This particular example was an eBay purchase – a whole dollar.  The case had been lost somewhere in its life, so it was shipped to me in a cardboard box with a little bubble wrap. The right hand platen knob shaft was bent, but a little judicious use of pliers fixed that.  It also lacked a spring that operates the space bar mechanism.  A trip to the hardware store found a spring that I was able to adapt.

With the installation of a new ribbon, this machine works perfectly.  As I said, it’s wrinkle paint finished and has pica type. Serial number H101569 makes it a 1947 model.

This one is serial number 1608039, but serial numbers on these Underwoods are useless for dating.

Underwood Noiseless 77

This is a Remington Deluxe Noiseless typewriter.  It’s supposed to be pre-war and essentially a Model 7 with a smaller paper table. It has the standard, wrinkled paint finish one would expect.

I say supposed to be because the serial number doesn’t match.  It should be ND followed by six-digits.  This one is N1170170. No “D” and too many digits. Maybe the D mis-struck and it’s ND170170 if so, it’s a 1940 model.

This one is a  pre-war Remington Noiseless portable made in 1937.  It’s a bit less fancy than the Model 7s, the paper tray is smaller and the carriage return/line fee is a folding, upright lever rather than the longer horizontal bar.

This example is the black lacquer finish and it has pica type.

When I found this typewriter, it had obviously been in a wet place – a basement perhaps? The leatherette on the case is pulling away in many places.  The typewriter itself had numerous small rust spots underneath.  Thankfully I found it before the rusting had done real damage.

The primary problem was the drawstring (the string that pulls the carriage along as you type) had broken.  It’s always a problem to find a suitable material. Some folks have used the cords from mini-blinds, some use nylon cord, and some have even suggested using gut violin strings.  On this machine I’ve tried a non-stretch fishing line.  Only use will determine if it holds to it’s non-stretch claim.

This is designated Model 1, but it has absolutely nothing to do with the original Remington Model 1. Usually, this one is referred to as “noisy noiseless” because of the design and, well, noise. To add to the confusion, there is a Remington Rand Model 1 that has the noisy-noiseless mechanism but is less streamlined.  And to keep things interesting, there is also a Remington Quiet Model 1.

The case looks like all the other similarly aged pre-war cases I’ve seen.

This example has glossy black paint and pica type.  Serial number PD152845 making it a 1939 model.  I found it in a flea market outside Goldsboro, North Carolina in 1990.