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196x Carlton Portable Serial # 82605 196x Carlton Portable typewriter, Serial # 82605 Paul Seitz's 196x Carlton Portable typewriter. 2020-12-22 From the Virtual Typewriter Collection of Paul Seitz: 196x Carlton Portable Serial # 82605 This is a licensed clone of the Hermes Baby/Rocket manufactured by the Montana typewriter factory in Turin, Italy. According to the database, these were made between 1962 and 1968, and those branded "Carlton," like this one, are considered "greatly diminished" copies of the Hermes original. I get that the plastic housing INTO which the complete typewriter is inserted seems non-durable and also counterintuitive since it adds about 3/4" of width on each side of a machine invented to be as small as possible. But, having said all that, I find that this machine, which surely is mechanically almost identical to the Hermes Baby/Rocket of, say, a decade or more earlier, types with excellent clarity and alignment - almost the equal of my Hermes 3000. The only issue I find is that the line space return is a bit random sometimes and can cause the paper to move off horizontal. But I have seen this issue discussed as a known problem with actual Hermes Baby/Rocket machines so even that may not be entirely the fault of the Turin factory. I like to think that purchasing it might be a bit like buying a late 1960's Turin built Fiat (if I could ever afford to do such a thing) - not the most perfectly engineered machine, but small, sporty, and kind of fun.

196x Carlton Portable #82605

Status: My Collection
Hunter: Paul Seitz (pstype)
Created: 12-22-2020 at 12:33PM
Last Edit: 12-22-2020 at 12:55PM

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Description:

This is a licensed clone of the Hermes Baby/Rocket manufactured by the Montana typewriter factory in Turin, Italy. According to the database, these were made between 1962 and 1968, and those branded "Carlton," like this one, are considered "greatly diminished" copies of the Hermes original. I get that the plastic housing INTO which the complete typewriter is inserted seems non-durable and also counterintuitive since it adds about 3/4" of width on each side of a machine invented to be as small as possible. But, having said all that, I find that this machine, which surely is mechanically almost identical to the Hermes Baby/Rocket of, say, a decade or more earlier, types with excellent clarity and alignment - almost the equal of my Hermes 3000. The only issue I find is that the line space return is a bit random sometimes and can cause the paper to move off horizontal. But I have seen this issue discussed as a known problem with actual Hermes Baby/Rocket machines so even that may not be entirely the fault of the Turin factory. I like to think that purchasing it might be a bit like buying a late 1960's Turin built Fiat (if I could ever afford to do such a thing) - not the most perfectly engineered machine, but small, sporty, and kind of fun.

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Hunter: Paul Seitz (pstype)

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After too many rapid cross country moves, I realized suddenly that my c. 1964 Hermes 3000 was missing - lost or stolen at some point in a move. I'd bought that machine new from a shop as I entered high school, did all my homework on it, typed all my college research papers and my Master's thesis on it, but gradually used it less and less over the years. Still, the sudden realization that it was gone felt like a really significant loss, which puzzled me. Wondering why I was so moved by the loss of something I hadn't actually used in years, I began to get more and more interested in typewriters and the many layers of stories each seems to accumulate. I started to learn a little - just enough to have a chance to find some good machines that I can afford, as I gradually try to understand the (apparently, important) place of the typewriter in my soul.


RESEARCH NOTE: When researching the Carlton Portable on a computer with lots of screen real estate, you may find that launching the Carlton Serial Number page and the Carlton Portable By Model/Year/Serial page in new browser windows can give you interesting perspectives on changes throughout the model series.

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