Yes, a mainspring can be re-wound, but it can be like un-exploding a grenade. Having done it a few times, there is also a sense of great accompliushment when you complete the task. Note to anyone obliged to do it: work at arm’s length; don’t get your face too close.
What amazes me is the notion of finding any Kolibri for a reasonable price, basket case of missing parts or otherwise. That would have to be my grail machine.
I know. I habitually look up prices on Kolibris, Princess 300s, and the like. The prices are insane, and I think prices in general–perhaps due to the Hanks Effect–have gone up in general. It isn’t unusual to see an Underwood Champion priced for a couple of hundred. I’m thankful I started collecting when I did.
I don’t tinker myself, being too unintelligent for mechanical work (as confirmed through standardized tests), but when I stopped by my local typewriter shop on Friday I was surprised to see a green Kolibri with a Polish keyboard sitting behind the counter. I remarked on it, knowing that the proprietor hates East German machines, and he told me that he had indeed declined to work on it, but that the owner asked if she could leave it there for a few days.
I recently got an Optima Elite 3 with a sticky carriage, and the proprietor’s assistant took a look at it for me. He said that there are holes running along a back plate for the teeth of a gear to fit into as the carriage moves along, but that they were different sizes, as if they’d been individually hand-drilled at the factory instead of being machined in a standard way. He redrilled a few, and now it’s working fine.
Hm. I’ve read that one of the anomalies of Eastern European typewriters is that they did maintain a high quality of production in spite of Soviet conditions.
Let me know what you think about the Optima. The Kolibri is interesting because the typing action feels like a regular portable. That’s impressive given how slender it is.
Yikes, this IS a cautionary tale.
15-20 years ago, you could get Kolibris on ebay.de for as little as 1 euro. Then you had to pay for shipping, of course.
The Untimely Typewriter:Daily Writings Against the Tides of Distraction 
Sometimes typewriters can be very frustrating to repair. Congratulations on getting yours back to working.
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Yes, a mainspring can be re-wound, but it can be like un-exploding a grenade. Having done it a few times, there is also a sense of great accompliushment when you complete the task. Note to anyone obliged to do it: work at arm’s length; don’t get your face too close.
What amazes me is the notion of finding any Kolibri for a reasonable price, basket case of missing parts or otherwise. That would have to be my grail machine.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know. I habitually look up prices on Kolibris, Princess 300s, and the like. The prices are insane, and I think prices in general–perhaps due to the Hanks Effect–have gone up in general. It isn’t unusual to see an Underwood Champion priced for a couple of hundred. I’m thankful I started collecting when I did.
LikeLike
I don’t tinker myself, being too unintelligent for mechanical work (as confirmed through standardized tests), but when I stopped by my local typewriter shop on Friday I was surprised to see a green Kolibri with a Polish keyboard sitting behind the counter. I remarked on it, knowing that the proprietor hates East German machines, and he told me that he had indeed declined to work on it, but that the owner asked if she could leave it there for a few days.
I recently got an Optima Elite 3 with a sticky carriage, and the proprietor’s assistant took a look at it for me. He said that there are holes running along a back plate for the teeth of a gear to fit into as the carriage moves along, but that they were different sizes, as if they’d been individually hand-drilled at the factory instead of being machined in a standard way. He redrilled a few, and now it’s working fine.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hm. I’ve read that one of the anomalies of Eastern European typewriters is that they did maintain a high quality of production in spite of Soviet conditions.
Let me know what you think about the Optima. The Kolibri is interesting because the typing action feels like a regular portable. That’s impressive given how slender it is.
LikeLike
Yikes, this IS a cautionary tale.
15-20 years ago, you could get Kolibris on ebay.de for as little as 1 euro. Then you had to pay for shipping, of course.
LikeLiked by 1 person