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In a previous post this week, I blathered about my Olympia SM5. Today I went to see an SM9 Deluxe and promptly fell in love with it. It was owned by a 92-year-old woman who took very good care of it. The typewriter and case are impeccable. I took it home and finished a poem with it. A great beginning.
I bought the SM5 because I couldn't find an SM9 in my price range. And yet, for $80, here it is. I love the spring in its step: I only typed a sentence before I knew I had to have it. It was the one. Now I know why so many raved about these Olympias,
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Congratulations; you will never regret the money spent on that SM9. Good photo too.
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Very nice machine!
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Owing to its drab looks, I called it "a potato with Steinway keys" in a recent poem. But what a potato! It's a lovely machine; its keys are inviting and responsive, the carriage smooth. I've never used anything like it before. Like all my typewriters, I look for excuses to use them.
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typeset wrote:
Owing to its drab looks...
Perspective. From a design standpoint, and when considering the model it replaced (not including the SM7), what you call drab I think is really very exciting. The SM8/9 design was very successful, its clean and modern lines a reflection of the '60s mindset that has stood the test of time rather admirably.
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RE the design, I find that it helps me to work - no distractions!
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Beak and Uwe make excellent observations. I especially like the idea that it prevents distractions. However, I also found it curious that last night, during a marathon writing session, I felt compelled to abandon the SM9 and continue with an Underwood Champion. The Pica type is obviously smaller and not as legible, but I think I lean toward these older machines.
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typeset wrote:
Beak and Uwe make excellent observations. I especially like the idea that it prevents distractions. However, I also found it curious that last night, during a marathon writing session, I felt compelled to abandon the SM9 and continue with an Underwood Champion. The Pica type is obviously smaller and not as legible, but I think I lean toward these older machines.
That's a kind of distraction I had never considered - I can be distracted by the internet, but can I be distracted by shiny trim and external adjustments? I suppose it depends on the subject matter - if the human mind is desperate for distraction it might settle on exposed nickel plated margin adjustments!