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I bought an Olivetti Studio 44 at the beginning of this year. I have tried to get confirmation when exactly the machine was manufactured. Unfortunately the serial numbers begin again from zero at the end of 1950s. That is about the time when Olivetti bought Underwood.
The serial number of my Studio 44 is 609420. It is not Olivetti Underwood, but Olivetti and it has been made in Ivrea Italy. My interpretation is that the machine has been made in 1952. I have seen Studio 44s with these thick buttons and also with black thin buttons. Despite of the different style of buttons, that doesn't seem to be a way to determine the manufacturing year.
Do you have opinions?
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1952 looks to be it...
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And scroll down this web page for the Studio 44 and you will see 1952...first year of its production.
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Ok, but everything on that first page is not correct. As far as i understand, there cannot be an Olivetti Underwood from 1952, because the fusion of Olivetti and Underwood happened in 1959.
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Yes...I agree with you about the first web page photo-galleries. I think all those with Underwood-Olivetti label come from 1960 and thereafter.
The machine owner's may simply mistaken their SN belonging into the first batch of Studio 44's and not correctly in the 2nd. batch when Underwood was absorbed by Olivetti and the SN's started over, again.
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