Anybody looking for a manual typewriter?

[GoneOffShore]

Clearing out and I have an Olympia SM9 in a case, in excellent condition. Bought it in 1969 for 120$.

[Generic Brad]

1. Does it come with a typewriter manual?

[GoneOffShore]

2. It does have the original instruction leaflet.

And accessories.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

3. Hang on to it. They look nice sitting next to a computer. NT

[GoneOffShore]

9. No place for it, unfortunately.

Too heavy to ship to France.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

12. Oh. That's different. NT

[Major Nikon]

16. Even better if you could figure out how to turn an old teletype into a keyboard

[GoneOffShore]

17. That's a good thought.

What I miss about manual typewriters is that if one was typing, people wouldn't generally bother you, because they could tell you were actually writing something.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

18. I used to see those things at surplus stores. For some reason, I had enough sense not to buy one. NT

[Major Nikon]

19. Good call, they were maintenance intensive

These days you'd probably need to buy several to get enough parts to make one work.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

20. Instead, I stocked up on other junk that needs parts and a lot of time to make work.

Which I never got around to doing.

[COLGATE4]

4. How much are you looking to get for it?

[GoneOffShore]

11. I'd like to get what I paid for it - $120

Would be great if I could get that in 1969 dollars, but 2018 dollars would do just fine.

I still have the original receipt.

[COLGATE4]

14. Thanks anyway.

[PJMcK]

5. The great lyricist Fred Ebb always used a manual

He wrote the lyrics for CHICAGO, CABARET, New York, New York and many other songs and shows.

He used an old manual typewriter using only capital letters and no punctuation. A couple of years before he died in 2004, his assistant and I scrambled to find ribbons because he was running out! Fred never had a computer.

I think the typewriter is on display at the Lincoln Center Library in NYC.

[left-of-center2012]

6. Accessorize it

[csziggy]

7. No thanks, we still have my husband's portable

Not sure what make or model, but we also have the math set of characters for it. His father was an engineer and hoped my husband would follow in his footsteps. Dyslexia got in the way.

[lapucelle]

8. Does manual mean that it's not electric?

[GoneOffShore]

10. Indeed it does.

It is an Olympia SM9 manufactured in 1966 in West Germany. Purchased new in 1969.

[TexasBushwhacker]

13. Tom Hanks collects them

I wonder if he has that model.

[Major Nikon]

15. You could always start a career as a street poet

[hlthe2b]

21. Tom Hanks collects vintage typewriters--has an amazing collection. Ebay sells tons of them

I haven't used one in so long... but boy were they handy just for addressing an envelope or basically anything snail mail you'd like to personalize--yes, youngsters, snail mail is still useful.

I'm not in the market, but just curious what color yours is?

[GoneOffShore]

23. It's light grey and green.

Absolutely fine mechanically, the platen is good and it's rock solid.
I may actually have a buyer who wants to get it for her 30 yr old son who loves typewriters.

[Yavin4]

22. Hang onto it. Will come in handy if the power goes out.

Computers are just a fad.

[zanana1]

24. I have two in my basement.

One of them is from the 1940's. I used to use it; I loved the way I had to pound on the letters. The other one is from the 70's, I guess. I made mad money in college typing up term papers.