17 Jul 2014

Success and failure / Loose ends



I don't think I ever showed here on my blog the before and after pictures for my Erika 5 Tab. Not all the blotchy weird stuff on the paint came off with cleaning, it took the rubbing of oil into the paint to bring it back looking great. I'm not sure why oil works so well on washed-out looking black paint, but it does.



*Not that the cheap nylon ribbons I buy work with 95% of my typewriters

Sent from my Erika 5 Tab

7 comments:

  1. Nick, does oil on black paint give better results than wax, apart from being easier to apply? And does it have any downsizes, like holding dust or oiling your fingers when moving the typewriter?

    == Michael

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    1. It doesn't give better results once you're finished, but I prefer it because it doesn't leave any white residue (always a problem with wax and all the little crevices that might be found on a typewriter) and you can apply oil a bit more gently. I buff it out with a soft cloth after rubbing oil on, but for a couple of days, the surface remains a bit oily and will attract dust, and I'll wipe it down every so often, but after that it's usually fine.

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  2. interesting philosophy on acquiring and valuing machines to buy. it differs from mine although who doesn't like near perfect decals. For me, i need it to work or have a clear problem and solution. People say, carriage wont move: usually a drawband so i'll go for the machine. but when a seller says there are dead keys, that is currently beyond my skills so i forget about the machine.
    One thing i've stayed away from is significant rust. I associate rust with a machine completely uncared for, and due to that, i imagine issues upon issues so i don't go for machines with rust.
    As for this Erika you've featured: ive never typed on one. How does it perform? in comparison with other machines in its class?

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    1. It isn't really the best plan, but it's my plan and it usually involves good things happening. None of it involves going to antique stores, though. I totally agree with you on rust. Anything more than one or two very light spots and I'm not interested.

      Here's my old post on the Erika: http://xoverit.blogspot.com/2014/04/erika-5-tab.html . I rate the Erikas very highly against other portables from the late 30s.

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  3. Very interested in your Tower findings, I kind of hit a dead end on them after a bit.

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    1. I'm not really discovering anything new, just compiling what information I can find into an organized list. If only we could have serial numbers, that would clear up so much!

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