Very pretty!  (Where does that USB cable attach? ) Looks like a 1947, based on the serial number (if memory serves from TWDB). 

I see the rust on the levers behind the typebars and on the segment -- does that interfere with the typing action? Others here can speak with more authority than I can about what to use to get at that.  And the green corrosion is not pretty either, but maybe that can be scraped away.  I know that white vinegar helps in removing that, but I would be leery about getting that into the innards of a typewriter, given its water content.  If you can apply it sparingly with a cotton swab and are careful to wipe it off, you may be OK.  Good luck -- I am very pleased with mine.

Last edited by Fleetwing (31-8-2015 20:19:42)

Well, I tried cola, and yes, it does remove rust.  But you'll want to use diet coke, since the sugary kind gets sticky, and you don't want sticky in your typewriter, not at all.  It'd be hard gettin' that stuff outta there!!

Rust is quite common in my area as well, but not for the same reason.

It seems that most of the typewriters around here relegated to long term storage were kept in basements, and given the age of the average (original) typewriter owner, and age of that owner's house, those basements are often very damp places, which makes a perfect environment for rust and mold to take hold of a machine.

Rust is one thing, but mold, which is perhaps even more common, can be potent stuff. I've had machines that smelled so strong that it threatened to cause an evacuation of the entire neighbourhood, and it seemed that no amount of cleaning would exorcise its mildewy musk. A faint hint of mold can be quaint, some equate it to the smell of something old, the particular pungency of a vintage item, and they actually like it. But when that fragrance reaches industrial strength, when it makes your eyes water and your throat gag, it's no fun.

I've tried many techniques for killing that smell (and the mold that is responsible for it), and most are ineffective at best. The first and easiest thing that should always be done is to throw out the ribbon; it's usually the first place mold grows and sometimes so bad that the eyelet on the end resembles a wet Life Saver that was dropped in a jar of lint. Giving the typewriter a day at the beach with lots of fresh air and a sun to bask under is one technique, but it takes far too long, and I don't like exposing all of those already fragile rubber components and aged paint to direct sunlight. The cleaning product that I use on on typewriters helps, but only a little. More recently I've resorted to bringing in the big guns, and now use a special mold killing product to saturate the places that mold likes to cling to such as the sound dampening felts that often line a typewriter case. 

Lysol was one of the first products I tried, and typewriter mold just seemed to shrug it off. It would cover the scent for a little while, but it would always come back. I now use Concrobium Mold Control spray that "kills and prevents mold, wherever it takes hold." Even with such a specific product it takes a liberal application to get rid of the funky aroma that could level Tacoma. You really have to get it on every surface too if you want it to work.

TypewriterKing wrote:

Looks like you've got your work cut out in getting that rust off those key levers under the front cover.  I guess it's the end result of the machine residing along the eastern seaboard with all the salt in the air.  Some people say Coca Cola can remove rust.  I haven't tried it, but I do know that I used to remove rust from certain refrigeration parts with diluted muriatic acid.  I guess it could work, since Colas have carbolic acid as an ingredient.  I have an Underwood 150 I'm working on, and I think I might try it.  I'll have to get back to you and let you know if it works.

The US Navy had (and probably still has) a kind of generic Kool-Aid powdered drink affectionately known as bug juice. Alternative use: soaking metal parts. It would get brass bright and shiny without the need for of that arduous rubbing. I'm a fan of sour gummy candy but I don't eat it very often: the combination of sugar and acid could not have been better formulated to dissolve teeth.  But this gives me an idea... mash it up with enough additional water to make a paste - home made naval jelly. Worth a shot!

Regarding funky odors: I've had good luck with Febreze. I set up a small fan blowing into the typewriter and I spray Febreze into the air stream. Machines that seem to have been stored in a damp crawl space for the last twenty years may need several applications. Will not kill mold but is effective on odors, and moving air dries the machine out quickly.