1965 Olympia SM9 #2848398
Status: My Collection
Hunter: Fumitaka Hayashi (fhayashi)
Created: 05-30-2026 at 04:58PM
Last Edit: 05-30-2026 at 04:58PM
Description:
A 1965 Olympia SM9, in #8 Elite.
This one is in pretty good shape, but it had a weird stickiness. Instead of the usual stickiness where the typebars hang up, the keys were sticky at the beginning of the keystroke. Puzzled, I opened the cover, and there was some sort of reddish-brown substance on the typebar rest, essentially gluing the typebars to the rubber rest. A few minutes of cleaning with denatured alcohol removed most of the goo, and the machines now types well.
I have no idea what the goo is. It is nowhere else on the mechanism (thankfully), and there is a bit of it on the body, next to the ribbon color select switch.
Other than that, the previous owners name is engraved on at least 4 spots on the typewriter, and on the latch of the case. The gentleman was apparently an antique collector and passed away in 2020. He had good taste in typewriters.
The case, unfortunately, is in sad shape. It is as if someone stepped on the side. The wood is broken, and I have made an attempt to straighten it out and glue it back. The hardware was also mangled, but I managed to un-mangle them. The latch and hinge were bent, but responded to percussive maintenance.
I now have 3 SM9s, but at least the slugs are all different.
Another Goodwill Auction acquisition. This one came from middle Tennessee.
Typeface Specimen:
Photos:
Hunter: Fumitaka Hayashi (fhayashi)
Fumitaka Hayashi's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]
Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 497
Relatively new to collecting. Would like to document my collection.
Planning on sticking to full-sized American machines so I don't spend too much on fancy European portables.
RESEARCH NOTE: When researching the Olympia SM9 on a computer with lots of screen real estate, you may find that launching the Olympia Serial Number page and the Olympia SM9 By Model/Year/Serial page in new browser windows can give you interesting perspectives on changes throughout the model series.






























