daughterlaughter wrote:

You may bombard me with dog pictures, however, as I can keep those without any negative consequences.

Hi and Welcome to the forum.

​Although I haven't posted on this thread for a long time, when I saw this pun, I simply couldn't resist. Good to have all the new members on board and look forward to hearing from you. All the very best,

Sky

 

Oops, I meant California Typewriter, not the C-word.  
Sorry.

My first post should be an introduction so here it is.

I took a typing class in high school and was fairly fast for a guy using a manual typewriter.  That was 46 years ago.  I went into IT and could type better than most but I've never liked the feel of the flimsy, cheap, plastic keyboards.

I want a typewriter.  Only one typewriter.  I want a good usable typewriter.

I'm not sure which to buy.  Currently there are 3 I am looking at; Olympia SM3, Olympia Deluxe, and a Smith-Corona Classic 12.  I know Olympia made good typewriters and I know Smith-Corona made lots of typewriters but I don't know which to get so I'm here to learn a bit.

(I saw mention of a Polaroid camera.  I should have a pristine SX-70 in a couple of weeks.  They're making film for them again.  I like film cameras and just began using a Nikon N2020 (F-501).)

All things being equal, does any one of those typewriters stand out as the best choice?

Thanks,
Dan

Welcome! I'm not sure what the Olympia Deluxe is -- they put "Deluxe" in the segment ("basket") of a number of their typewriters to designate a higher level model. So maybe go to the Typewriter Data Base and look at pictures of the various Olympia models to see which one it is you're looking at.

My take would be to go with one of the Olympias. The Classic 12 is a good, honest typewriter, but in terms of build quality and features, it's a definite step below the Olympias. As for the SM3, it's a fine machine and a joy to use. The one thing to note is that it's a carriage shift model, while the Classic 12 is basket/segment shift. My bet is that the machines you used in typing class were basket shift, which generally speaking require a little less effort to shift into upper case. If you have a chance to try them out side by side, definitely do so.

Olympia did make basket shift typewriters starting in the early 1960s. I think the one to look for is the SM9.

A question -- all three you're looking at are portable machines (I assume the "Deluxe" is one also). If you want just one machine, a standard size machine is frankly going to do a better job. More features, better typing action, more durable. (And lots bigger and heavier.) In that case I'd highly recommend an Olympia SG1 or SG3. Lots of fans of these machines around here.

But if you want the versatility of a machine you can take with you, then by all means stick with a portable.

Hope this helps! Just be aware you may get bombarded with suggestions from other folks -- you've opened the Pandora's Box.

DanS wrote:

(I saw mention of a Polaroid camera.  I should have a pristine SX-70 in a couple of weeks.  They're making film for them again.  I like film cameras and just began using a Nikon N2020 (F-501).)

Dan

Good to know. I have an SX-70 collecting dust. My new jam is a 50's Rolleiflex. Such a joy looking through that.