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Yesterday my first manual arrived in the mail. The Royal "Mercury" portable typewriter.
Slim, sexy, and packed up she is only just roughly larger than a college calculus book. I hoped that she would be the ONE, and I know for sure she is a keeper. It hasn't been 24 hours and I already typed 5 full pages with her.
For a variety of reasons, I am trying to learn Russian. I already have all the character and sounds represented in the cyrillic script memorized.
AND THATS WHEN I SAW HER!!!!
Portable. Manual. Slim (not as slim as my Mercury, though). German made. FULL 100% Cyrillic typeface. And for under $100 including shipping.
The temptation to buy her is real. This weekend is drill which means more money in the bank, but there are so many other things that I want to buy such as a new (well actually old and vintage) straight razor, honing and stropping kit, amongst other things.
Do I buy her? Do I get a family member to get her for me for Christmas? Or do I pass this mistress up hoping to see her another day?
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There are plenty of machines with cyrillic keyboards around, so there's no need to feel panicked about buying the first one you see. And as for price, you should be able to get one for a lot less $100 shipped.
You might want to consider a dual keyboard like this one that has an English and Russian character set:
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The specific one I was looking at was actually $65 shipped. But just anything under $100 would have excited me.
Where do you recommend going online to buy a cyrillic typewriter?
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It depends on where you are. Local sales have always been good for me and often machines can be found through online postings such as Craigslist. Opening your search nationally, and internationally, it's difficult to beat eBay, BUT with shipping there is always the real risk of receiving a damaged machine. If the one you mentioned is only $65 including shipping, I'd suggest going for it.
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Thanks. I ended up asking my mom to buy it for me for christmas, which she did.
I cannot wait :D