196x Remington Starfire #M501665
Status: My Collection
Hunter: Tom Rehkopf (TomR)
Created: 03-30-2020 at 02:40PM
Last Edit: 03-30-2020 at 03:04PM
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Description:
Too bad this typewriter is so cheaply made, otherwise it would be a pretty nifty machine. Nice soft avocado green screams mid-century. Swoopy case design (Carl Sundberg) is very cool. Set up your lava lamp next to it.
But the materials are blue-light special. Thin plastic, cheap stamped steel, wobbly keys. I actually like the smaller wide-spaced keycaps (same as the Remington Ten Forty). Less chance of grazing a neighboring key while typing. Type quality is quite good.
Typing action is surprisingly crisp. I think there is some Torpedo DNA in there somewhere (but well-hidden) since Remington incorporated some of the Torpedo engine in these later Remingtons.
There is no ribbon cover per se; you have to remove the entire case top to get at the ribbon spools. Not unlike the Olympia SM9. Sorta fiddly.
So...cheap but cool. Types nice. Sorry, I know I'm not supposed to, but i kinda like it. It's a cheap date; what you see is what you get. Take it to your next public typing session, set up an Etch-A-Sketch next to it, you'll get some comments.
Typeface Specimen:
Links:
Photos:
Hunter: Tom Rehkopf (TomR)
Tom Rehkopf's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]
Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 102
Collecting typewriters off and on for 25 years, more "on" the last couple years. Meshes well with my other collecting hobby, fountain pens. Typewriters seem to find me, I don't have to look for them. First there are a couple, then 10, then 20, then 50...its getting out of hand.
RESEARCH NOTE: When researching the Remington Starfire on a computer with lots of screen real estate, you may find that launching the Remington Serial Number page and the Remington Starfire By Model/Year/Serial page in new browser windows can give you interesting perspectives on changes throughout the model series.
