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1961 Alpina N 24 Serial # 297877 1961 Alpina N 24 typewriter, Serial # 297877 Saul Bryan's 1961 Alpina N 24 typewriter. 2025-05-20 From the Virtual Typewriter Collection of Saul Bryan: 1961 Alpina N 24 Serial # 297877 I bought this in November 2021, and only recently got around to repairing some mechanical issues it had. It reminded me how this machine has quite a few special things about it. Let me list a few --

1. The return lever is made of ivory coloured nylon (which is surprisingly strong). This has two positions, one for storage and one for use. You pull the lever and twist to change positions.
2. This is not a segment shift or a carriage shift. It raises/lowers the platen only, most of the carriage stays put.
3. The carry case has four large holes in it, which is where the feet of the machine go thru when it is in!
4. Under the carriage there are two levers, which when pulled forward allow the carriage to be lifted off. Press shift and pull the card guides forward first.
5. The paper bail rollers seem over engineered to me, they are quite fancy compared to most machines.
6. The margin settings seem weird too, aligning to a number guide and not really so well to the page in front. That's how it seems to me.
7. The machine is locked to the case base. To release it, you have to press two metal levers near the ribbon spools, under the cover. These have yellow blobs of paint on them.

Overall there are many touches on this machine which indicates a decent effort was made to make it a premium product.

My example came to me with a host of issues, early on in my collecting when I could not deal with them all. It has sat on a shelf until recently when I felt like taking it on with some new tools and skills under my belt. I started with the ribbon drive, which would lock up if trying to feed from right to left. The right spool was tight when it was supposed to spin freely. I took off the carriage (see 4 above) and outer case (two giant screws under the carriage, and the posts for the ribbon cover need to come off) to get access. Then I pulled the e-clip off the bottom of the spool shaft, and removed it. In the end, replacing the e-clip with a slightly thinner one gave it the vertical room to spin freely. All it needed was a fraction of a mm to work better. It also had an issue with the vibrator not fully returning down to the rest position and blocking the text. With the carriage off I was able to gently form this back ever so slightly, and this fixed the issue. This machine would benefit from further restoration, and I'm keen to make it work the best it can. I need to fix the tabs, which are not setting, and the margin release, which is very stiff to engage and does not reset most of the time.

The touch on this machine is quite soft and pleasing. It took me a while to come to a closest match to those in my collection, but I feel that the Olympia SF is the nearest, but with the throw on the Alpina being longer. However, you need to strike the keys accurately and evenly as it seems sensitive to off-angle or off-pressure strikes, giving weak or even no imprint. The return lever feels really nice to use, and the return action is also very pleasant. The ribbon I have installed is over-inked, but a page out of this still looks pretty good. I'm pleased with it now, whereas before I was considering moving it on from the collection.

1961 Alpina N 24 #297877

Status: My Collection
Hunter: Saul Bryan (Saulysw)
Created: 05-16-2025 at 08:49PM
Last Edit: 05-20-2025 at 07:12AM

Description Hunter 21 Photos 0 Likes  Find on Ebay #AD  Find on Etsy #AD

Description:

I bought this in November 2021, and only recently got around to repairing some mechanical issues it had. It reminded me how this machine has quite a few special things about it. Let me list a few --

1. The return lever is made of ivory coloured nylon (which is surprisingly strong). This has two positions, one for storage and one for use. You pull the lever and twist to change positions.
2. This is not a segment shift or a carriage shift. It raises/lowers the platen only, most of the carriage stays put.
3. The carry case has four large holes in it, which is where the feet of the machine go thru when it is in!
4. Under the carriage there are two levers, which when pulled forward allow the carriage to be lifted off. Press shift and pull the card guides forward first.
5. The paper bail rollers seem over engineered to me, they are quite fancy compared to most machines.
6. The margin settings seem weird too, aligning to a number guide and not really so well to the page in front. That's how it seems to me.
7. The machine is locked to the case base. To release it, you have to press two metal levers near the ribbon spools, under the cover. These have yellow blobs of paint on them.

Overall there are many touches on this machine which indicates a decent effort was made to make it a premium product.

My example came to me with a host of issues, early on in my collecting when I could not deal with them all. It has sat on a shelf until recently when I felt like taking it on with some new tools and skills under my belt. I started with the ribbon drive, which would lock up if trying to feed from right to left. The right spool was tight when it was supposed to spin freely. I took off the carriage (see 4 above) and outer case (two giant screws under the carriage, and the posts for the ribbon cover need to come off) to get access. Then I pulled the e-clip off the bottom of the spool shaft, and removed it. In the end, replacing the e-clip with a slightly thinner one gave it the vertical room to spin freely. All it needed was a fraction of a mm to work better. It also had an issue with the vibrator not fully returning down to the rest position and blocking the text. With the carriage off I was able to gently form this back ever so slightly, and this fixed the issue. This machine would benefit from further restoration, and I'm keen to make it work the best it can. I need to fix the tabs, which are not setting, and the margin release, which is very stiff to engage and does not reset most of the time.

The touch on this machine is quite soft and pleasing. It took me a while to come to a closest match to those in my collection, but I feel that the Olympia SF is the nearest, but with the throw on the Alpina being longer. However, you need to strike the keys accurately and evenly as it seems sensitive to off-angle or off-pressure strikes, giving weak or even no imprint. The return lever feels really nice to use, and the return action is also very pleasant. The ribbon I have installed is over-inked, but a page out of this still looks pretty good. I'm pleased with it now, whereas before I was considering moving it on from the collection.

Typeface Specimen:

Photos:




Lever in twisted storage position.
Lever in twisted storage position.

Mid-twist
Mid-twist

Lever now in typing position
Lever now in typing position












The yellow blob is on the lever you need to press (and the one on the other side) to release the machine from the base.
The yellow blob is on the lever you need to press (and the one on the other side) to release the machine from the base.


When empty, there are holes in the case for the typewriter feet!
When empty, there are holes in the case for the typewriter feet!


Hunter: Saul Bryan (Saulysw)

Saul Bryan's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]

Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 483

I live in Sydney, Australia. I've been collecting typewriters since about October 2020.


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