I had always been interested in the design of the Harris, Rex, and Demountable typewriters, as well as the history of the company(ies), and so, endeavored to find one of the three one day.

After seeing a few on Ebay, I bought this Harris in August and after cleaning it, I found it to be a rather pleasant typewriter! One of the nicer three-bank, double-shift typewriters I have experienced!

The action is light, as is the shifting (though one of the return springs on the figure shift is a little weak, do to it being stretched, but works okay). The escapement operates well; I get no piling or skipping and it is pretty quick; quicker, by comparison, than my Royal Model 5 from 1913. The return on the carriage feels a bit stiff, but is smooth and comfortable, especially once you are typing at a good pace.
All of the controls seem to be well placed and easy to use.

The carriage is easily removed by removing a screw on the "roller rail" on the back which limits travel, placing the drawband on its post, and using the margin release while moving the carriage left or right. To me, this is much simpler, and easier, than the carriage removal of a Fox typewriter.

If I were to say I dislike anything on the Harris, it might be the loud(ish) escapement as you return the carriage, and the lack of line lock, but I can live with these!

Overall, I believe that this was a well designed and thought out machine. Quite pleasant to type on, and fun, too!


OliverNo.9