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Thats fine and dandy. We are complaining about the people who take, for instance I have seen them take keys from a HAMMOND MULTIPLEX typewriter! Look that up! The keys were perfectly white, and it hints at the condition of the typewriter....
90% of these key choppers just take ANY typewriter, and cut off the keys. Now I agree with you. If its a parts machine we are talking about, its fine. But again, a Hammond?
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oh my.....
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Since I wrote this last post, I have seen closer the typewriters that have been "keychopped." I have NEVER done this to a typewriter--EVER. It was always plastic keys I've removed and transferred to another typewriter. I only used a pair of needlenose pliers to remove the keys without damaging the levers, unlike those butchers with the bolt cutters. As for the chrome or brass-lined glass top keys, there was one machine where I took a key insert tablet and re-did all the keys and made the keyboard look like brand new again--it was a 1949 Royal KMG. Here is one of my newer fantasies: Seeing a "keychopped" machine having been thrown away--perfect (or repairable) in every other way--except for the chopped keys. What I would do for that machine was to remove those levers and replace them with new ones with a spare parts machine with the keytops still on them--glass or plastic. If I had to use a newer typewriter with otherwise identical key levers, I would still do it. It would not be original or as valuable, but that one orphan typewriter would have a new lease on life, and I will know that I was the one who saved it.
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Hey Typewriter king, can you check your inbox? I sent you a PM.
By the way, Ive gotta whiten up the cover on my Royal Safari, but to do so, I must remove a few keys. How can I do that with pliers that you mentioned?
Sorry for the off topic post everyone.
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You get under the key with your needlenose pliers, close down over the lever, and very gently angle up with the handles, but don't use too much force or you'll break the key. It may also help to have a small rag or towel wrapped around the bottom of the key so you can get a little more of an upward pull, plus it will give you a cushion between the pliers and the key. But remember, gentle is the word here. And, yes, I am starting to learn how to check my inbox and some other things. Think Paddington Bear in London. I'm still learning to get around--even if I have to stand on my right foot while carrying a dog down an escalator (I love that movie!! I think I'll watch it again.).