1965 Adler Universal 40 #8172125

Status: My Collection
Hunter: Javier Vazquez del Olmo (Javi)
Created: 12-12-2018 at 08:11AM
Last Edit: 12-09-2023 at 08:30AM

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Description:

All work and no play makes Ja- Sorry, the joke is a bit old.

I've been looking for one of these for quite a long time, and I finally got it. In fact, I was eager to try a large "modern" Adler since my previous experience with them was the venerable Adler 7. The bad part is the condition, though. This typewriter is still able to type, but it has suffered more than neglect. The front body is broken. I don't know if someone dropped the machine or (more probably) gave it a good whack, because all the machinery is fine. The front section is currently held with repair putty, which has to be one of the less elegant ways of repairing a typewriter. At least the damage is only aesthetical, and the putty isn't visible from the outside so it doesn't damage onlooker's eyes.

As for identification, there's a little problem. Regarding the model, where are the boundaries between Universals? What is the difference between an Universal and an Universal 20 or 39?

Am accurate way to describe this monster would be "good price, bad shape and reasonably satisfying".

--- UPDATE ----

I answer my own question: What's the difference between Universal models? How can you tell a 20 from a 40? Or a 200 from a 390? Easy (once I realized): The 20 / 200 is the basic model, the 39 / 390 has paper injector and double spacing selector and the 40 / 400 on top of that it has decimal tabulator. So... after 5 years I finally file this thing correctly: It's an Adler Universal 40, and it is not Jack Torrance's typewriter, but a close relative.

Typeface Specimen:

Photos:

Here you can see the putty. Please, don´t look too much at it.

The serial number appears twice so there's no trace of boubt about it.

This is NOT the serial numbre, but what is it, then?

Hunter: Javier Vazquez del Olmo (Javi)

Javier Vazquez del Olmo's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]

Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 6476

The first typewriter I saw was my grandpa´s Olivetti Linea 98 at the office. It was just a curio for me. Then I was given a Nakajima, which I didn´t use and my grandfather took it from me because it was easier to handle than the bulky Linea 98. Now I own that typewriter, and I started a little collection in Valladolid, Spain. The Nakajima, which is "my" typewriter only returned home in 2017, almost 20 years later, when he wanted a better typewriter.

A collection that started small grew into something bigger, a nuisace for my family and a great source of satisfaction for me.