Typewriter Talk / S-C Electra 210 roadside find.

**Posted by rdnzl** 16-4-2020 13:37:20

I found this Electra 210 in a pile of "free stuff" that was curbside not far from where I live. It was filthy. I took it off the pile and tossed in into my car. I did a quick cleanup so I could see if it might power up. 3 rags later, it didn't look too bad. The case was actually black, under tons of grime, and the typewriter was clean enough to handle.

I plugged it on and turned it on. CLANG CLANG CLACK CLACK!!!! One of the pulleys was rubbing on the underside of the ribbon cover. I didn't some pushing, and twisting on the cover, and also the pulley assemblies. It worked, and now it just hums. Not silent, but not a bad hum. No clacking or clanging.

Next, I put in some paper and tested all the keys. The 6 key was stuck in midair over the basket and wouldn't hit the paper and would not return to rest. It was the only key with an issue. So I removed the bottom, and vacuumed out a bunch of lint and who knows what. I thought maybe it was just some dirt, but upon further inspection, the "transfer bar" or whatever it is called that is underneath was all bent. It would not fall back between the other bars and has a twist in it. It is pretty soft metal, so I used my fingers and some needlenose pilers and got it straight enough to where if falls back in line where it should be.

Voila! It's all fixed, and even with a well worn ribbon, types well. The platen is pretty hard, but the type is still nice on the page.

I love free stuff that I can make work. Even though it is a weird "baby poop" color, it's a decent machine.

**Posted by rdnzl** 16-4-2020 14:10:09

I tell you what....when you hit the return button, there had better not be anything in the way. It returns with authority.

**Posted by Uwe** 16-4-2020 15:28:32

Ah, the legendary road-side find. There have been others here who managed the same feat. I've never experienced that joy or luck, but know a fellow collector in my area who seems to find typewriters everywhere. His tales had me scanning garbage left for pickup as I was driving, but that tedious effort didn't last long. The odds of finding a typewriter are not good, which makes these types of happenstances all the more remarkable.

That "hum" is one reason why I don't use my electric portables very often. It drives me to distraction, and feels like the machine is constantly goading me to keep typing. A manual machine never complains about lulls in action, but an electric punishes you for it.

Re: vacuuming. As a rule I never go near a typewriter with a vacuum. There are too many small parts that can potentially be stripped from the machine without you realizing it. Loose springs, nuts hanging on by half a thread, etc. It's for that reason I never use compressed air either (plus it fills the air with the stuff you want to remove).

**Posted by rdnzl** 16-4-2020 15:35:53

Good point about the vacuum. I hadn't thought of that. But my vacuum is one the ones with a clear canister and not a bag, so I suppose I could see anything that would get sucked into it.

I get you on the hum. But it sounds like one of the cooling fans I have scattered around the house, so it doesn't bug me.

An odd thing about this typewriter is, the platen is the same color as the body. Weird, to say the least.

**Posted by Uwe** 17-4-2020 10:33:56

Smith-Corona offered matching colour platens with a few of its models. For example, I have this Galaxie II with a green platen, and TT member Valiant has one with a blue platen.