I'd love to find a Futura because they just look so cool. Too bad I can't seem to find some of the most common typewriters in my area except for boat loads of QDL's...

@ZTyper Well thats funny, I still hvent found one quit de luxe within two years here.... hmm...

ztyper wrote:

Uwe wrote:

Then again, maybe the Rolls Royce reference was meant to be a tongue-in-cheek comment, and really thought the Erika was overpriced, stodgy in its appearance, and lacklustre in its performance?
 

Sooo... I shouldn't look for an Erika? Good to know... 

Oh, I wouldn't send the jury out just yet. First have a look at what others say about them. Some are well respected jounalists and collectors and I am just a typist who collects the odd machine out of curiousity. Here is a link to one who compares Erika to another well respected German typewriter manufacturer. At the end of the day they are just opinions though and as they say "the proof of the pudding is in the eating". I would thoroughly recommend you try one and make your own mind up. I think your typing fingers will thank you for it. I am a little biased though having had one from new since I was fourteen, more years than I care to think about. I use a typewriter more days than I do not and I know which is still my favourite machine. You just have to remember that typewriters are a very personal thing and some are like a Marmite sandwich, loved by some and hated by others. I recently acquired a new (old shop stock) Olivetti, always wanted one since I was a kid. It was another one of life's disappointments but to others you would have thought it was the best thing since sliced bread.
http://typewriterreview.com/2014/12/17/erika-10/

Last edited by retro (05-10-2015 09:02:08)

retro wrote:

[First have a look at what others say about them. Some are well respected jounalists and collectors and I am just a typist who collects the odd machine out of curiousity. Here is a link to one who compares Erika to another well respected German typewriter manufacturer.

The link is to a blog that has all of 19 typewriters reviewed, so it appears that its author isn't drawing from a wealth of experience, and his review of the Erika is an exercise in hyperbole and almost completely void of objective analysis. I for one would love to know who the "well respected journalists and collectors" that you refer to are. Most real journalists would make poor judges of a typewriter, at least how a machine would stand in comparison to the myriad makes and models that comprised its competition. Most writers and journalists stuck with one model for many years and were more preoccupied with churning out copy than figuring out which model had keys that fluttered like the wings of angels. I know a number of serious and respected collectors (although he's too modest to admit it, I'd include Valiant in that group), and can't recall one having gushed about the Erika 10. However, for giggles I'll pull one out soon and compare it back to back with an SM3 and see if my opinion of the machine is still the same.
 

Think i would have to remove the carriage to repaint? And, Im thinking about a smooth paint, since its flaking. Or do they have crinkle paints?