mmm... It's an interesting discussion, it seems to me that the availability and pricing of typewriters is a localised phenomenon. In little ol' Perth Western Australia, middle men are not a direct influence, but indeed, the influence is pervasive. I have viewed and purchased machines which have been damaged, one particularly which had been dropped, a carriage shift Adler Tippa. The damage was so extensive, I couldn't remove the cover. After some wrestling with one of the seller's screwdrivers, I managed to open it. A long story short, the very pleasant and well to do lady had advertised according to inflated prices seen on ebay. Eventually without my haggling, she sold me two machines for the price of one. I made the purchase because I wanted the Adler as it had cursive script. So yes, elevated prices are a pervasive factor.

Conversely, recently I answered an ad which offered an Olivetti 32 for AUD1. I asked if he was selling it, and upon his confirmation, he asked me to offer a price. I said it was in my interest to offer him AUD5, and that would not be right, so I couldn't. He said: "Okay, what about $20?" I jumped at it, and because I had a meeting that day, limiting my ability to travel that day, he offered and indeed did deliver it the next day. It turned out to be in pristine new condition, a 1974 Lettera 32 from Spain. A very pleasant chap, and a thoroughly pleasant experience.

So in short it all depends on the local market.

Incidentally, I have kept the machine, as it is Elite, and I have given my 1967 Lettera 32 (Italy) to an old friend, as it was a Pica, which I do not prefer.

As it happens, I could be judged as an undesirable chap repairing and selling but for two factors. Firstly, my quest was to find the ideal portable and the ideal standard for me to cherish and use (which I have completed). Secondly, I do not profit from the machines, they go for about AUD50 - AUD70, even after a clean and repair. Overall, I have simply broken even.
 
Currently I have 10 machines, 2 standards and 7 portables. Two of which I am repairing, and two (as I consider) antiques. My collection is about complete.

I am near Boise Idaho and no typewriter shops are left.  Portland OR, Seattle WA or even Bremerton WA (who now has 2 shops)... but those are a long road-trips for me.

Pete E. wrote:

I am near Boise Idaho and no typewriter shops are left.  Portland OR, Seattle WA or even Bremerton WA (who now has 2 shops)... but those are a long road-trips for me.

Yeah, any of those places would represent quite a lengthy trek for you. It sounds like the best solution would be to link them all together in one single road-trip. I only recently learned of Typewriter Fever by the way. That place sounds insane and I'd love to visit someday. 

zoom wrote:

The second factor, which I find most encouraging, is the interest young people have for typewriters. Whilst I have sold a modest 6 machines, 4 of them were purchased by youth (14 years, 15 years, and mid 20s). So there is a healthy interest out there.

Young people have been at the root of many an analog revitalization so that's not too surprising. From what I understand, much of the interest in typewriters here in Portland stems from young people as well.

Amelia wrote:

Hello Guth!
I absolutely adore your typewriter town! I have been there several times and always try to find the time to visit the typewriter shops. Ace was such a delight that I bought a t-shirt. It was the last one! Your record stores, stationery stores, and bookstores are also wonderful. Vinyl Resting Place, Oblation Papers, and Powell's come to mind. Can you tell I love your city? Haha
I am in Southern California. We have a bit of a typewriter scene in Los Angeles, but in my opinion, not as great as Portland. 

Hey there Amelia. My wife and I made many a trip visiting Portland before finally moving here from Austin. With each subsequent visit to Portland, it got harder to return home to Austin. When it reached the point that it was depressing to return home, we knew it was time to make a change. Now after 18 years here in Stumptown, I find myself thinking of moving once again. I'm not sure where we would go, but I can imagine living someplace smaller, elsewhere in the Pacific Northwest (but still within reasonable driving distance of a typewriter town). There's still a lot to love here in Portland, although lately the good is being more than balanced out by plenty of not-so-good.

While I was late to the typewriter scene, I've been buying LPs since the 70''s. I was was still hitting the record stores fairly often until a few years back when I finally decided that to acquire any more albums, I'd have to sell some off (one incoming = one outgoing). That really slowed things down, as there is so little that I would be willing to part these days. Powells is legendary for a reason and always fun to visit. I've yet to visit Oblation, but I just started playing around with designing my own stationary as my wife has a really nice printer for her work that I have access to. Ace Typewriter is indeed awesome. There's a place just down the road from Ace named Blue Moon Camera and Machine that is fun to visit if you like to shoot film as I do. They also sell typewriters (thus the "and Machine" in their name). Their typewriters, like their cameras are pricey, in part because Ace preps them and they still need to make a profit. I'm not sure why their cameras are so expensive, lol. But it's still a fun spot to visit and the reality is that the prices being paid at Blue Moon for film cameras and typewriters alike will probably seem like a bargain in a few years from now.

Hopefully the typewritemosphere continues to improve both in Portland as well as in Los Angeles!

I've got no idea where the next spot might be. I love British Columbia, but a move to Canada isn't likely to happen, so Portland it is for now until the next destination reveals itself. As far as typewriters go, when it comes to prices I would say that those who were fortunate enough to get into typewriters and typewriter collecting early on were just that — fortunate. Watching the way things have played out with used LPs and film cameras both (along with a number of other things), my expectation is that typewriter prices will only continue to rise. So while prices are higher in places like Portland and Los Angeles right now, prices for typewriters in other places will catch up with Portland and LA soon enough. Because just as with fully analog LP's and film cameras (with few exceptions), these things aren't being produced any longer.

However, regardless of what typewriters sold for a few years ago, they still seem like a relative bargain to me even at the prices being charged today in places like Portland and LA. I look at the typewriters that I've purchased and marvel at the design, quality of construction and materials used. Considering the fact that most of these machines still work nearly as good as they did when new, and likely still will many decades down the road, I'm hard pressed to think of too many other products that I personally enjoy using that can compete in this regard. I envision a future where many more people own typewriters, but I imagine that only a small percentage of those new typewriter users will actually become typewriter collectors. I'm looking forward to a day when this pandemic has come to an end and I'll get to experience a Type-In here in Portland. I have a feeling that a number people who would show up will be fairly new to typewriters, having discovered these machines during the pandemic just as I have.