The darn escapement skipping problem. I just picked up my Hermes 2000 that's been serviced and it still has the odd word that gets split in two. The Royal QDL that I dropped off at the same time is suffering from the same symptoms as well as stacking letters on the same spot, but it's such an erratic behaviour that it's hard to pinpoint when it will happen. Typing a little slower doesn't seem to solve the issue, either. Sorry, Bill. I have no solution for you, but if my repairman sorts it out, I'll ask him how he did it.
As for collecting vs hoarding, again I have no ideal answer for you. My wife thinks I'm a hoarder. Then we saw a documentary on tv recently about a guy in England who was crawling out of what looked like an air conditioning vent surrounded by stacks of newspapers. When the camera zoomed out, you could see that he was crawling out just under the top of a door frame. He had stacks of newspapers in his house floor-to-ceiling. He stated that it takes him about 45 minutes to make a cup of tea and two hard-boiled eggs for breakfast every morning because his house is a maze of newspapers, empty cereal boxes and egg cartons, old and broken umbrellas (for spare parts) and six car bodies in his front yard that he plans to restore, but has owned for the last fifteen years. He plans to scan all the newspapers into a computer one day. He doesn't yet on a computer. And he uses a typewriter, making us all look crazy.
Here's my take- as long as you know where it all is and can find something reasonably easy, then it's a collection.
Thanks teeritz. Seems like intermittent escapement problems are spread across many makes and models. I can type very slowly with the Skyriter and catch most of the misfeeds, but not all.
Here in the States there is a cable television program (I think it is called Hoarders or something of the sort). I am amazed at how some folks can fill their house with not only things, but trash and garbage and keep adding to it.
Interesting. I like your take that if you know what's there and can lay hands on it, it's a collection. I wonder if collecting has been correlated to other mental traits.
Typewriters are so much like people with their attendant quirks, aren't they?
Sometimes my impatience with skipping problems, ribbon-bunching problems, RETURN KEY NOT WORKING problems, over-strike problems, mushy margin problems, hard platen problems, keys sticking problems......eerily resembles my impatience with people's issues at times!
So I suppose the message here is to CHILL and accept typewriters & people for who they are. Not perfect but they sure add spice to life!
Hermes Baby and my Montana along with my Socialite are not much better at ribbon feed threading. All makers of these small typewriters could have done a better job.
The darn escapement skipping problem. I just picked up my Hermes 2000 that's been serviced and it still has the odd word that gets split in two. The Royal QDL that I dropped off at the same time is suffering from the same symptoms as well as stacking letters on the same spot, but it's such an erratic behaviour that it's hard to pinpoint when it will happen. Typing a little slower doesn't seem to solve the issue, either.
ReplyDeleteSorry, Bill. I have no solution for you, but if my repairman sorts it out, I'll ask him how he did it.
As for collecting vs hoarding, again I have no ideal answer for you. My wife thinks I'm a hoarder. Then we saw a documentary on tv recently about a guy in England who was crawling out of what looked like an air conditioning vent surrounded by stacks of newspapers. When the camera zoomed out, you could see that he was crawling out just under the top of a door frame. He had stacks of newspapers in his house floor-to-ceiling. He stated that it takes him about 45 minutes to make a cup of tea and two hard-boiled eggs for breakfast every morning because his house is a maze of newspapers, empty cereal boxes and egg cartons, old and broken umbrellas (for spare parts) and six car bodies in his front yard that he plans to restore, but has owned for the last fifteen years. He plans to scan all the newspapers into a computer one day. He doesn't yet on a computer.
And he uses a typewriter, making us all look crazy.
Here's my take- as long as you know where it all is and can find something reasonably easy, then it's a collection.
Thanks teeritz.
DeleteSeems like intermittent escapement problems are spread across many makes and models. I can type very slowly with the Skyriter and catch most of the misfeeds, but not all.
Here in the States there is a cable television program (I think it is called Hoarders or something of the sort). I am amazed at how some folks can fill their house with not only things, but trash and garbage and keep adding to it.
Interesting. I like your take that if you know what's there and can lay hands on it, it's a collection. I wonder if collecting has been correlated to other mental traits.
ReplyDeleteTypewriters are so much like people with their attendant quirks, aren't they?
ReplyDeleteSometimes my impatience with skipping problems, ribbon-bunching problems, RETURN KEY NOT WORKING problems, over-strike problems, mushy margin problems, hard platen problems, keys sticking problems......eerily resembles my impatience with people's issues at times!
So I suppose the message here is to CHILL and accept typewriters & people for who they are. Not perfect but they sure add spice to life!
That threading ribbon difficulty is a big mark against the skyriter
ReplyDeleteHermes Baby and my Montana along with my Socialite are not much better at ribbon feed threading. All makers of these small typewriters could have done a better job.
Delete