Creating on Small Typewriters

[@JorgeVonninger]

Smith Corona Skywriter, my favorite type writer. I write on it daily.

[@markmcgrath4121]

I just got my much-loved 1967 Brother Activator 800T (Brother JP-1) back from my repairman of choice (Karl Business Machines, Trenton NJ). I love this machine. I bought one after seeing a video of it by Venneburg Typewriter and it just goes and goes and goes, like all Brothers. It's my go-to machine for traveling. Love a good ultraportable.

[@Joe_VanCleave]

Congrats!

[@c-5541]

Small typewriters are awesome. It is always enjoiable to write with my Olivetti Lettera 22.

[@jeannedupre8242]

love your videos. so much passion, extraordinary

[@christophermckellar1352]

Another good one. Thanks! I love them all, your reviews, and my Typewriters!

[@mikequinlan9585]

Watching Joe’s videos is a great way to start the day. The small portable typewriter is best for. Getting your thoughts down fast on the go. Of course later you will need either a larger typewriter or a computer for the finish work. 😊

[@Joe_VanCleave]

Thank you!

[@ronkelsey1983]

Another terrific video! My Groma Kolibri travels everywhere with me. Susan always takes her SF.

[@joãoAlberto-k9x]

Great video because i ❤ this size of typewriters.

[@joãoAlberto-k9x]

Smith Corona. Nice name to a wonderful typewriter.

[@irmabecx4758]

I don't use anything larger than a Studio 44. I just don't need more typewriter than that. Spoiled for choice I still gravitate towards the same small and portable machines: the Lettera 22, the Olympia SF, the ABC, and above all else the Antares Parva. I love the little Parva because it's so easy to use, so convenient, and whoever designed it definitely had writing in mind. You hit the right margin and the release button is right there with the "dash" you need after beside it. You need to get up and go, and the lid snaps on in a second. And what would I gain by using a desktop machine? Well, I'd have to stay home for one thing. And in return I get straighter margins and a cleaner imprint? That's not enough of a benefit for me. So long as the camera can read what I've written that's all I really need. :)

[@Joe_VanCleave]

I love the Studio 44, I have two of them!

[@harrisonmccartney4878]

While I can appreciate the comfort and reliability of full size desktop typewriters, I've just never warmed up to how much their bulkiness reminds me of cash registers. Portable and ultra-portable typewriters are vastly more pleasant for me to just look at and admire on their own because there's something appealing to me about their small, almost toy-like size, and their profile doesn't remind me so much of ordinary computerized machinery.

[@gaborlangi1422]

I don't have enough space to always have a typewriter standing on a desk, ready to be used. Instead a small portable one I can take out from the cabinet or pull up under the bed is more ideal. Many people also find more novelty in the smaller models (just like myself).

[@brianlpowers]

I would say that the typewriter (no matter which size) must be good enough to not get in the way of the creative writing process, both in mechanical functionality and in type feel. The typewriter should be the conduit through which the words flow out of you onto the paper. If I am writing and keep thinking about how much I hate the feel of the typing, then the writing is not going to go well. So glad that you are starting to like your SG1, Joe! I know it can never replace your beloved KMM, but the giant behemoth SG1 is a pretty amazing machine! Thanks for the tip about the lighter paper with the Skyriter - I have a 1949 that does the same exact thing you described. I have taken to giving the platen knob a little wiggle with line changes to get it to center when I am using heavier paper. It's not perfect but I get much more consistent line alignment by adding that little wiggle! I wonder if there is a way to shorten the spring to increase the tension... next time I have mine apart I will have to look more closely at it!

[@WilliamFeryll]

I like to do most of my typing either on the Olivetti Praxis 48 - or the Smith Corona Galaxy 12. But there is definitely compromises when I move to my portable Olympia Traveler Deluxe. Especially the type alignment

[@VirtualGuth]

We all like different things. I personally wouldn’t want to write much more than a short letter with most of the ultraportables that I have owned or tried, my least favorite being the Olivetti Lettera 32. So it stands to reason that someone like Cormac McCarthy existed, cranking out every book he ever wrote using a Lettera 32 of course!

[@Joe_VanCleave]

Yes! Good point. It goes to show the flexibility of the human mind in being able to adapt to so many different writing tools.

[@dadtype2339]

Also, yeah I forgot something, I think as long as the machine you have helps your creativity, speaks to you, inspires you, maybe as you are working the machine vanishes, that there is when you know you have a good partnership with the machine in my humble opinion. And 1964 SCM Galaxie Deluxe update, I can fix it, I know I can, I have the lock nuts, both of them, thought i lost one, the Escapement Rocker Bracket fell out of it's pivot points, came loose over time I guess...I am having the dickens of a time trying to get the bracket out of its jambed in location... trying not to take apart things, and just manipulating the guts to dislodge the sucker. As stuck as it is, I'm thankful there are no broken teeth on the Star wheel. I just need to get it out, line it back up and tighten it to where it holds it's spot but allows the rocker bracket to move freely.... it's an easy fix if it wasnt jammed in there and had all that extra super space linkages in the way....I hate that my Galaxie is down because I have such a strong desire to write using it....sigh Wish me luck 🤞 👇

[@Joe_VanCleave]

Good luck! If I can do it, anyone can!

[@kerc]

For long writing sessions, the answer is always Royal KMM. 😎

[@Joe_VanCleave]

Yes!

[@someonespadre]

My “new” ultraportable is a 1954 Remington Quiet-Riter with 42 keys, having 2 fewer keys than the 44 key machines shaves enough weight for me! (I’m not being entirely serious) I don’t really desire a little one.

[@Joe_VanCleave]

Thank you!

[@GeoSlash99]

I was just scrolling and I thought this video was called "cheating on small typewriters", as in a video about huge typewriter appreciation. LOL

[@Joe_VanCleave]

It could be!

[@HelenMcLean]

Well, I've been using mine for both public and private use. I will try to remember to never write you a letter on my private typewriter 😊

[@Joe_VanCleave]

;)

[@BooksForever]

When writing a story on a portable typewriter it feels like a biologically messy process of tissue growing from an organ. When writing on a desktop standard it feels more like an inevitability of physics is being revealed, like a new star blazing forth from an interstellar molecular nebula.

[@Joe_VanCleave]

That’s a great analogy!

[@joãoAlberto-k9x]

​@@Joe_VanCleaveWhat is analogy? 🎉.

[@joãoAlberto-k9x]

Yes. We agree with your mind. Clever mind. 🎉.

[@someonespadre]

⁠@@joãoAlberto-k9xcomparing a process to another unrelated process which may be more familiar to the reader or to convey a meaning.

[@LucaSartorello-cq8io]

I found your arguments very intelligent. I, too, started with ultraportable typewriters, searching for the perfect machine while having the solution at hand, namely a standard one. I think fetishism, that is, knowing that many writers are associated with ultraportable typewriters oriented me, making me a collector without my knowledge, without my choosing it, but chasing the ideal ultraportable typewriter.

[@g-r-a-e-m-e-]

Rather like Joe, I suppose most people getting interested in typewriters are likely to go for a small portable machine, and maybe upgrade later, if they really get the bug,

[@WaskiSquirrel]

I don't really like the small typewriters. But they have the advantage of portability. I'm not taking my Underwood desktop traveling with me, and I'm not taking even my mid-sized portable on an airplane or train. These machines are a compromise for a particular situation.

[@joãoAlberto-k9x]

I ❤ small typewriters.

[@DimasFajar-ns4vb]

tetra pak sir

[@dilley_esq]

How cool are these typewriters?!?

[@joãoAlberto-k9x]

Yes. They are VERY cool. 🎉.

[@jhondoe3213]

I have a sears rebrand called the Tower Chieftain

[@joãoAlberto-k9x]

I have Allah. 🎉.