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10-10-2013 14:44:27  #1


Help dating a Remington - serial number question

I have a Remington that I'm trying to date. I've been looking at an online serial number database but it isn't definitive.
My typewriter's serial number is CJ657165. The database lists machines with J prefixes, but not CJ prefixes. With a J prefix, my machine would date to 1945, which pretty much corresponds to its appearance.
     I'm theorizing that the "C" is for Canadian. Can anyone confirm that, or give me any info?
Thanks!

 

10-10-2013 22:24:33  #2


Re: Help dating a Remington - serial number question

It looks like you have a Super Riter model to me, but I would have pegged it as being a mid-'50s to early-'60s model based on its looks.
 
I assumed that you used the American-made serial number list to come up with 1945? If you look - as an example - at the list of serial numbers for machines made in England you'll see that their serial numbers (post 1952) are much lower; I suspect that it’s a similar case for machines made in Canada.

The 'C' prefix does mean Canadian made, at least that's what I've been able to determine based on the serial numbers of my Remington machines. Each one that I own that was built in Canada uses the 'C' prefix, just as every model I have that was built in England has an 'E' prefix. 

I've had a few issues dating my Canadian-made Remington models because the numbers never really matched or made sense with those posted on the Database. I suspect what’s missing is an additional list of Canadian serial numbers, one that unfortunately hasn't been published as of yet (at least not that I’ve found). Given that there are English, Dutch and French number lists, my theory makes a lot of sense. 

I’d bet that you would be closer to the date of your machine's manufacture if you used the England-made list instead. I could be way off on all of this, but that’s what all my investigations to date on this subject have left me to conclude.
 


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

10-10-2013 23:05:01  #3


Re: Help dating a Remington - serial number question

This typewriter is a Remington SJ. Often depicted with J references only. Why it has a C, is hard to say. Often the British made ones were EJ prefixed. 

That said, the letters often denote model or make. It is the numbers you want, and by the database that puts your typewriter at around 1963. If it was made in the UK (most likely Scotland) it would have a 'Made in Great Britain' sticker on it. But often these fall off. or get washed away. 

But it most certainly was not made in 1945WebRep currentVote  noRatingnoWeight           

 

11-10-2013 03:45:24  #4


Re: Help dating a Remington - serial number question

Nope, not English-made !  The shape and colour of the keytops would be different if it was (would be dark green and the same style as the surrounding control keys).  My vote is for a later machine because of the silver paint.  Earlier ones (at least the English model) had grey crackle finish paint.

 

11-10-2013 20:45:44  #5


Re: Help dating a Remington - serial number question

I still maintain it's a Canadian made machine, and that is what the "C" prefix represents. As I mentioned, every Canadian made Remington I own has the "C" prefix. Every Made in Great Britain machine has the "E" prefix. 

As for the model, I'm not familiar with the "SJ"; how does it differ from the Super Riter, which is what I would have sworn this one is?


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

12-10-2013 16:41:24  #6


Re: Help dating a Remington - serial number question

By the long arm of coincidence, I picked one of these up from a customer today for repair.  It is a grey crackle finish Super Riter from 1954.  On the back, it has a transfer that says 'Made in Great Britain', which would of course include Scotland, and the serial number has an SJ prefix.  I couldn't swear to it, but I think the previous KMC model had the EJ prefix (or at least the ones I saw did)

 

12-10-2013 23:00:56  #7


Re: Help dating a Remington - serial number question

That's quite funny! In other words an "SJ" model is just a Super Riter that was made in Scotland? That would explain why I've never heard of a "Remington SJ" before, and why - as I stated in my first reply - that the OP's typer looked like a Super Riter to me.


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

13-10-2013 04:41:26  #8


Re: Help dating a Remington - serial number question

The 'Super Riter' brand name was used on several machines. The designation of this machine is an SJ, but like most manufacturers, they often released a model under different names with variations. For exmaple: The SJ model was sold under the names 'Super-riter', 'Master-riter' and 'Rembrant'. 

From what I can tell, the UK machines resumed a SJ designation and dropped the E at some stage. But the earliest had E designations. 

The C is certainly curious. I'm with you Uwe about the location of manufacture. We just need to find some other Canadan made machines with a C in the serial to prove it. But I'm sticking by my 1963 manufacture period. 

Just for reference, the French made super-riters had the prefix 'JF'. And the dutch version had nothing. 

 

13-10-2013 17:17:28  #9


Re: Help dating a Remington - serial number question

ScottK wrote:

 We just need to find some other Canadan made machines with a C in the serial to prove it. 

I pulled the numbers off my earliest and latest Made in Canada Remington models and both have the "C" prefix:
 
1940 Remington-Rand Model 5 DeLuxe #CB60903 (Made in Canada)
1973 Remington-Rand Ten Forty  #CY-68 39 47 (Made in Canada)

As for the Dutch models not having a prefix, I checked one of my Made in Holland Remingtons and found a prefix IX in front of the serial number. I'm not sure where you got that information from, but if it was from the Database I think we can all agree that it's far from being complete or 100 perfect accurate.
 


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

21-10-2013 17:36:48  #10


Re: Help dating a Remington - serial number question

CJ657165 I'm going to guess is probably 1952 ?

From Schramm 1962 (in German):
###############################
Remington (Kanada)
CX 44 001 u. darüber - 1940
CX 62 000 - CX 767 399 - 1947-1953

They're vague about specific years, but you can mentally run an algorythm to extrapolate ranges between 1947 to 1953 and 657165 is at the tail end of that range.
(the "X" probably indicates that all canadian models ran in the same number range. The "C" prefix seems to have been used for all Canadian-made models except some Canadian Noiseless models from 1940 through at least 1954.)

 

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