1 - Stevetype33
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My Underwood four bank
My Underwood four bank portable.
There's a mismatch between the spool covers, but both look period and authentic. I wonder if it was sold that way. In the manual pictures, both covers are perforated, like the one on the left.
It needs a new ribbon since I can't figure out how to re-ink the dual colour job now in place. Can you still buy a black/red ribbons new?
- Uwe
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Re: My Underwood four bank
Dual-colour ribbons? Yes (see your other post on ribbons).
I'm quite interested in the line space lever, which I think is a great design for a portable. How easy is it to use? And it looks like it depresses something on the end of the carrige when it's pushed, is that right or is it a nib to stop the lever?
The pronoun I has always been capitalized in the English language for more than 700 years.
- Stevetype33
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Re: My Underwood four bank
The 'nib' is a small up-down lever used to adjust the line spacing.
By 'line space lever', do you mean the carriage return lever? If so, it works well, a nice solid action.
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Thread Starter- Uwe
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Re: My Underwood four bank
Stevetype33 wrote:
By 'line space lever', do you mean the carriage return lever? If so, it works well, a nice solid action.
Yes, the carriage return lever. I've been trying to educate myself and adopt the correct terminology for the various components on a typewriter. I thought line space lever was the correct name and think that I gleaned it from this glossary of parts:
The pronoun I has always been capitalized in the English language for more than 700 years.
- Stevetype33
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Re: My Underwood four bank
I just checked the Underwood manual and they call it the 'Line space lever' too. So there you go.
I wonder when people started to call it a 'carriage return'? Or is it just a UK expression...
...Just checked the manual for my 1943 Bar-Let (UK made) and they call it the 'Linespace lever' as well (linespace as one word).
Coincidentally, I was just poking around with my Royal portable this evening and having trouble figuring out a couple of the levers. The glossary will be a great help! Thanks.
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Thread Starter- Shangas
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Re: My Underwood four bank
Return-lever/carriage-lever/carriage-return lever/line-advance lever = That thing you spank every time you push the carriage back, to bring up a fresh line.
Line-spacing lever = that thing you fiddle with to create single, or double (or in the case of desktops; triple)-spaced lines.
Very handsome typewriter, Steve. Looks almost identical to mine 
"Not Yet Published" - My History Blog
"I just sit at a typewriter and curse a bit" - Sir Pelham Grenville "P.G." Wodehouse
"The biggest obstacle to professional writing is the necessity for changing a typewriter ribbon" - Robert Benchley
- Stevetype33
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Re: My Underwood four bank
Shengas, in the Bar-Let manual the 'Linespace lever' is described as the lever that turns up the paper and returns the carriage (to use the language in the manual). The lever that sets the line-space is called the ‘Linespace setting lever’, which would equate to the ‘Line space selector’ in the Royal glossary that Uwe posted.
But, whatever, it is mighty handsome.
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Thread Starter- Shangas
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Re: My Underwood four bank
Hi Steve,
I apologise for all the nitpicking. I'm merely using the terminology which I'm most familiar with.
But you look like you have a fine machine there. I regularly pound the hell out of my Underwood portable each evening when I do my diary-entries. When I put my mind to it, I can have a ferocious typing-speed (up to 70-80wpm), and apart from the carriage-return, the Underwood keeps pace with my typing flawlessly. So I would testify to the assertion that these machines, despite their age, are well capable of putting up with heavy, high-speed typing.
"Not Yet Published" - My History Blog
"I just sit at a typewriter and curse a bit" - Sir Pelham Grenville "P.G." Wodehouse
"The biggest obstacle to professional writing is the necessity for changing a typewriter ribbon" - Robert Benchley
- Stevetype33
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Re: My Underwood four bank
Hi Shengas,
No apologies necessary. I find all the variants on the terminology very interesting.
For me, these Underwoods, both three-bank and four-bank, are the classic typewriter. Real icons.
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Thread Starter- Shangas
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Re: My Underwood four bank
Do you mind if I ask, why do you think that? It's an interesting opinion.
"Not Yet Published" - My History Blog
"I just sit at a typewriter and curse a bit" - Sir Pelham Grenville "P.G." Wodehouse
"The biggest obstacle to professional writing is the necessity for changing a typewriter ribbon" - Robert Benchley
