of letters I've digging out and sending. Y'all know who you are! ;-D

A Medley from my Machines

2023-10-28T00:01:00.194-06:00

Sometimes I type stuff and then leave the paper in the platen to write more later. It makes sense for recurrent events and journaling. It's a little awkward when replying to Type Pals. I've spent way over a month writing letters, which is sort of neat to me, so I'll finish what was started and mail them off anyway. I'll even add a whole new letter, like a cover-page with apologies for taking so long to respond. This post is like one of those letters: Something old, something new, something random, something cool, in a typecast just for you.

Cute, huh? All lines are 8 syllables, so they could be songs too. I'd have to investige which typewriter was the first one. The other two are definitely from that first Electra 220 because I recognize Regency #80 by the unmistakable "g" like it's handwritten

Next are ramblings during two Typewriter Club Live chats. If you're the type of person who'll read anything just because it was written on a typewriter, then here's just the thing for you. ;-D

Yikes! That was way too many first person "I..." sentences. Learning to write better will require more thoughtful typewriting time. Fun!

February Archives

2023-10-27T06:15:00.001-06:00

I'm always typing something during our Typewriter Club Live chats. What else are we supposed to do with our hands? I promise to do better with following through and actually posting my musings. Here's the stuff from the February chats.

Hello From a One Year Hiatus

2023-10-22T18:45:00.087-06:00

Hi, typewriter fans! Wow, I can't believe it's been a whole year since I last posted. Needless to say I've been quite busy with family and work as we all do. It's nice to take a break and shake my tasty dash here and there to this wonderful world of the typosphere. I began this typecast during today's Type Pals Typewriter Club Live then completed my thoughts in a rambling fashion after we signed off. This is nothing more than typing for the pure joy of typing while trying to work out a few kinks with the machine, and then posting it to share with Munk and other folks like us who dig this sort of fun. Everyone's typed stuff I've read over the years is all amazing, and I've had a blast chatting and geeking out over favorite machines, techniques, and all the important acoutrements. Type Pals, y'all rock!

TypewriterDatabase.com

Type Pals, October 22, 2023

She's Got a Ticket to Ride

2022-10-06T22:11:00.002-06:00

Here are some older typing prompts that I banged out during Typewriter Club Live in April and May. I've been known to scan and post typecasts long after composing them. :-)

https://arkansastypewriter.blogspot.com/2022/04/what-is-strangest-thing-youve-ever.html

https://arkansastypewriter.blogspot.com/2022/05/typewriter-club-live-scm-electra-120-in.html

I also posted one earlier this evening. Two in one day! Ted would be proud. :-D

https://arkansastypewriter.blogspot.com/2022/10/i-like-big-type-and-i-can-not-l.html

I Like Big Type and I Can Not Lie

2022-10-06T18:11:00.022-06:00

This is my 4th typewriter. I was so green back in the summer of 2020 that I had no idea it sported a 6-CPI when I bought it from only seeing its very blurry photos on Facebook Marketplace. I simply saw a Smith-Corona 5-series for $30 locally. I discovered the wonderful surprise soon after I brought it home and shared its images online with the Typosphere. A Silent-Super never disappoints, and this uncommon Sight-Saver #47 type style rocks my typewriter world. I've not browsed all the TWDB galleries, but the only other one I've seen is Ted Munk's that he eventually relinquished to Bill Wahl of Mesa Typewriter Exchange. He must've gotten something really awesome in trade, because you'd have to pry this awesomeness from my cold dead hands or perhaps $4,000. :-D

https://typewriterdatabase.com/1957-smith-corona-silent-super.15009.typewriter

The Dial-a-Type Element for Montgomery Ward's Signature 511 & 511D Brother Typewriters

2022-09-28T11:23:00.005-06:00

Behold the elusive Brother Dial-a-Type element! It was available as an extra feature on some JP-3 models but not commonly found because it was expensive. Adjusting for inflation, the attachment costs an additional $100 added to the $750 price of the typewriter. The fully featured Signature 510, 511, and the 511D were sold by Montgomery Ward from late 1960s to early 1970s. The latter was my very first typewriter, now I have the three typefaces, Pica, Elite, Script, and this element works on all of them. Will I ever type real mathematics on a typewriter? Probably not, lol, but it sure is neat!

These pictures make the dial-a-type element look huge! While it is larger than the other slugs, it's still quite a tiny little thing. I want to take it off to get a closer look, but I'm too scared that I might break it.

My boyfriend doesn't collect typewriters, but he is happily supportive of my obsessions. Fifty machines doesn't faze him at all. A couple of days ago he grabbed the two busted Signature 511 cases from my trash, "Let me try to fix them." He then worked some magic with a soldering iron. The scars could be covered with paint or stickers, but I like seeing the evidence of how much he loves me. The cases are perfectly solid again and will protect my beloved JP-3's from evil dust. Should I ask him to marry me?

If you want to see the dial-a-type element in action, head on over to Type Pals. Better yet, come join us and tell us about your typewriters too!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUGqsLrVIjU

Typing for the Pure Joy of Hitting the Keys

2022-09-25T15:20:00.027-06:00

I'm always snapping away at the keys while we're all chatting on Typewriter Club Live. Sometimes I make creative stories and songs in response to the typing prompts. Other days I'm just taking minutes of the meeting, like today....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUGqsLrVIjU

Smith-Corona Electra 120

2022-05-25T23:30:00.006-06:00

Typewriter Club Live + Classic Pica Electra 120

2022-05-22T15:20:00.022-06:00

I love all the folks who hang and chat on Typewriter Club Live! Our wonderful host Gregory Short creates fun typing prompts to get us banging on our machines to read out loud what we've typed. Of course, we always show off any new or remarkable typewriters, like my latest acquisition with a unusual typeface.

First Typewriter Experience

2022-04-22T13:00:00.002-06:00

What a heartwarming experience it is to turn on folks to typewriters for the first time! In a room full of teenagers, only these two were fascinated by my machines. Beecher is a senior newspaper staff member and Kishaun is in the jazz band. Both are very creative types. ;-)

Beecher asked where he could buy a typewriter, and as I was explaining ShopGoodwill.com to him, he cut me short and told me his mother works with their graphic design team. He also buys jewelry and shoes from their website. He's going to look around this weekend and find an electric machine, because like me, he prefers them.

They gave me permission to post their first typewriter adventure...

Royal Easter Weekend

2022-04-17T18:30:00.025-06:00

I gifted my sister a custom gold Royal O for her birthday last year. She asked me specifically for a champagne gold with glass keys model to match her décor, a combination that I've never seen before. Unplug Typewriter Co came to the rescue, restoring a scruffy machine with a cork platen into a beautiful work of art that types like a dream. Often when I visit, I'll type a little something about the good times we're having. It's like a little timeline of our family gatherings. She's had the typewriter well over a year now and still I'm the sole person who has ever typed anything significant it.

If I don't go with them, I'm the usual house and pet sitter when my sister's family goes on vacations. The Royal O is a nice machine and all, but I still prefer the ease of the electric machines. I brought my Sears Medalist with the intent to type several pages of personal writings and letters to type pals. This is as far as I got...

Green Ribbon for the IBM Selectric II!

2022-04-10T22:55:00.012-06:00

I was happy enough to find a working green IBM Correcting Selectric II that was fairly easy to clean and tune-up. Now that I've discovered the colored ribbons that were available, I'm over the moon! Even though I'm crazy about old manual typewriters, especially black shiny ones with glass keys, I can't keep my hands off electric machines, especially the Smith-Corona 6-series and this beloved Selectric.

What is the strangest thing you've ever found in a typewriter?

2022-04-10T15:20:00.011-06:00

Here's the answer to the Typewriter Club Live typing prompt. I banged it out on my 1954 Royal Quiet Deluxe that got a fully rubber-ducky treatment, AKA dunking in a sink full of hot soapy water and typing the hell out of it. I joined late in the meeting, like the last 30 minutes, and as always, it's a wonderful chat with like-minded typewriter fans. Though it's virtual, the friendships are real. I missed you, Ted, Bob, Brenda, and many more, especially Sarah who's been away for a long time now. Life does get in the way of typewriter fun. Sometimes I wish I could be living in the mid-century when typewriters were everywhere. Then again, I might not appreciate them as much as I do now, and I'd probably constantly be upset about the huge gaps in gender inequality. I'm glad typewriters have helped to make life better for women!

SCM Electra 120 in Script and Stacks of Typewritings

2022-03-27T17:10:00.003-06:00

https://typewriterdatabase.com/196x-smith-corona-electra-120.17843.typewriter

Which is growing faster, the stacks of my typewritten stuff or my collection of old typewriters? I'm better at documenting my machines on the Typewriter Database than I am at blogging in Typosphere. I enjoy typing on them, whether I'm making repair notes, telling stories, or singing about how awesome these machines are. What matters most is that they make me want to write. Eventually I'll get there!

The Sears Medalist by Smith-Corona is an Amazing Typewriter!

2022-03-12T19:36:00.001-06:00

Sears Medalist by Smith-Corona 4-Color Typewriter Ribbon

2022-01-07T19:07:00.001-06:00

I can't get over how awesome the Smith-Corona electric typewriters are. I want to type, type, type until my fingers are numb.

Happy Birthday, Dear Ted, from a Sears Medalist Electric 12

2022-01-06T23:11:00.001-06:00

Obviously I like Ted Munk a lot. He's one of the finest typewriter people in all the world. I'm a huge fan of other folks too, especially Richard Polt for The Typewriter Revolution & Cold Hard Type series, and Joe Van Cleave's many insightful videos. I would've never gotten this far so quickly without the Typosphere. <3

The Sears 4-color typewriter ribbon is quite cool, could be easily spliced to use on any typewriter, wound onto any old spool, and more than 2 colors is possible. Connect the color-change with a grommet within a few inches of clean ribbon and it's good to go for practically any machine.

I revived this 50 year-old ribbon by unwinding and fluffing the length in a cardboard box while lightly misting it with WD-40 and then let it sit all afternoon to dry a bit before rewinding. As you can see in the type sample up top, it's still got a some colorful life to it.

The Smith-Corona 6-series electric typewriters give the fastest typebar experience! A power return can add some speed, but I'm more into creative rather than productive typing, so I like the old-fashioned return lever too.

The previous owner installed a rope handle. Perhaps for easier lifting out of the case?

The main reason I bought this typewriter is for the SCM Changeable Type international kit, because it will fit all my Smith-Corona 6-series machines, both electric & manual.

Typewriter Club Live - Plans for December

2021-11-28T16:22:00.022-06:00

https://typewriterdatabase.com/1969-montgomery-ward-signature-511d.15012.typewriter

Thankful for Typewriter Club Live

2021-11-21T11:00:00.014-06:00

Thank you, Gregory Short, for all the work you put into making a typewriter community!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jpKtz6Mb5Hc&t=1h30m25s

Typewriters and Love

2021-11-07T16:00:00.033-06:00

https://typewriterdatabase.com/197x-smith-corona-electra-120.15252.typewriter

Typewriter Talk with Type Pals

2021-11-06T22:30:00.006-06:00

My Favorite Brother Typewriter: The Wards Signature 511D with Auto Repeat

2021-10-28T21:30:00.031-06:00

I bought my first typewriter again, only 356 serial numbers later. Perhaps they were made on the same day, around the same time my parents were making me in 1971.

The Wards Signature 511D has all the fancy features of a manual typewriter. The rubber stills feels fresh. Its Pica typeface is straight and even. The paper injector always rolls in the sheets perfectly aligned. The Brother JP-3 is one of my favorite manual typewriters.
Unfortunately this one was not packed well and its case suffered the brunt of the damage. Luckily the typewriter survived with only bent metal levers on top and a cracked spacebar attachment. The metal arms of the spacebar were severely bent inward, but I was able to reform them well enough to work properly.
I saved another typewriter! Hopefully it will live to type more tales for 50 more years.

https://typewriterdatabase.com/1971-montgomery-ward-signature-511d.17011.typewriter

SCM Smith-Corona Classic 12 with Sight-Saver #30

2021-10-21T18:04:00.007-06:00

Yeah, baby! I found another 6-CPI machine. Now I have 3 out of the 4 Smith-Corona large typefaces. This makes typewriter #47 for me, and I've only been collecting for 14 months. I am truly obsessed.

More details on Typewriter Database.

Typewriter Under the Blue Sky

2021-10-11T23:14:00.021-06:00

As I was working on the October 10th Typewriter Club Live typing prompt, "If I could take my typewriter anywhere..." it began to sound like a song, so I played with it. I shared the beginnings on our Sunday morning chat about three hours in. Then later that day I banged out the rest. I've never written such a song so quickly. It's amazing what typewriters can inspire us to do!