1951 Underwood Leader #H2073156
Status: My Collection
Hunter: Fumitaka Hayashi (fhayashi)
Created: 06-28-2026 at 02:57PM
Last Edit: 06-28-2026 at 02:57PM
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Description:
Yet another Underwood Leader.
This one was odd. As received, it was not typing correctly - everything seemed to be horribly misaligned. However, the feet are nice and soft, as if they had been replaced recently. There were also some parts that seemed to be mismatched - silver metal ribbon spool holder on one side, blackened metal on the other side.
As my usual cleaning did not fix the problem, I took off the shell. I discovered that one of the main pivot screws was missing. As this was important in aligning the carriage and platen, it explained the fault.
I asked if anyone had a parts machine, and another collector, L.J., leapt to the rescue. He sent me the missing screw.
Once that screw was reinstalled, I noticed that the upper and lower case were misaligned. The upper case shift limits seem impossible to adjust without some sort of special wrench to fit, but I realized I could just align the lower case to line up with the upper case.
There is a hint of weakness of the impression on the lower parts of the letters, but you can overcome it by typing forcefully... I do not want to open this up again.
Another Goodwill acquisition, this time sent from Virginia Beach.
Typeface Specimen:
Photos:
Hunter: Fumitaka Hayashi (fhayashi)
Fumitaka Hayashi's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]
Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 822
Trying very hard to be more judicious in my acquisitions...
I like interesting typefaces. I like tinkering with my acquisitions to make them work.
RESEARCH NOTE: When researching the Underwood Leader on a computer with lots of screen real estate, you may find that launching the Underwood Serial Number page and the Underwood Leader By Model/Year/Serial page in new browser windows can give you interesting perspectives on changes throughout the model series.
