MikeChavez wrote:

Hello!

Basically, changing the ribbon to a typewriter involves wounding the ribbon completely to one of the spools, releasing it from the other spool, and then remove it completely. Next you replace it with a new spool with fresh ribbon; you hook it to the empty spool, thread the ribbon through the vibrator, and secure the new spool in position.

In the case of older machines, it is usually recommended to keep the original spools. Not only because that adds to their originality, but also because many older machines used proprietary spool designs. That means that the generic spools that can be bought today wouldn't necessarily fit on those machines. In this case, what you'd have to do is remove the old ribbon from the original spool, hook the new ribbon on it, and then wound it from the new spool, which can be discarded afterwards.

I'm preparing a tutorial on my blog, will add a link to it when it's ready. Maybe this will help.

Now I'm even more confused. haha.
Why do you hook the new spool to the empty spool? And what does that mean? What are you "hooking" to?

So you don't just release both the spools, take the 2 new spools, and put them back in the machine and through the vibrator? (winding all the ribbon to the left side?)
That's what makes sense just looking at it...

Thanks for the help!
 

MikeChavez wrote:

Heh. Sorry. I was referring to the ribbon itself. Since the new ribbons available in the market come only in one spool, you need to use one of the old spools in order to use the new ribbon. You take the end of the new ribbon and hook it to the old, empty spool; they usually have a pointy metal tab in the center. You press the ribbon against the tab until it perforates the cloth, securing it to the spool. And that's it.

Perhaps this could help. It's a general procedure for changing ribbons to an older Remington typewriter. Sorry about the entry being written in Spanish; but I think you can get an idea of the procedure of "hooking" the ribbon to the old spool by examining the photos: 

http://modernidadyobsolescencia.blogspot.mx/2014/05/un-regalo-de-cumpleanos-para-mi.html

I have another entry showing how to change ribbon to newer machines, but I have to re-upload the pictures. It should be ready tomorrow, will share the link here if it helps.

Thanks so much!
Do you by any chance have any info on how to cut the ribbon off of a spool and attach it to the old spools? Are there hooks on both of the old spools or do you have to attach it some other way?

Thanks!
 

MikeChavez wrote:

Hello!

To remove the ribbon from the new spool you can merely cut it with a pair of scissors. As for the old spools, they both should have the pointy metal tabs in their center; you just need to lift the tab gently with a screwdriver or a knife to make it point upwards, then press the end of the ribbon against the tab until it perforates the ribbon. Finally you bend back the tab to its original position, and that's it.

Now, in case your old spools don't have the metal tabs (they tended to break off after a while), you could merely tie the ribbon around the center of of the spool, making sure the knot is tight enough to prevent the ribbon from slipping. It's a lot messier, but it works.
 

Thank you again!
When putting new ribbon on, do you want it all to be wound onto the left roll so that it can be moved over as the ink is worn out?
(I'm not sure how it works. Do you spin the wheels with the knob on the right once the ink gets weak so that unused ribbon is in the vibrator?)

And then can you turn the ribbon upside down once one side is worn out? (since it only strikes at the top of the ribbon?)

Thanks!
 

Last edited by comma (11-8-2014 19:54:10)

MikeChavez wrote:

Normally, the ribbon advances automatically as you type. When it reaches the end of the spool, an ingenious mechanism built in most machines since the 1920s reverses the direction of the ribbon automatically, so that it begins to move towards the empty spool.

Also you normally have a small lever somewhere that allows you to change manually the direction of the ribbon, in case it doesn't reverse automatically.

Finally, there's another lever, usually up front, that lets you select if you are going to type in red or black (or, if you're using a solid black ribbon, if you're going to use the upper or the lower half of the ribbon). This is useful to get the most out of your ribbon, because, as you said, when you type you only use half of the ribbon at a time. But don't worry, a fresh ribbon will last a loooooong time before it starts to fade.

Thanks. I did not know that!
So should the ribbon be equally on each spool or should one spool have more than the other to start it out?