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I have a Royal Quiet Deluxe, the older one with the round glass keycaps.
On the rest where the letters fall back on there is a thick fibrous pad, about half an inch wide, as a sound insulatior for when the letters fall back.
Could it be asbestos?
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Surely it's just wool felt.
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Hehe, wouldn't doubt it. And Im sure the old ones use lead paint too! But hey, haven't died yet!
lol
(sorry for ruining collecting for everyone...)
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Absent a fire risk (unless you're typing really, really fast) there were other, less expensive sound-deadening or cushioning materials available to typewriter manufacturers, so I doubt asbestos was used. My other hobby, old tube radios, does has examples of asbestos pads being used. Even there, the health risk is minimal.