In my experience, the 3000 is a bit stiff in its action -- especially the earlier rounded version. The machine does not have the easy snap of an Olympia, say. But it's undeniably an interesting and clever piece of engineering.
Bill, this is my first visit (linked from your recent comment on Adwoa's post) and it is always nice to find another blogger who does "typecasts" among other things.
The typeface on your Hermes 3000 is very attractive. In my very limited exposure to the Hermes line, this looks like a slightly more recent model than those I've seen.
I know what you mean about typewriters not looking like typewriters without a black/red ribbon! But other than being rather photogenic, the red doesn't do much for me - I am hard pressed to find situations in which to use the two colors; and a whole page of red text would look strange (or would it... I'll have to try that). I stocked up on a whole bunch of black/red ribbon in the beginning, but now I'm sticking with single colors because I get more use out of them...
I have one of these 3000s (boxy, metal), which to me is far preferable than the generation that came after it! Mine has a lovely epoca sans-serif typeface... which is really the only reason I got it :-) I find it surprising the rate at which platen knobs on Hermeses in the US are regularly busted; I see a lot of Hermeses in the wild here and cannot recall a single instance of it. Climate-related? Anyway, glad you found a workable solution; it looks very nice!
That knob looks fabulous!
ReplyDeleteIn my experience, the 3000 is a bit stiff in its action -- especially the earlier rounded version. The machine does not have the easy snap of an Olympia, say. But it's undeniably an interesting and clever piece of engineering.
Bill, this is my first visit (linked from your recent comment on Adwoa's post) and it is always nice to find another blogger who does "typecasts" among other things.
ReplyDeleteThe typeface on your Hermes 3000 is very attractive. In my very limited exposure to the Hermes line, this looks like a slightly more recent model than those I've seen.
One thing I forgot in my post was the year my 3000 was manufactured. According to the typewriter database my machine was made in 1966.
ReplyDeleteI know what you mean about typewriters not looking like typewriters without a black/red ribbon! But other than being rather photogenic, the red doesn't do much for me - I am hard pressed to find situations in which to use the two colors; and a whole page of red text would look strange (or would it... I'll have to try that). I stocked up on a whole bunch of black/red ribbon in the beginning, but now I'm sticking with single colors because I get more use out of them...
ReplyDeleteI have one of these 3000s (boxy, metal), which to me is far preferable than the generation that came after it! Mine has a lovely epoca sans-serif typeface... which is really the only reason I got it :-) I find it surprising the rate at which platen knobs on Hermeses in the US are regularly busted; I see a lot of Hermeses in the wild here and cannot recall a single instance of it. Climate-related? Anyway, glad you found a workable solution; it looks very nice!