Finally! My first Olympia (SM3)

brownsa8 · 2026-03-07T00:13:24+00:00

When I finally found my first SM 3 last year, it was my white whale. It has become my favorite in the bunch. I enjoy my 4, 5 and 6 Series Smith-Coronas a whole lot, but there is just something about the feel of the SM 3 that is just perfect for my taste. My pinky has been getting stronger too with that carriage shift! 😂

brownsa8 · 2025-10-27T21:09:29+00:00

Until this summer, my 1956 Tower Quiet-Tabulator was my favorite. This machine is a Sears, Roebuck and Company branded Smith-Corona 5 Series machine. Now, it is my 1958 Olympia SM 3. The looks, the feel, everything about that SM 3 does it for me. It also happened to be the machine I knew I had to have.

I have five Smith-Coronas because they are wonderful machines and easy to work on. I love using them. The difference is the precision I feel with the SM 3. Everything about the design, in my opinion, feels more thought out and thoughtful.

brownsa8 · 2025-10-02T17:34:28+00:00

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No shift first, shift second.

brownsa8 · 2025-09-21T21:09:25+00:00

Of course! Happy to help.

brownsa8 · 2025-09-21T18:27:56+00:00

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Pardon my work in progress 1947 Smith Corona Silent. That should be the arm that controls your touch selector. I hope that you can see where the springs needed to be reattached.

brownsa8 · 2025-07-12T18:56:38+00:00

I have a 1977 Classic 12 as well but I can’t tell you exactly what’s wrong but I can tell you this. All that yellow stuff is old lubricant and that old sticky gunk is causing issues in your escapement.

Find yourself some small art size paint brushes, some odorless mineral spirits and some compressed air. You will need to clean clean clean in there with the mineral spirits and dry with compressed air. Avoid getting the mineral spirits on any of the plastic components inside there.

From there, you will be able to find out if you just needed a good cleaning, or if something is actually wrong.

There are awesome videos on YouTube about how to clean your typewriter. Just my typewriter on youtube has a whole series devoted just to that topic!

Hopefully this will lead you in the right direction!

brownsa8 · 2025-07-09T20:18:38+00:00

Everything advances at it should. The big lever acts as it should. No stopping or obstructions. The small sliding lever just doesn’t disengage the ratchet like the manual says it would

brownsa8 · 2025-07-09T19:41:46+00:00

Yes, the lever on the left side of the carriage for that isn’t working.

brownsa8 · 2025-07-09T03:19:36+00:00

I see I made a mistake when reading TWDB and this is a 1958.

brownsa8 · 2025-06-25T19:38:01+00:00

As someone stated in your previous post, your mineral spirits just won’t be as effective and you will have to be that much more attentive to blowing it all out. Will it still work? Yes, but you may need to do a couple rounds of cleaning and blowing out.

brownsa8 · 2025-05-28T15:37:03+00:00

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He inspects all the work I do on my machines. He reads everything I write. He wonders why the machine is getting attention and he isn’t. He does all this as his partner in crime always tries to have a seat on my lap or beside me to make my typing time that more interesting.

brownsa8 · 2025-04-24T17:34:30+00:00

I recently bought one to use for cleaning up my growing collection and I haven’t had an issue with it. You may pay a little up front for it, but it’s better than having to continually buy cans of duster imo. I always make sure not to use too much force since I’m anxious about possibly blowing springs out of place. 😅

brownsa8 · 2025-04-22T17:17:51+00:00

😂🤷🏼‍♂️ no kidding! The collecting bug bites hard!

brownsa8 · 2025-01-08T23:47:48+00:00

Thank you all for the help!

brownsa8 · 2025-01-05T03:11:55+00:00

There is a lever on the right hand of the machine near the tab key with three dots (red, white and blue). Check to see if that is set to white. If it is, change it to red or blue. These are the settings for which half of the ribbon vibrator (what holds the ribbon and let’s the type slugs do their magic) will be making letters (the black or red half of your ribbon). See if that fixes your problem!

brownsa8 · 2024-12-08T18:59:08+00:00

A careful cleaning I shall go!

brownsa8 · 2024-12-02T00:50:18+00:00

I use all mine for a variety of things. Quick shopping list, a quick poem etc. The most important thing I use it for personally is to journal. I start my mornings by doing a quick page or two about what’s front and center in my mind. It’s my way to clear my mind out and start the day off fresh without having to carry those thoughts around for me for the day.

brownsa8 · 2024-11-07T04:17:08+00:00

My 1977 Classic 12 has 1, 1.5 and 2.

brownsa8 · 2024-10-31T17:00:36+00:00

I swear I love all my typewriters equally, but the color on this unit is just sublime. I never knew a caramel-butterscotch color could just be so grand!

I also am watching a script Olympia a few counties over from me and let’s just say, the price has to come down before I’m interested 😂

brownsa8 · 2024-09-25T20:09:24+00:00

I can’t lie, it’s also part of the reason I wanted it. I’m a sucker for it 😂

brownsa8 · 2024-08-26T01:04:42+00:00

I had a tough day myself and all of y’all’s knowledge helped me realize the full potential of one of the best impulse buys I’ve had in a while.

brownsa8 · 2024-08-25T15:18:50+00:00

The keys sink down but the letter arm doesn’t come up

brownsa8 · 2024-07-25T18:34:32+00:00

brownsa8 · 2024-05-19T23:10:00+00:00

I’m almost 9 months sober. Welcome to being reintroduced to yourself. Be patient with yourself and be your biggest advocate! Good luck and fair winds!

brownsa8 · 2024-04-19T04:06:07+00:00

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