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Friday 8 April 2011

Corona Folding Portable 1917



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This is the 2nd acquisition in my collection.




It is a Corona No. 3, manufactured in 1917 in Groton NY,
previously known as The Rose Typewriter Company of New York City. It was sometimes referred to as the Personal Writing Machine, I suppose because the machine itself is so compact.  It folds.  The carriage flips over so that is sits only a few inches off the table. As a result, it had a smaller case; mine came with case in fairly good condition and the manual is inside! As well, a small receptacle
containing oil with a slim dipstick (still intact) was found in the case in a cleverly designed metal holder. I will photo and post this. The machine works quite well.  The platen needs to be refreshed and of course a new tiny ribbon needs to be found. However during a recent move, I accidentally dropped the case (machine inside) and the carriage mechanism (a string) broke.  Nonetheless, why be a collector if you are not going to learn to troubleshoot and repair these beautiful, old and well-designed machines, right?  I am trying to read as much as I can about typewriters; other collectors are most generous with any information they come across and I want to join in this with the same spirit.

1 comment:

  1. Hey,
    I was wondering if you would be willing to share info. I recently bought a 1917ish Corona Portable. I was unable to test it in the shop but gave it a quick look and assumed everything was there. Later I realized that there were several things missing,not least of which was a drawstring for the carriage, and that the space bar seems to be completely nonfunctional. I have been looking for any sort of manual, repair instructions, or even a diagram to help with repair. So far I have had no luck and what little I've found assumes that I am familiar with typewriters. Any sites you could point me to would be a huge help.

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