Confessions of a typewriter dabbler (intro post!)

[phdezra]

Hi all -- Been a forum reader for a short while, lurking before finally posting. Time to jump in and introduce myself and my trio of mechanical marvels...

I'm a fortysomething Miniver Cheevy ("born too late") and, when not working in business, a dabbler in the noble art of typewriting - though my collection suggests I've dabbled with the enthusiasm of a 1920s stock speculator. Yes, I confess to owning a MacBook (please don't revoke my membership card), but when I want to feel like an actual writer rather than a glorified email composer, nothing beats the musical clatter of keys meeting paper. (I was also a writer in another lifetime and currently working on a book of short stories that primarily take place in NYC from late-17th century to mid-20th century.)

My humble collection:

• Corona Standard (circa 1933-1937) - An elegant lady in black with shiny celluloid keys (passable as glass, but it isn't). This portable beauty -- I believe is was marketed as a Travel Typewriter back in the day -- so it was the MacBook Air of the Depression era: sophisticated, travel-ready, and capable of Pulitzer-worthy prose (hey, I gotta dream). Features genuine ribbon color selection for when you're feeling fancy, and a satisfying margin bell that puts modern notification sounds to shame as robotic wannabes. When I purchased this, I was told it "may have belonged to Dorothy Parker". I kid you not (unsure of veracity though).
• Royal Quiet De Luxe (circa 1950s) - The workhorse with the heart of gold and glass covered keys. This dependable companion has that no-nonsense engineering that says "Let's get down to business" while still maintaining enough style; built like a tank (!) but types like a dream. This is my go-to typewriter!
• Tower President (circa 1960s) - Distinguished (sorta) gentleman of the group, proving that even presidential namesakes knew quality manufacturing (made by Smith-Corona, AFAIK). This one's got that "executive presence" that makes you want to dictate important memos... or at least a grocery list.

Important for ME: I use silk ribbons for all three, even though the amount of pressure and force hitting keys differ dramatically between them and silk wasnt really used for all three (1930s mostly cotton ribbons (exclusively at the time, I believe)), then silk came along, then dept of defense "forced" nylon introduction bc they said they limited silk and cotton during wartime (WW II) . Touchwise: the Corona has that distinctive 'loose' feel with keys (anyone else here think the same?) that are more fluid and move around a little more side to side. Royal Quiet De Luxe is incredibly light and snappy relative to my Corona - maybe too fast! It's hyper-responsive with light key travel for the first third of the stroke, then gradually ramping up effort -- once more, anyone else?. The typebars strike with exceptional ease, making fast typing a breeze. The Tower President sits somewhere in between, a pleasure to type on it, with that solid Smith-Corona engineering, though I think it was based on the Silent-Super line, so it has a more controlled, deliberate feel compared to the zippy Royal.

COLOR: black/red ribbons only; actually, this is a quirky sticking point of mine when buying a vintage typewriter -- must have both color options. IDK why; stuck in my head! ​

Looking forward to learning from the collective wisdom here - and maybe finding excuses to acquire typewriter number four. You know, for "research purposes."

Best,
Ezra

[Typed begrudgingly on a MacBook]