IBM DEATH MATCH: Selectric ii vs. Actionwriter
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- Опубліковано 15 жов 2021
- Instagram- / just.my.typewriter
Typewriters Featured:
IBM Actionwriter
IBM Selectric
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Hello Sarah, just love all your content and presentation
I'm an IBM master mechanic, can't beat the Selectric II typewriter, pretty neat yours has a film credit
Btw Selectrics were born same month and year as me ! (August 1961)
That Actionwriter is really not an IBM, it's made by Adler, it's a Satellite III, only typewriter good enough for IBM to attach their name to
Never liked how IBM got rid of the platen knobs, The Adler version has a left side platen knob, I'm also an Adler factory trained MM.
IBM does have a pure IBM Wheelwriter that looks just like the actionwriter, but actually much better
** Sarah which video of your is the one you use some of my footage, it's the funny one about watching video's
I don't think I've used your video footage in any of my content- I definitely watch yours though any time I get stuck!
Thank you for the info on that Actionwriter!
I never realized until now how big the Selectric really is. It looks like it could swallow whole my little Olivetti. Love the video; please keep them coming.
I know!!! That Selectric looks massive... if I curled up into the fetal position, I could probably take a nap inside that thing LOL 😆
yeah I’m glad I found this video people always film the machine POV and this is the first one that gives perspective of its size
To use the correcting feature you would press the delete key under the right hand shift key. What that does is moves the carriage back one space and moves the correcting tape in place. Next you type the incorrect letter again. This is where it shows it’s mechanical nature. The wrong letter is impressed against the correction tape which actually pulls the ink off the paper, thus correcting the error. You then type the correct letter and go on your way. I believe it works the same on the Actionwriter.
The only unknown is if your correction tape is any good. It appears to be installed on your Selectric, but I couldn’t see if it’s on the Actionwriter. These also have a tendency to dry out over time.
Thank you!
@@JustMyTypewriter Tom is correct, and I'll add that there are several different kinds of ribbons for Selectrics and Wheelwriters (actionwriter) machines. There are inked fabric ribbons, but they are super-rare and always broken, there are "non-correctable" carbon ribbons (Tech III) for "archival" typing, and the ones you're most likely to find are "lift-off correctable" or "pink leader" carbon ribbons. If you have this last kind, you can use "lift off" correction tapes. These tapes are the smaller off-white "ribbon" spool loaded underneath the regular ribbon. They can be found easily, but remember that they basically are the same as Scotch Tape, and work by sticking to the carbon ink on the page and lifting it off. So, if your correction tape is old, it may not be sticky enough to work.
@@tmunk Thank you!
@@brian_belanger Thank you for the information!
Not the same on the Actionwriter, that machine uses its single-line correction memory so it remembers which character is in which position. So it's a single key press to correct the last-typed character, or, if you use the backspace key to go further back on the line to the wrong character then press correction key it still knows where you are. After correcting, the "Relocate" key takes you instantly back to where you were. Further interesting note that IBM named it the "Actionwriter 1" (in the US, "6715" elsewhere), implying there may be a further model which never happened but given the wide range TA produced, it certainly could have. Thankfully the Wheelwriter series came out and took over. The Actionwriter was not a heavy-duty machine like the Selectric although they were still quite robust.
Thanks for the video 🙂
Little frustrated to not hear the sound of this typewriters. The sound is as fun as the shape or the features.
I get that feedback a lot- I'll be adjusting that in some future content! I just always have something on in the background while typing and never think to record it! Thank you
@@JustMyTypewriter he he he... I feel less alone now for sharing that feedback lol 😄
@@thethriftyfawn I just filmed something today that'll be out next year that has some of that covered. I hear you guys!
@@JustMyTypewriter YAAAAAAAAS!!! Thank you Sarah! The sounds definitely give a vibe and feel of something nostalgic that a computer does not do 🙂
On the Selectric you can correct by pressing the correct button next to the right shift. That puts the machine into correction mode. Then type over the incorrect letter and it will be erased. At that point the machine is out of correction mode and the correct key will have to be pressed again to correct another letter. The correct key also backspaces the typing element.
Cool video. Never seen a black IBM Selectric, but did stream "Mindhunter" a few months back. Great score. Not only can you change fonts on a Selevtric, you can even change languages!! Selectric type balls were available for Russian, German, and other languages. I worked for Avis Rent a Car in the 1980s. The 1970s era computer used by the company had an IBM Selectric as the input device and printer. I felt bad throwing the thing in a dumpster when Avis stopped supporting the old system. I should have kept it as a collectible. I still have a vintage 1982 Olympia Compact Electronic (daisy wheel) that can also serve as a computer printer.
Wonderfull machine IBM selectric I, II,III
I just won a Selectric II in an auction, and it came with 9 spare golfballs, ink ribbons, and correction tape. I committed the mistake of working out last night, and so when I went o pick it up, I could barely carry the darn thing. I read somewhere that it weighs 37 pounds, but it felt a *lot* heavier. Maybe that's why old desks used to be made out of steel lol
they're very very heavy
Phoenix Typewriter just released a video on replacing correction ribbon on a "Royal Scriptor" electric typewriter... not sure if the IBM Selectric uses a similar setup, but Duane's before and after demonstrations in his video were really interesting! Along with how to replace the correction ribbon 🎀 😊
good to know thanks!
I have an Actionwriter 1. It's a great little typewriter, with excellent touch on the keyboard. The only function I wish it had is to type in bold. I also have two IBM Model D's one is a Standard and the other is Executive. The Executive is a proportional spacing machine, I don't use it very often. My favorite IBM would have to be my Wheelwriter 30, it has memory, LCD (liquid crystal display, and spell check. With a special card, you can turn it into a printer, or add a 3 1/2" floppy disk drive for permanent storage. I have been enjoying your videos, keep up the good work.
I love typing on the IBM selectric and would love to have a red one. But yes they are so heavy and large that I have passed up many selectrics. I also have a 1940’s maybe a 50’s tank of a typewriter Royal. Desk top. I just picked up an Olivetti portable that needs a little (?) repair as the space bar does not work. So with that I will be selling it on eBay. I really enjoy your channel, thank you for sharing your knowledge with us.
Have you ever lined up all your typewriters in a row, by year of manufacture, just to see the progression of typewriters?
How about a piece or poem where you have a single sheet of paper that goes through all of them? So you start with your oldest typewriter, write a line or two. Take it out, write on the next oldest. Rinse and repeat until you're written on all your typewriters, and you're on your newest typewriter (which I think is the Barbie typewriter)
Interesting idea!
Forgot to comment at 1:36 the dog you were dog sitting looks absolutely precious!!! 😍
That's Gus- he's lovely!
@@JustMyTypewriter He most certainly is 😍😍😍
Perhaps in the future, Gus could rate some of your typewriters? 😄
This was in the "GOOD OL' DAYS" when IBM was still making typewriters and, oh yeah, computers too, here in the USA. They were allowed to sell that whole division of the company to "RED" CHINA which rebounded it as "LENOVO". IBM chose though to keep the "SOFTWARE" part of the company here in the USA. No "machines" to build so probably more profitable too?
Comparing it to an old PC keyboard is pretty apt, the IBM Model F and Model M keyboards that shipped with early PC XTs and ATs were built to mimic the feel of a Selectric. You can still buy new Model M keyboards from Unicomp (they bought all the tooling from Lexmark and IBM) with USB. I repair/restore a lot of the vintage computer keyboards (sometimes make videos about them too) along with old IBM typewriters. I've got a few Selectrics of different generations around along with a couple of Wheelwriters and have become pretty good at repairing them over the last few years.
Edit: the really neat thing about the Selectric is it's a fully mechanical 6-bit digital to analog converter. It's essentially a mechanical computer, over engineered and complex. Such a mid-20th century solution to a problem IMO.
The Wheelwriter (similar in looks to the Actionwriter but actually made by IBM) used a Model M keyboard as well. You can usually find those laying around for cheap/free still. I'd recommend picking one up. You can even swap Wheelwriter keycaps onto a contemporary Unicomp Model M and use them with your computer!
Thank you for all this information!
That's incorrect. The Beamspring terminal keyboards were made to mimic Selectrics - most even have an optional solenoid hammering against the cast iron cases for increased feedback. Model F is a high quality key mechanism, with the Model M being the slightly cost reduced/simplified variant (resistive instead of capacitive sensing).
Typing this on a Model F reproduction.
nails cut back fully leave nice puffy rubbery fingerips, with which it is a joy to type, I always cut nails back all the way, and I train hard on my hands with muscle making machines, to have the big rubbery tips of my fingers stick out, it feels so good to type with them, I would go crazy if I had long nails
I loved your video, thanks to introducing to the Actionwriter, I had no idea it even existed, I love it, I guess it's quieter than mechanical typewriters
Pro tip: You can press the ‘index’ key on the far upper right and you will advance a line (or double space if you’re typing double spaced) without having the type element move back to the left margin.
Thank you!
(I'm still learning how to properly use these guys- I find the amount of options intimidating!)
@@JustMyTypewriter No worries! Asking questions then trying it out yourself is the best way to learn. It’s how I eventually found my way around how to operate one.
@@JustMyTypewriter And you are very welcome.
They didn't say fonts back then they said typeface or in the case of the "golf ball": print head! Why not fonts? Who knows, some manufacturers e.g. Hermes bought their typeheads from a font foundry...probably others did...so just a quirk. I like to say font also...
On my wishlist to play with a selectric, I have a case of 8 print heads that fits in a bookcase. All 12 cpi except a 10 cpi Orator 96. 2 are symbol (I & II).
Cheers David
Good to know- thank you!
Select. Hands down.
Redo. You forgot the Spreadsheet test. Lolz NOT an unfounded practice!
I know for sure you can make spreadsheets and plotters on The IBM
good to know
Hello I have an IBM Selectric 2 here I'm wondering if anyone is interested IN it
meeee
You know something neat you could do with your typewriters _and_ help organize them? You know how the military used to have paper files on all their soldiers, with important info about them and have them all in one folder. Why don't you make a template in Excel that explains everything about the printer. Make, model, manufacturer, type sample, serial number, etc. And then have them. All on one file decorated like a military file
Very helpful idea- thank you!