Regarding line spacing and the indicators next to the line spacing selector, on all three Olivetti Lettera 22s I’ve owned the selector positions were marked “1,2,3” but were actually 1, 1.5 and 2. The same with my Studio 44 and Olivetti-Underwood 21. And just yesterday evening I noticed my Groma Kolibri is also marked “1,2” but is actually 1 and 1.5. 

So I’ve taken to thinking of these markings as “setting position 1” and “setting position 2” rather than the literal line spacing themselves.

One problem with these Royals is the escapement doesn’t trip the carriage movement until after the character has been printed and the typebar is on its way back to its rest position. This is in contrast to other brands, like Smith-Corona, that trip the escapement before the printing happens.

One technique that helps with Royals is to consciously pull your fingers off the keys swiftly after the printing, so the typebar can quickly return to the rest position.

The escapement trip point can be adjusted, this may help, see the appropriate Typewriter Repair Bible.

A hard platen roller can cause double striking.

If it’s frequently the same characters that are double striking, the typebar could be rubbing on one side of the type guide when it prints. This, combined with a hard platen, can have the effect of causing the typebar to bounce and restrike. To test for this, push the key gently, then as the type bar begins to move push it down near the pivot point, so you aren’t influencing its side-to-side movement. As the type slug enters the type guide pause and gently tap on both left and right sides of the slug, you should feel slight movement on both sides, indicating the slug is well centered. If there’s no movement on one side, it could be rubbing and you will need to gently reform the type bar the other direction. Don’t bend the type bar down near the pivot point, that can cause other issues. Brace the type bar down near the pivot point, then slightly form the middle of the type bar, just enough to give some slight space between the slug and the side of the type guide.

Try testing to see how close the escapement trip point is to the print position. Lightly press the A key enough so the typebar begins to move, then slowly move the typebar by hand toward the platen. The proper trip point, where the carriage moves, should be when the face of the type slug is about 3/8 inch from the platen. It’s not crucial that it be exactly 3/8 inch, but you don’t want to have it trip so close to the platen that it causes problems. This trip point is adjustable by bending (reforming) a part; reference the 6-series Typewriter Repair Bible.

Another issue can be one side of the type slug is rubbing against the type guide as the letter is printed. Again like above, move the type bar by hand, this time pushing it just above the pivot point at the bottom of the segment area so you aren’t influencing the side-to-side movement. Then, just as the type slug enters the type guide, pause and gently tap on the type slug, both left and right sides, to get a feel for how much slack there is between either side of the type slug and the side of the type guide. The ideal setup is you feel a bit of movement on both the left and right sides. If it’s rubbing, you won’t feel movement on one side.

To correct this rubbing you have to gently reform (bend) the typebar to one side. I do this by bracing the type bar down near the pivot point, you don’t want to bend it near the pivot because that can cause other issues. So, for example, if you need to bend the type bar to the right, brace the bottom of the type bar on its right side (with your thumb), then gently press on the left side of the type bar to slightly reform it to the right. You may even have to put a slight bend toward the left, up near the type slug, to keep the type slug vertical and not slanted.

These adjustments are very slight. Retest the type bar position into the type guide after each adjustment, ensuring it isn’t rubbing on one side of the guide.

Another cause of skipping on only one lette

Amelia wrote:

Hey again. 
I hope everyone is well and adjusting to quarantine life at the moment.
Any fans of typecasting here?
If so, what site do you use? Blogger, Blogspot, WordPress, Weebly, Wix, Tumblr, etc.
If you don't typecast, do you follow any typecasting blogs? Where?
I am in search of a free service that reaches a wider audience.
Currently I use Blogger, but do not have much of a readership. Link in my signature.
I'm more than willing to relocate based on recommendations.
TIA! 

To attract more readers, have your blog listed on Richard Polt’s Typosphere blog roll, found at the bottom of his blog. That’s where many of use bloggers go to check on other typewriter bloggers.

Look at the universal bar, the common bar that all the character keys activate. The U-bar in turn should raise the ribbon vibrator, move the ribbon spools and also Trip the escapement to move the carriage. You should find the linkage where the U-bar activates the escapement. There should also be a similar linkage where the space bar also activates the escapement. Look at what the escapement is doing, that might provide a clue.

On some machines the carriage lock might also disable the keys from moving the carriage, so maybe something is wonky there.

There carriage release lever pivots the linear rack gear out of engagement with the escapement star gear. So release the carriage, while holding it from moving, then with your third hand try typing a letter and see if the escapement tries to move. I’m thinking something in the escapement isn’t right.