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08-3-2021 02:58:44  #251


Re: SG Owners Club

I have asked the owner how he knows his machine is an SG2. He answered as follows:

"Well, there is no typewriter before SG 1 and none after SG 3, because after SG 3 they only produced electrical ones. ;-) She looks neither like a SG 1 nor a SG 3."

 

 

08-3-2021 13:44:19  #252


Re: SG Owners Club

Laurenz van Gaalen wrote:

I have asked the owner... "Well, there is no typewriter before SG 1 and none after SG 3, because after SG 3 they only produced electrical ones. ;-) She looks neither like a SG 1 nor a SG 3." 

That's what I suspected, and it's something that drives me crazy about the typewriter collecting community. It's also one of the things that put me off of the Typewriter Database. Ted (Typewriter Database) is a great guy and he's done a brilliant job with the database, but erroneous statements and entries by "Hunters" are often left unchecked and they are corrupting the information being presented by the database.

You only need to scan through the list of model names for a manufacturer to find made-up and misnamed machines. The problem is that some collectors are prone to posing speculation as fact, and these details are often spread by uncritical enthusiasts who assume their comments to be the gospel truth.

I've seen this happen too often. A number of years ago, a novice collector in my area picked up an Underwood portable that he couldn't identify. He proudly created a Gallery for the typewriter in the database, speculated on its intended use, and gave it his own name based on those assumptions. The new Underwood model name was then listed in the database even though Underwood likely never produced a typewriter with that name. Now, when someone else who buys the same machine and visits the database to identify it, they're begin calling the typewriter by this fantasy name.  

Simply put, if we don't know what the official model name for a specific machine is, we should describe it as an unidentified model. The practice of arbitrarily naming a machine - ESPECIALLY in a database that should be based on researched evidence, should be discouraged.

With respect to this unidentified Olympia model, I really hope actual facts about it eventually surface. 

What we do know is that the SG1 was officially replaced by the SG3, and that when first introduced they were both available during the same calendar year - there was no time gap between the two models.

Olympia models were named by their size category. I don't know the dimensions of this mystery model, just that its owner states it's more compact than a SG3. If it's physically smaller than a SG3, would Olympia still have designated it as a SG model?

I am an Olympia enthusiast, and have paid closer attention to its model range than those of other manufacturers. Although it may not mean that much, I can't recall having ever read any mention of a SG2. There are - because of regional marketing - a dizzying number of model name variants, but again, I've never come across the mention of a SG2. 
 
None of this should detract from the excitement of finding an unfamiliar Olympia, but I just hope that we don't start calling this a SG2 until its actual name is proven. 


The pronoun has always been capitalized in the English language for more than 700 years.
     Thread Starter
 

08-3-2021 14:19:40  #253


Re: SG Owners Club

There is a SG1 typewriter for sale in the USA on eBay, currently.  Offered out of Arizona State.

Based on its serial number, it is made in 1960.

Odd about this "normal" machine without the paper injector lever is the design of the paper guides on either side of the ribbon vibrator & type-slug guide.

See photos, below, taken from eBay.

Anyone seen these before on another machine ?
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08-3-2021 14:50:52  #254


Re: SG Owners Club

Back to the machine mentioned, initially, in Post # 247.

Not knowing size/dimensions/weight...of this mystery machine...

When I saw the photos posted up on Face Book, I am reminded more of a 1970's Olympia SM9 from the body panel cover styling and lay-outs.

Maybe this was a small test-sampling of such a SM9 but with the removable carriage feature of the SG's for potential customers wanting that feature but without the size/weight of an SG...?  Or a small number of "prototypes" to test the waters of customer desires... ? Just a WAG's...

Interior views show it to be a much lighter-weight design of the mechanicals om comparison to the SG1 and SG3 machines.
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08-3-2021 15:03:57  #255


Re: SG Owners Club

And note the "Olympia" logo appears to be only a decal and not really a badge.
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08-3-2021 15:18:30  #256


Re: SG Owners Club

And this mystery machine has the style of platen knobs that you do not see until the SG3 machines and the electric SGE machines from the early to mid 1970's or so. 
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08-3-2021 15:36:07  #257


Re: SG Owners Club

Uwe wrote:

That's what I suspected ... until its actual name is proven. 

I agree about the TWDB, but I have accepted its negative aspects as the nature of the beast. The advantages offered by the TWDB still outweigh the disadvantages. Having said that, your post kindly shows the importance of fact checking. Thanks for the reminder.

Back to the mystery machine. The tab set/clear symbols look like the touch control symbols of the SG3. If they are from the SG3, I think the mystery machine is a prototype. I think it is highly unlikely Olympia would use these symbols on a mass produced machine.

 

08-3-2021 16:36:41  #258


Re: SG Owners Club

Pete E. wrote:

... Odd about this "normal" machine without the paper injector lever is the design of the paper guides on either side of the ribbon vibrator... Anyone seen these before on another machine ?

I have, but not very often. Photos of the rest of the machine might provide more evidence, but I believe the metal alignment scale was a special order for those who regularly used heavier stock (card), such as you might need for bookkeeping, or for proprietary forms (possibly in conjunction with specialty platens). Olympia had a number of uncommon variants of the SG1 that you don't often (or never) see for sale such as the one-handed model, or the one designed for the blind. 


The pronoun has always been capitalized in the English language for more than 700 years.
     Thread Starter
 

08-3-2021 17:10:57  #259


Re: SG Owners Club

Laurenz van Gaalen wrote:

I agree about the TWDB, but I have accepted its negative aspects as the nature of the beast. The advantages offered by the TWDB still outweigh the disadvantages. ...  I think the mystery machine is a prototype. I think it is highly unlikely Olympia would use these symbols on a mass produced machine.

I hope that I didn't give the wrong impression; the TD is a phenomenal project and a great resource, but at times I felt the inmates were running the asylum  and I consequently stopped contributing to it. Like so many internet-based community projects (Wikipedia is the worst for this), you just have to be cognizant that the data isn't necessarily correct.

Prototype? It could be, I suppose. It does have an unfinished vibe to it. Perhaps it's a Franken-typer that some Olympia engineers cobbled together for fun? Maybe it was some exotic special order? There are Olympia models out there that were built specifically for one customer (the military comes to mind). 


The pronoun has always been capitalized in the English language for more than 700 years.
     Thread Starter
 

08-3-2021 18:25:32  #260


Re: SG Owners Club

Hi Uwe,

For the SG1 with the metal paper guides, here is the eBay auction info :eBay item number:    193724291656
 

 

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