1956 Olympia SG1 #7-139497

Status: My Collection
Hunter: Chris Aldrich (chrisaldrich)
Created: 02-02-2026 at 01:32PM
Last Edit: 02-02-2026 at 02:27PM

Description Hunter 0 Likes  Find on Ebay #AD  Find on Etsy #AD

Description:

2026-01-31 Acquired at thrift for a very reasonable $70.  I was really hoping to get a Modern Elite No. 66 or an Elite No. 8 as my first SG1, but finding this with a Congress Elite No. 84 typeface was a reasonably acceptable alternative, particularly in usable condition.

## Initial condition assessment
This 70 year old standard typewriter is in reasonable condition, but will require a full clean/oil/adjust as well as the following repairs: 
- left shift key broken off and key lever bent
- blow out old desiccated foam
- 5-6 sticky keys; remainder are slower than they ought to be
- broken paper support (surprise!)
- de-rust some of the internals
- replace ribbon and poorly matched spools
- recover platen
- carriage grinding on return
- new feet (old, hard, chipping)
- replace foam with new felt
- the aligning scales for the Perspex card holders aren't functioning properly (broken or missing a spring?)
- polish keys and spacebar
- brights all need attention and polishing

## Repairs on 2026-02-02
With some of the quick repairs listed below, I've got this machine up to the level of pretty good acceptable daily use condition. It'll definitely be a serious member of the rotation once the C/O/A is finished.  If it had a more standard typeface it might have a shot at replacing my elite Royal KMG.

- basic wipe down of dirt, dust, etc.
- fixed carriage grinding on return
- replaced spools and ribbon with nylon blue/green
- blew out old foam as well as other internal dust and cobwebs
- basic cleanout of segment to get keys unstuck and working well enough
- basic oiling of carriage rails and one or two additional spots

## General Comments
As someone who uses a lot of index cards, this seems a spectacular machine. My one immediate issue is that I wish the paper injector went down a few more notches as I have to roll it back up a few lines to get to an acceptable starting line on my index card.

Typeface Specimen:

Links:

• Olympia SG1 Manual
• Acquisition post

Hunter: Chris Aldrich (chrisaldrich)

Chris Aldrich's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]

Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 1277

Hello! I’m a Johns Hopkins trained biomedical and electrical engineer with a variety of interests in the entertainment industry, information theory, evolution, big history, genetics, signal processing, transgenetics, translational medicine, and theoretical mathematics. I’m a strong advocate of the IndieWeb movement.

I have a love for analog office equipment including library card catalogs and typewriters. As of March 2025, I've got a segment of 45 typewriters, mostly portable and manual models along with several Royal standards, a Remington Standard, and one SMC typebar electric. I have been learning how to completely overhaul all of the machines in my collection, all of which work well aside from one or two machines which need some parts. I have a burgeoning collection of typewriter tools for continually repairing, maintaining, and upgrading my machines.

2024 was broadly a year of collecting portables and 2025 seems to be shaping up to be the year of the standards. I'm slowly morphing my TWdB collection photos so that the "hero" photos of the machine facing to the right (with the left side of the typewriter facing front generally with the carriage return in the front) are those that have been generally cleaned /restored while those facing to the left (with the right side of the typewriter facing front with carriage return in the rear) are those that still need cleaning, oiling, adjustment or a major repair. Those facing forward generally need work as well. Certainly some don't fit this pattern, but I hope to fix them all shortly as I get the requisite photos.

I've got more than half a dozen card catalogs including a Gaylord Bros. and a Steelcase along with several Remington Rand and some Shaw-Walkers. I've lost count of my index card collection once I passed 10,000.