Um, never. I've never disposed of a case yet, and I have a few that are in pretty nasty shape. My reasoning is simple: Some day I'll get around to either repairing or restoring it, and if that doesn't seem feasible, then I'll at least have the old one to serve as a template to possible make one as similar as possible to the original. Heck, I don't even toss the bottom half of a case when the top half is missing. I must have at least ten machines that are still neatly fixed to the bottom half of their transport case and never came with anything else.

Repartee wrote:

...On the subject of plywood cases: I had noticed the impressive metal cases sported by Olympia SM-3's. Or so I thought, until I saw an example with the paint peeling off! Yep - it's really formed plywood. Impressively formed plywood. Checking my memory, as soon as I typed "galvanized metal finish" Google suggested "faux galvanized metal finish". Hmm...

Galvanized metal is one of the most utilitarian looking things I can imagine, and it would never occur to me to fake it. How expensive could a *real* stamped galvanized metal case have been that Olympia would produce an imitation bucket!? Are all the SM-3 cases made this way, or did they just run into a metal shortage one year?

tl;dr: galvanized surface looks quite different from Oly cases

Uh, careful here. Since we're finding that typewriter appreciation properly requires accuracy in description, we should train ourselves to notice details. A galvanized metal finish is very different from the hammertone painted finish that those wooden Olympia have and it is misleading to think they are the same just because they are an uneven, silver-colored surface. Galvanizing produces very angular patches of greatly varying size with a smooth feel and can only be applied to metal (commonly steel because most other metals don't rust), while hammertone paint produces smallish rounded bumps with an obvious feel-texture and can be applied to any surface that accepts paint and thus often disguises the material.

The most familiar galvanized items are metal garbage cans and some, not all, utility pails. Look at them for comparison.

Hammertone paint can be and is applied to anything that can be painted and is often used to give an item a quality look, hiding surface imperfections as well as implying metal construction. Knowing this should lead you to look for other clues as to what the structural material is whenever you see hammertone. 

Those formed wooden cases used technology developed by the aircraft industry so Olympia could just use old machinery that wasn't in much demand after the war instead of having to develop something. Olympia SM-series were also  delivered in fabric-covered wooden rectangular cases, usually with a wide grey-green center stripe flanked by cream top and bottom. SM8 and 9 came also in black semi-hard faux leather cases.

HTH

It looks like you just beat me to the punch there Michael!

We agree on the main points, but as for unused aircraft manufacturing equipment, I suspect there wasn't too much of that lying around. Most would have, like so many other German factories (that weren't bombed into the ground) - especially in the east - packed up lock, stock, and barrel and shipped out of the country.

thetypewriterman wrote:

That Triumph case - I'm sure that I have seen that carrying handle before.  On a Hermes Baby/Empire Aristocrat if I'm not mistaken !

It's a very similar handle to be sure. Same overall design and actuation, and now that you have me curious, I'll have to compare them side-by-side.