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10-11-2016 14:58:41  #21


Re: 1970s Olympia SG3

OK, I'm just concerned that it seems from others' experience that conscientious shippers are hard to find. An object this big and bulky requires a lot of special packing, and who is going to be willing to get all the extra packing material and find the right size container? Ten pounds doesn't seem to come anywhere near what this would cost to ship appropriately -- you get what you pay for. But maybe this seller is willing to do the right thing.

 

10-11-2016 15:08:59  #22


Re: 1970s Olympia SG3

Your concerns are valid. Parcelforce ship pretty big for that money, certainly in terms of weight anyway. Volume is pretty generous as well. I'll let you know! Thanks for the advice

     Thread Starter
 

10-11-2016 15:59:34  #23


Re: 1970s Olympia SG3

I could write a long and tortuous book about damaged typewriters during shipping (three just during the last week ), but there´s something that reduces the risk of getting a thrashed machine: talking to the seller about it. Most people is sensible enough to listen, and if shipping gets a bit more expensive because the pack is larger and heavier (because of the extra protection) think of it as an investment. If the typewriter arrives destroyed the repairs are going to be far more expensive than the next shipping fare. Anyway, there´s always the risk of bumping into someone who says "oh yeah, of course I´ll be careful" and then sends you the typewriter wrapped in a @*%# piece of cardboard which isn´t even a box.

Regarding the typewriters themselves, I can say German SG3´s are better than Mexican ones. For sure the SG3 is one of the best typewriters of its time (although I prefer the Olivetti Linea 98, but that´s another story), and you´ll be get a reliable beast. As for Hermes, I´d say they´re always more expensive. Standard sized ones are pretty hard to find in Spain, at least scarcer than Olympias, and for sure that is reflected in the price. And as for reliability... Olympias are tougher, I´d say. I have 4 Hermes, and all of them have their battle scars. Olympias have the shocking habit of working even after being dropped from any height


TaktaktataktaktakcluccluctaktaktaktaktakDINGtaktaktaktakCREEEEEEEEECtaktaktak...

(Olivetti Linea 98)
 
 

10-11-2016 22:34:22  #24


Re: 1970s Olympia SG3

No Hermes standard for 30GBP in working order that arrives undamaged will be a waste of money.  But postage is, as you know, the key to your problem.  I suggest a review of the thread "Another Machine Destroyed in the Post' - it's long, but instructive, and links to packaging advice etc.  Good luck.


Sincerely,
beak.
 
 

20-1-2017 13:01:11  #25


Re: 1970s Olympia SG3

Interesting thread. I just bought a German-made SG3 for $70, shipping included. It has what look like decimal keys, though they may be something else. I also have an SG1, which I think is a magnificent machine. It'll be interesting to see how they compare.


Visit my website, eafeliupoetry.com, for posts on typewriters and literature.
 

22-1-2017 16:17:58  #26


Re: 1970s Olympia SG3

Regarding the ruggedness of SG-1's : The number of these machines in my custody is equal to the number of times Kevin Durant has been the NBA scoring champion. Their Achilles heal is shifting in the carton (inadequate packing) without the carriage removed (get a seller to remove this -- fuggedaboutit) and crushing their front rail. This has happened to me twice and both were straightened and in working order.

Regarding sellers following packing instructions:  I've had mixed results, as to be expected given the variation in humans. I've had a heavy standard shipped in an over-sized carton completely immobilized by cut blocks of Styrofoam though the seller was unlikely to have made a penny, more than once, because I asked nicely. But the hardest one to take was when I had paid enough to pack properly plus a fair price for the typewriter, and I sent packing instructions which the seller thanked me for ... and then proceeded to completely ignore as it was clearly shipped in the same battered box barely larger than the typewriter that it had been stored in on a shelf!    I eventually got a full refund and still have the remains of the machine, but I would have preferred to have the machine in the original condition rather than the cash that being the reason I bought it in the first place.

Regarding the SG-3  : I saw that machine on eBay. It's a decimal tabulator and my 1926 Remington has the same.  I in fact just figured out exactly how they work. Don't accept "it's for columns of figures" as this suggests a glib answer by a person who does not completely understand how they work. The Remington was advanced for its time in having the continuous tabulator setting like the one on this SG-3 and the fact that the decimal tabulator is found on a machine this late reinforces that the function could not be replaced except by printing adding machines or computers.


"Damn the torpedoes! Four bells, Captain Drayton".
 

22-1-2017 16:48:34  #27


Re: 1970s Olympia SG3

And regarding this thread I see I am replying to comments written months ago. 


"Damn the torpedoes! Four bells, Captain Drayton".
 

22-1-2017 18:00:19  #28


Re: 1970s Olympia SG3

If the decimal tabulator option isn't for aligning columns of figures on the right-hand side, what is it for?  All the machines I have seen (and owned) that were so equipped performed at least that function.  I have also worked with typewriters without ten key decimal tabulators (using the space bar a number of times for each figure, depending on its length) for aligning the right sides of figures.  It is essentially a speed option for those who work in banks and accounting firms, and I have seen this feature installed on machines built as late as the 1970s.  I would just imagine, mind you, that machines installed on automated typing equipment such as robotypers, would be normally equipped, since the computer interfaced with the robotyping machine would probably be set up to use the space bar the appropriate number of times to align figures on the right side.


Underwood--Speeds the World's Bidness
 

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