User:Chrisaldrich

Chris Aldrich is an avid typewriter collector and repair mechanic. His day jobs have seen work variously as a biomedical engineer as well as a talent manager in Hollywood.

He maintains a variety of typewriter resources and articles relating to repair, maintenance, and collecting at https://boffosocko.com/research/typewriter-collection/

Typewriter Articles

Articles I’ve written about particular typewriter-related topics:

Cleaning, Repair, & Restoration

• On colloquial advice for degreasing, cleaning, and oiling manual typewriters
• Learning Typewriter Maintenance and Repair
• Adding to My Typewriter Toolset
• Typewriter Tools Upgrade: A new bag and some specialty typewriter tools
• Aggregated Resources and Playlist for a Crash Course on the Olympia SM3 Portable Typewriter
• Repairing the Drawband on an Orga Privat 5 Typewriter
• 1949 Smith-Corona Clipper Black Wooden Case Restoration

Typewriter Ribbon

• Bulk Order of Typewriter Ribbon from Baco Ribbon & Supply Co.
• Fine Line Ribbon for your Typewriter Ribbon Needs

Typewriter Collecting

• Standard Typewriters versus Portable Typewriters and Ultraportable Typewriters
• Photos of Typewriters for the Typewriter Database
• What typwriter-related project(s) are you working on this weekend?

Type-Ins

• 2025-05-10 Vroman’s Bookstore Type-in [invitation

Typewriter Use, History, and Miscellanea

• First Time Typewriter Purchases with Specific Recommendations for Writers
• Collective Nouns for Typewriters and Typists
• Mr. Typewriter, a Royal 660 Electric Typewriter, as inspiration for Stanley Kubrick’s HAL 9000?
• Users of the early Henry Dreyfuss Royal Quiet De Luxe Portable Typewriters
• Typewriter Backing Sheets for Index Cards
• Typecasting with IndieWeb Building Blocks
• Typecast orientation

Typewriter Bibliography: Books, Movies, etc.

• A. C. Van Sant. _The Van Sant System Of Touch Typewriting For Smith Premier (Book)_, 1902. [1](http://archive.org/details/TheVanSantSystemOfTouchTypewriting-ForSmithPremier).
• Ackerman, Peter. _The Lonely Typewriter_. Illustrated edition. Boston: David R. Godine, Publisher, 2014.
• Adler, Michael. _Antique Typewriters: From Creed to QWERTY_. Schiffer, 1997.
• Adler, Michael H. _The Writing Machine: A History of the Typewriter_. George Allen & Unwin Ltd, 1973.
• Allan, Tony. _Typewriter: The History · The Machines · The Writers_. 1st ed. New York: Shelter Harbor Press, 2015.
• Atkinson, Annelise. _Typewriter SOS: The DIY Guide to Fixing Common Problems with Typewriters_, 2014.
• Auster, Paul, and Sam Messer. _The Story of My Typewriter_. 1st edition. New York: D.A.P./Distributed Art Publishers, Inc., 2002.
• Beeching, Wilfred A. _Century of the Typewriter_. First American Edition. London: St. Martin’s Press, 1974.
• _California Typewriter_. Documentary. Gravitas Pictures, 2016.
• Casillo, Anthony, Bruce Curtis, and Tom Hanks. _Typewriters: Iconic Machines from the Golden Age of Mechanical Writing_. Illustrated edition. San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2017.
• Flint, Woz. _The Distraction-Free First Draft_. One Idea Press, 2023. [2](https://www.oneideapress.com/product-page/the-distraction-free-first-draft).
• Hanks, Tom. _Uncommon Type: Some Stories_. Knopf, 2017. 
• House, Clifford R., and Samuel Skurow. _Typewriting Style Manual with References to Century 21 Typewriting_. Cincinnati, OH: South-Western Publishing Co., 1977. [3](http://archive.org/details/typing_202007).
• Lyons, Martyn. _The Typewriter Century: A Cultural History of Writing Practices_. Studies in Book and Print Culture. Toronto ; Buffalo ; London: University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division, 2021.
• _Maintenance Of Office Machines_. 16 mm. Vol. MN-1513. United States Navy Training Film, 1943. [4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocdxgkxKAKo).
• Marty (Costa Mesa). _Gregg Typewriting For Colleges (Complete Course)_, 1964. [5](http://archive.org/details/greggtypewritingforcolleges).
• Monk, Theodore. “1954 Smith-Corona (SCM) Typewriter Type Styles and Keyboards Catalog.” _– To Type, Shoot Straight, and Speak the Truth…_ (blog), February 3, 2023. [6](https://munk.org/typecast/2023/02/03/1954-smith-corona-scm-typewriter-type-styles-and-keyboards-catalog/).
• Pearce, H. G. _Complete Instructions: How to Repair, Rebuild, and Adjust Underwood Typewriters With Handy Reference for Locating Trouble Quickly_. Bridgeport, CT: Typewriter Mechanics Publishing Co., 1920. [7](https://johnesimmons.com/Typewriter/Articles/Manualpdf/Underwood_Repair_Manual.pdf).
• Polt, Richard. _The Typewriter Revolution: A Typist’s Companion for the 21st Century_. 1st ed. Woodstock, VT: Countryman Press, 2015.
• Robert, Paul, and Peter Weil. _Typewriter: A Celebration of the Ultimate Writing Machine_. 1st ed. New York: Union Square & Co., 2016.
• Smith-Corona, Inc. _Type Styles and Keyboards for Smith-Corona Office Typewriters_. Syracuse, NY: Smith-Corona, Inc., 1954. [8](https://munk.org/typecast/2023/02/03/1954-smith-corona-scm-typewriter-type-styles-and-keyboards-catalog/).
• Vangool, Janine. _The Typewriter: A Graphic History of the Beloved Machine_. UPPERCASE publishing inc, 2015.