Hi there, well - I might not describe the feel of a Hermes 3000 as 'spongy'; to me this description belongs more to some of the Olivettis, but I'm not quite sure how I would describe the Hermes feel. It's sort of reassuringly precise, and also muffled, calming. Absolutely reliable.

I have a 2000 and I love it - it's got a bit of backstory to it and was brought back to life by our forum member the Typewriter Man, and 9t's gorgeous to use. The feel is very similar to the 3000, lovely understated precision. The big difference, as with eg the Olympias SM3 and SM9, is the shift. The Hermes 2000 has a carriage shift, and this is the thing that will make the difference for you, if anything does. But it's not too onerous, it's just a knack. And I love mine also because it has pica type, where my 3000 (rounded model, 1961) has elite. So they're a set. 

It's also a very sweet-looking machine.

One thing I will say, since of course I'm dealing with a sample size of one of each model - when I got these two machines they were in very different condition. The 3000 is like a miracle, virtually mint, clean as a pin, just glorious. It types like butter, very precise butter. The 2000, by contrast, I got for £3 from a woman whose mother turned out to have somehow managed to break the line selector lever - that is, snap a little piece of it in two - and it was so filthy with dirt and nicotine that it dramatically changed colour when I cleaned it (and again when Tom Lucas cleaned it, which he did, bless him). She turned out to have been the membership secretary of the British Judo Association; my theory is that she didn't know her own strength. There were lots of other things wrong with it too, and then when I took it to Tom he quickly identified that it had at some point been dropped... in other words, it was a case study!

But even in that condition I could tell it was a wonderful little typer and that it had that Hermes feel which for me is like crack. Tom got to work - I went for broke with some money I had at the time and got the platen re-covered, too - and when it came back to me it was utterly transformed. It's a dream now. So basically, two machines, at two opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of condition, but both, at bottom, had that same Hermes touch. One of them just needed a bit of love (and hammering, and a new lever) to bring it out.

Thank you KatLondon and Uwe for responding. My next post in this thread will contain additional info. Please standby.

ZehcnaS wrote:

...my Hermes 3000 ...looks just like this and the two Hermes 2000 models I'm reviewing look like this and this.

All the info that was needed. So you have a second generation 3000 made between '66 and '71. The first 2000 you linked to is my machine and photo... so I know exactly which one you mean! 

Unfortunately, I can't provide a direct comparison between the models. I only own a 1st and 3rd generation 3000, so I don't know how the 2000 would compare to the 2nd generation 3000. However, as I previously stated, I much prefer the 2000 over the two 3000 variations that I have.

Hi there, of course Uwe is being much more thorough than me; I never thought of you having a different model from mine! I guess I think of the first, rounded 3000 as being the 'standard' one and the later ones as being 'generations', as it were.  Mine is the rounded kind (as I guess you can tell), and I've never typed on one of the later ones. I'd be interested to hear about the differences though if there are any. 

As for your second 2000, the grey one, it's exactly like mine! Even looking at your picture gave me a nice warm feeling inside. When I got it it was like a dark yellowish khaki-looking thing. Imagine.

I've got three of the 2000 models and to my eye the dark green and brown model looks far more intriguing (if not exotic) than the grey model with chromed trim, which is somewhat understated for a Hermes, a company mostly known for its "sea foam green" colour palette. Later models had the same colour scheme as the first generation 3000 (curved body), which also makes it stand out. Aesthetics aside, it is a very nice typewriter to use.