Bremerton Office Machine Company

Mr. Montgomery – LIFE in the depression; 1930’s

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Occasionally, I publish some of Mr. Montgomery's musings edited only for grammatical errors. Since it was Mr. Montgomery's birthday this week, here is another of his reflections of earlier times. LIFE in the depression 1930’s The great stock market debacle happened in October 1929, and by 1930/31 the whole country was in the poor house. However, being a little boy I was mostly unaware of this problem. I do remember riding in the car with my … [Read more...]

An Erika Daro Portable Typewriter

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This plastic covered Erika Daro portable typewriter is a customers brought in as the variable line spacer was not working, the paper feed also a bit wonky and the ribbon vibrator sticking. After a dip in our trusty sonicating water bath, the typewriter came out all nice and clean. The variable was frozen in the platen tube and once removed and degreased, started working. The paper tray was deformed preventing paper feeding and needed a bit of … [Read more...]

The Three Amigos Underwood Style

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Three Underwood Standard 5 typewriters arrived in the shop the same week. So I wound up working on them at the same time. I like the really old Underwood machines for the simplicity and enjoy experiencing the changes Underwood made to this model as the years progressed. These Three Amigos are from 1909, 1916 and 1923. 1909 Underwood 5 (left typewriter in the photo) was spray oiled so needed some time getting degreased in the solvent station. I … [Read more...]

Now This is Typewriter Art!

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This is a customers Royal KMM machine from 1945 brought in after being a display in their shop for a very, very long time. This is just about as Americana as you can get with typewriter art. What a great object! Sooo dirty with missing carriage bearings and a broken carriage return lever. Oh yes, a dropped typewriter along with all the damage that comes with it. Oh, and add a touch of rust in many wrong places. This baby was jammed and only … [Read more...]

What does it mean to be a Repair Person?

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Have you ever thought of going to Typewriter Tech School? I often chat with customers about why I enjoy repairing stuff. Every so often someone will ask if they can hang out or volunteer to learn how to commune with typewriters. Heck yes! I love sharing what I know. So what do I really do here in the shop? Well lots of cleaning. Cosmetically, mechanically or chemically I try to get all the decades of goo cleared out so the typewriter gets a … [Read more...]