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31-1-2018 23:57:14  #1


Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

So... As stated in my first post, I have bought a Triumph junior 12 portable typewriter. It's being serviced as we speak, so I don't have it here yet.
Now yesterday I came across a Brother 220 machine, it caught my eye... It says 'Vendex 500' but it's a Brother in disguise (Vendex was a household brand from a Dutch warehouse, V&D).
Are any of you familiar with both models (the junior 12 and the 220) and what are your thoughts?
I'm not a writer,  but am planning to use the machine for typing letters with, every now and then.
Thanks in advance!

 

01-2-2018 18:16:52  #2


Re: Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

Well, to start they're both Japanese typewriters. Although the Triumph has a better feature set, I prefer the Brother because it has a metal case versus plastic used for the Junior, and I find the action to be a little tighter. The Brother is also the more compact machine of the pair, but either will work well enough for letter writing.


The pronoun has always been capitalized in the English language for more than 700 years.
 

02-2-2018 02:12:47  #3


Re: Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

Thank you Uwe!
I always thought Triumph was a German brand? Not that it matters.

     Thread Starter
 

02-2-2018 07:52:22  #4


Re: Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

It was, originally -- but was purchased by Litton Industries (which also bought Royal) in 1969. So the brand continued, but I don't know that Triumph machines continued to be made in Germany.

 

02-2-2018 13:25:14  #5


Re: Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

MissKSZ wrote:

I always thought Triumph was a German brand?

​Yes, you're right, it was a German brand; however, like many other manufacturers at the time, it used private label typewriters that were actually made in Japan.

​Here for example is an Olympia Carina 2, which underneath its case is the same typewriter as your Triumph because it was made by the same factory in Japan - in this case by Silver-Reed. Olympia was also a German company, but when typewriter sales began to collapse it became more cost efficient to sub-contract the manufacture of some machines to other companies.


 


The pronoun has always been capitalized in the English language for more than 700 years.
 

03-2-2018 02:10:53  #6


Re: Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

Ha, then I'll know in which gallery to put the pictures 
I've decided to not buy the Brother/Vendex for now. Let's just get to know the Triumph, first, and take it easy.  It's been 20-25yrs since I last worked with a typewriter.
She's already stolen my heart, anyway 

     Thread Starter
 

03-2-2018 04:55:10  #7


Re: Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

Both the Triumph and the Olympia Carina were made in Japan by Nakajima, not Silver-Reed.  The Olympia Carina is still being made in China on secondhand Nakajima tooling.  I had a customers one in for repair recently.  I couldn't believe it !  The typeface are made from plastic and actually moulded onto the typebars !  No wonder the alignment was all over the place !  Even the feed rolls are hard plastic.  Such a shame.  With a bit more attention to detail, it could still be a reasonable typewriter.

 

05-2-2018 10:59:38  #8


Re: Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

I think it would depend on the year of the machine's manufacture. I don't think that there's any question that Silver-Reed (Silver-Seiko) was involved in the production of Triumph models, because if you look at most of the individual components on those machines they are identical to those found on certain Silver-Reed models.

I know that Nakajima made a lot of typewriters for Olympia given it produced the electric and electronic models for the German company, but there are attributes of the earlier manual models that I thought were more consistent with what I've seen on Silver-made models. No doubt you're right about the Carina 2 being a Nakajima machine, but I would not assume that about the Triumph.


The pronoun has always been capitalized in the English language for more than 700 years.
 

06-2-2018 04:53:36  #9


Re: Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

The Triumph 12 was marketed in the UK as the Adler Gabriele 12.  I have had a customer's on in for repair and it is definitely a Nakajima - as is the Hermes 305.  There are some bits and pieces on Nakajimas that look like Silver-Reed, but that is only because Nakajima was copying Silver-Reed.  One of the interesting things about both the Nakajima and the Silver-Reed 500 is that the both use a carriage bed which was originally designed for a portable electric typewriter.  There are rows of ventilation holes under the carriage on the left for an electric motor which isn't there !

 

10-2-2018 04:11:09  #10


Re: Thoughts on Brother 220 vs Triumph junior 12?

Thanks for all the info - I'm learning a lot on here
There's a serial number (14318080) on my typewriter, where to go to find out the age? I can't find Triumph junior 12's in the database, maybe I should look under another brand and model?

     Thread Starter
 

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