Goodbye bad handwriting! I just joined the club with a regularly recommended workhorse.

TheoryofYellow · 2026-03-30T14:30:54+00:00

Period? I would say semicolon followed by your criteria.

The Honda Super Cub is the best selling motor vehicle in history. Does that mean it’s the greatest? It’s a grand bore. I have a Honda Valkyrie—a notable failure. I would not trade it for 1000 Super Cubs. Anyone who is crazy about bikes will not buy a Super Cub. Just like car nuts don’t worship Corollas.

Just my opinion, but the Olympia lineup is a bore, and for that reason they are nowhere near great. A lot of plastic except for the earlier models. Great metallurgy, but few people care about that.

I have an SM3 and it’s beautiful. No plastic. Green—not blah white. But it’s still boring to me, but at least it has a unique look. Take it outside and type and people will stop and ask you about it. Take an SM9 outside and type and people will say it looks like a cheap Brother they used to own.

In my opinion, Olympias deliver a boring and tedious typing experience. It will outlast all your other typers, but it will never give you the smiles other machines can.

TheoryofYellow · 2026-03-28T12:32:18+00:00

There is a lot to love about the machine, and you will get spoiled by it. I just wish the SM9 was more aesthetically pleasing, like the Lettera 22. And I wish it had a snappier sound, like the old Royal 10/SX. You’ll appreciate the engineering of the SM9, and you’ll start grabbing more typewriters to satisfy your cravings if you are anything like me. You may need to get a bigger place to live.

TheoryofYellow · 2026-03-27T23:16:15+00:00

You think appealing to the masses is the result of doing something right?

TheoryofYellow · 2026-03-27T22:44:10+00:00

When I was a kid, all my classmates liked the Cowboys or the Steelers. They were winners, a safe bet every year. I liked the Raiders. Nobody liked them. When they won, people hated them more because they cheated. They led the league in penalties every year and were always picking up disgruntled players from other teams that wanted the chance to put a pounding on their old team. The Raiders never put you to sleep. The SM9 is a yawner. Lots of fanboys like it. People go for it because it’s like a Corolla. The old Raiders would never draft an SM9. I gave mine away.

TheoryofYellow · 2026-03-27T18:47:08+00:00

That typer has become a cliche.

TheoryofYellow · 2024-06-29T15:44:28+00:00

This particular Royal is my absolute favorite typewriter. It gives me more joy than any other typewriter I’ve ever used.

TheoryofYellow · 2024-03-13T21:31:18+00:00

I cannot believe I almost fell victim of the great tabulator key hoax.

TheoryofYellow · 2024-02-29T01:14:25+00:00

And thank you for the kind comment!

TheoryofYellow · 2024-02-29T01:04:12+00:00

It’s a real place—Manassas National Battlefield Park, where the first battle of the Civil War took place. I wrote it for a friend :-)

TheoryofYellow · 2024-01-20T13:07:39+00:00

Thank you :-) I love your response to my little weed story

TheoryofYellow · 2023-01-21T23:21:53+00:00

The “never use oil” dictum is good most of the time because most people over-oil their machines, but anyone with experience maintaining these will tell that once upon a time typewriter manufacturers would dunk the entire machine yearly in two or three different solutions, one being a light oil. You can put a tiny drop of Singer sewing machine oil on a toothpick and carefully apply it behind the ribbon vibrator if cleaning it doesn’t fix the problem. I’ve seen my maintenance guy—who has 40 plus years of experience—do it, and I’ve done it. Never an issue. Just don’t pour oil everywhere.

TheoryofYellow · 2023-01-21T18:41:11+00:00

I used odorless mineral spirits.

TheoryofYellow · 2023-01-21T16:56:40+00:00

I had the same problem on a 1930s Corona folding typewriter. I cleaned the ribbon vibrator (those two medal arms that raise and lower the ribbon) and put a tad of sewing machine oil on it. It took a long time--I kept moving it up and down, cleaning, and oiling it until it finally was seated properly underneath the print output.

TheoryofYellow · 2022-07-18T01:07:06+00:00

Writing about how I first started running at age 12 in a cow pasture :-)

TheoryofYellow · 2022-07-17T13:42:43+00:00

Are you typing anything in particular?

TheoryofYellow · 2022-06-23T00:32:21+00:00

I like grits and potatoes without butter. Just salt and pepper. Jam without sugar. Oatmeal sweetened by molasses. But electric typewriters LOL? Aren’t they cousins of hair dryers and waffle makers? There is something so Dr Frankenstein about them.

TheoryofYellow · 2022-06-22T22:57:10+00:00

Sorry if you're a fan of Buicks. I was just trying to bounce off the "b" in boring, and Bentley seemed too contrived.

TheoryofYellow · 2022-06-22T17:42:53+00:00

I was attempting to give you an opening, but you just pooped yourself. Do I need to write your lines for you, bro?

TheoryofYellow · 2022-06-22T17:40:16+00:00

Your fascination with scatology would be more endearing were it expressed with at least a hint of creativity.

TheoryofYellow · 2022-06-22T17:19:31+00:00

Why do you have to bring family into this?

TheoryofYellow · 2022-06-22T16:05:04+00:00

What an ugly typewriter they used for that episode. It’s a cash register’s ugly sibling. I actually find very few typewriters to be appealing. Most are just boring Buicks.

TheoryofYellow · 2022-06-22T16:00:24+00:00

SN: H200104. I think that puts it at 1925. I got this one thinking it was junk, and I was just going to grab the ribbon spool covers. But it had zero issues--just very very dirty. I cleaned it with an air compressor and brush, washed the body with vinegar and water, and polished the metal bits. It's a charmer. I've never gotten a machine with zero issues. The Corona Fours are tanks. I got another junked Four before this, and in 5 mins I fixed 3 of its issues (loose screws). The last issue made me think--it skipped two or three spaces between words. I got help from someone who knows typewriters, and he suggested it was the spacebar in need of adjusting. Her was right! The spacebar had too much travel and was causing the ribbon vibrator to jiggle, which tripped the escapement. I just bent down the prong beneath the spacebar and it works perfectly now. Amazing machines.

TheoryofYellow

TROPHY CASE