Typing on a Canon Typestar 6 Thermal Typewriter

[@danmiller6890]

Man I need to get my hands on one of these! Joe Van Cleave has been posting videos on these and it really has me wanting one! Great video!

[@typepals]

I recommend the 4, 5, or 6! They're all great. 5 is the easiest to find. Thanks for watching.

[@Joe_VanCleave]

Great job Gregory!

[@typepals]

Thank you, I appreciate that!

[@Joe_VanCleave]

Great review, well done!

[@typepals]

Thank you, sir! I appreciate it.

[@jaycoldwell]

I just happened to see one of these on SGW for parts for $5.99 (plus shipping) the other day. I got it today, and found leaky batteries swelled up in the battery chamber. I extracted them and cleaned out the chamber pretty well. The battery contacts were in pretty good shape, so I gave it a try and voila! A working TS6! I've tried several Canon and Brother thermal typewriters, and so far, this one is head and shoulders above the rest. The biggest thing is the 32 character display rather than the 15 that most of them have. If you put the typewriter on justify mode, you can pretty much just type into that 32 character display, fixing any errors along the way and the machine types line by line as you go along with no issues at all, other than hyphenating or erasing the final word in a line. Fairly distraction free, and the machine gets out of the way. The other distinguishing feature is the overall build quality. It pretty much just feels solid and all thought out. The keyboard feel could be a bit better, but really not bad. And as you mention, it is so quiet. Very nice indeed. So, if I were looking today, I would not have bought the other dozen (OMG) machines I picked up for very little, mostly on SGW. This one is the best. It also came in a very protective plastic case, which should help it survive life pretty well. My ONLY complaint is the inability to find the add-on cartridges for additional fonts. I'd love to have a script, PS, and a smaller font available. The other one I like is at the other end of the spectrum, a Brother EP-20, which is very primitive, but cool in a geeky way and very small and light. Almost like a Chromebook. It's harder to use for sure, but it tucks in a very small space which is kind of minimalist-cool. And if you give someone a thermal paper 9-pin dot matrix typed document, they know it is something different.

[@typepals]

It’s hard to go wrong with any of the TypeStars. Ironically, the most feature-rich is the 4. The cartridges for the 6 are virtually impossible to find. I’m sure you’ve seen some of Joe Van Cleave’s videos about thermal typewriters. He got me started. I probably have 10 or more now. I think it may have been the Casiowriter that has the best keyboard, but otherwise it is inferior. Those Brother EP-20’s are super fun with those calculator keys and primitive typeface. I really enjoy the later EP-5 or 7. Thanks for the wonderful comment. It’s nice to see someone else excited about these underrated machines.

[@iamsemjaza]

I know the Typestar 5 had a character-by-character type mode. This might as well. (Just checked the PDF manual. There IS a character-by-character mode)

[@typepals]

Thank you so much for watching!

[@mrssmiley6877]

question can you make a video on how too get double quotations im so confused

[@RabbiSteve]

I got one of these. But I can’t get it to advance the paper. It prints, it works with both thermal printing (without the ink cartridge) and with regular paper (with the ink cartridge). But it won’t seem to advance the paper. Is there a possibility this can be easily repaired?

[@typepals]

Sadly, repairs are not my area of expertise. I would just check the gears to make sure there’s no damage.

[@jeff1506]

How do you tear off a sheet from the roll?

[@typepals]

Depending on the typewriter, either the ribbon cover, scissors, or a paper cutter. Some of these thermal typewriters have a built-in tearing edge. Most, including this one, do not.

[@ProgressivNorway]

Great vid! Just bought one of these badboys. I was just wondering: Is it a Direct Thermal printer? How can you print without the Ribbon - will printing without the ribbon damage it over time and why does it come with a ribbon if it works without it? Thanks

[@typepals]

Thank you for the questions! It is actually designed to print without the ribbon, but you must use thermal paper. Staples has thermal fax paper rolls 8.5" by 96'. A box of 6 rolls might be in their clearance section. Otherwise, you can order online at Amazon or eBay. The ribbon allows you to use regular paper. However, they are scarce, not manufactured anymore, and they can be pricey. So I highly recommend just getting thermal paper. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I would be happy to help. Joe Van Cleave has some excellent videos about thermal typewriters, too.

[@ProgressivNorway]

@@typepals Ah, I see! Thank you so much for this replay. I'll order som thermal papers. Keep up the good work, and stay stafe!

[@ProgressivNorway]

Hey Gregory! I am having troubles adjusting the margins on my canon typestar 6 - everytime I type right margin it just beeps at me. How do I set margin? Again, thanks!

[@typepals]

I'm so sorry for the delay! You have to make sure the margins are greater than one inch apart, and you have to be in regular text mode, signified by the XX. It's hard to know what the problem might be without seeing it. Where are you trying to set your margins? If it helps, this is a link to the manual: myxavier-my.sharepoint.com/personal/polt_xavier_edu/_layouts/15/onedrive.aspx?id=%2Fpersonal%2Fpolt%5Fxavier%5Fedu%2FDocuments%2FShared%20with%20Everyone%2FCanonTypestar6%2Epdf&parent=%2Fpersonal%2Fpolt%5Fxavier%5Fedu%2FDocuments%2FShared%20with%20Everyone&originalPath=aHR0cHM6Ly9teXhhdmllci1teS5zaGFyZXBvaW50LmNvbS86YjovZy9wZXJzb25hbC9wb2x0X3hhdmllcl9lZHUvRWZJcGN6QWZiUDFKamM4M01Nbk1NWnNCeVdyRXJCZldsQVhHdWxUQk93eFI3UT9ydGltZT04VHdHUWhIeDEwZw

[@Protovlogz]

So you writting not using the ribbon or tape? so how to refill the ink without the tape?

[@typepals]

It uses thermal paper, which uses heat instead of ink.

[@ladyrouge2704]

Hi! I think this model probably also comes with Courier 10 and Cubic PS... any other font? Thanks

[@typepals]

Actually, this model only has the one built-in font. The sad thing is the font cartridges are impossible to find. Thanks for watching!

[@Lysander-Spooner]

@@typepals Bummer. The fun in these machines is fonts.

[@shuangchen1226]

Hi~ I just got a Canon typestar 6 now and I want to buy ribbon cassette, could you tell me which type I should buy and how much it should be? Does the Canon CR-50 Correctable Film Ribbon Cassette match canon typestar 6? I see some on Ebay, but it is really expensive, nearly 30 GBP each.....

[@typepals]

I'm so sorry! I thought I had replied to this. You're better off just getting thermal paper. It's much cheaper than the ribbons. I never use the ribbons. Thanks for watching!

[@ryanmayta5022]

@@typepals Where do you get your thermal paper? Any recommendations?

[@typepals]

Ebay would be the easiest. You might find it at Staples. I think they have it in their clearance section now.

[@typepals]

Oh, and it is thermal fax paper that you’re looking for. It usually comes in rolls.

[@kit888]

Transitional technology, like rifles with bayonets.

[@typepals]

Very true!

[@Sadboy80629]

Ink ribbons go for 100 usd now

[@typepals]

Wow! I should sell mine. I never use them. Thanks for watching!