(BIG NEWS! -I just listed this typewriter on ebay!) Link to ebay post
As a reader of my blog, you probably don’t know what I do for a living besides writing and music. I don’t reference it often in my articles. I buy and sell as my main trade outside of creative pursuits. Truth be told, creativity is very useful when picking. After purchasing an item, it goes on one of my ebay stores. The primary being, “Brother Luke’s Treasures.”
See the link following:
http://stores.ebay.com/Brother-Lukes-Treasures
I tend to buy and sell a lot of the same types of things weekly: vintage clothing, electronics, shoes, housewares, etc, etc. But, I also run across some very cool, interesting, and/or rare items regularly. I’ve thought for some time about sharing some pictures and information about them on my blog. So, from the thrift stores, auctions, garage sales, and junk yards I frequent, I bring you, “My Pick of the Week.”
For installment #1, I have a good one for you! After going to my youngest daughter’s soccer game this morning, I saw that a church was having a rummage sale across the street. As I moved from table to table, I picked out a few decent picks at a bargain price: a vintage leather briefcase, an old cosmetic travel case, and one or two other items. Then, I felt a “disturbance in the force” and looked around… I saw a beautiful sight from across the large room. It was an old Royal typewriter in the original case.
1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe -Photo Luke Austin Daugherty
If you have followed my blog for any length of time, you’ll know that I love my 1966 Smith-Corona Super Sterling. I generally write all of my current poetry on that typewriter. So, I have a special passion for a good manual typewriter.
Though most everything else was pretty cheap at the sale, they had a pretty steep price on this typewriter. But, as a true lover of manual typewriters, I couldn’t pass it up 🙂
I must admit, it will be hard to get rid of this typewriter and I may just keep it. In buying and selling, I tend to embrace the drug dealer rule of, “Don’t get high on your own supply.” That works for pickers too. It is easy to fall in love with items you pick if you pick what you like or collect. Pickers with a “collector” mindset can find it hard to let their picks go. I’m not a collector. But, I do love a good typewriter! Only time will tell if I sell it or keep it 🙂
Here is the run down on “My Pick of the Week”-
Item: Vintage, manual typewriter
Brand: Royal
Model: Quiet De Luxe portable
Year Produced: 1947 per my serial number research
Includes: Original case, manual, and typing tutorial.
Weight: 12 lb 2 oz for the typewriter alone (contrast 13 lb for my Smith-Corona), 16 lb 6 oz in the case.
Color: Black with chrome accents
Interesting notes: As with some old typewriters, there is no “1” key or exclamation point. You just use the lowercase “L” for the 1 and make the exclamation point by hitting period, then backspacing and hitting shift/8 for the apostrophe. Together, that produces the exclamation point. It is a very solid machine has a fairly light touch with the “touch control” adjusted down. The black knobs on the ends of the carriage are very well made. On my son’s Hermes Media 3, those knobs are made of very weak plastic. On this Royal, they seem bullet-proof. The manual is simple and covers just what you need.
If you have never used an old typewriter, it can be a unique typing experience compared to modern computers. If you are a writer, utilizing a typewriter can have an interesting impact on your process and unlock new creativity. In either case, I suggest you take an old typewriter for a spin sometime. For more information on vintage typewriters, this is a great website:
http://typewriterdatabase.com/
See below for more pics of my new Royal! I have included full pictures of the manual that you can magnify if you have the same unit and want to find out something about your own machine functions 🙂
Type from a 1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe Typewriter- (old ribbon) -by Luke Austin Daugherty
1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe Typewriter- by Luke Austin Daugherty
1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe Typewriter- by Luke Austin Daugherty
1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe Typewriter- by Luke Austin Daugherty
1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe Typewriter Manual- by Luke Austin Daugherty
1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe Typewriter manual- by Luke Austin Daugherty
1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe Typewriter Ribbon Change Instructions/Manual- by Luke Austin Daugherty
1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe Typewriter Manual/Function sheet- by Luke Austin Daugherty
1947 Royal Quiet DeLuxe Typewriter Manual Sheet- pic by Luke Austin Daugherty
Luke Austin Daugherty 
hey dude,
i have the exact same model. I can not get the ribbon advance to work. please help me out, i don’t think i can take it to a shop for help. i am in Detroit, if anyone knows of a shop let me know. please disregard Detroit=post apocalyptic .
thanks
Hello, I had a little trouble with the advance on this one after buying it. It actually has a switch that allows you to reverse the direction of the feed when it runs out going one direction. I just played around the the feed a bit and it started working properly. Though, it doesn’t advance with every single key strike. It moves forward a bit every few strikes. You might try typing a bit with the cover up to see if it is moving at all. Also, the links to the typewriter sites in the blog may help you out. Thanks! -Luke
I’m considering buying a Royal Quiet DeLuxe that I just saw at a thrift shop today. However, Im not sure what kind of ribbon to get (the ribbon in the typewriter is all dry so I have to get a new one). What kind of ribbon do you use for your Royal, and where do you buy it?
Hello, most older manuals use the same standard type ribbon. You can get black or black and red. Also, you can get singles, double, or triple packs, etc. I always grab multi-packs on ebay. Here is what you’d be looking for. Thanks! http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-PK-Super-Saver-Royal-Quiet-Deluxe-Portable-Black-and-Red-Typewriter-Ribbon-/121549958461?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1c4cf12d3d
The ribbon does not go up when the key is used. Any suggestions. Great view of the manual. Very interesting.
That little “thingy” that the ribbon runs through and is up against the roller may be stuck. You might work that up and down a bit to see if it frees up. If that is the problem, you can lubricate with some graphite lube. Or, the little link that goes to actuate it may be loose, stuck, or broken. Thanks for reading!
Great write up, thanks for this! I purchased a 1947 Quiet Deluxe (thought it was a 48′ for a few days because of the serial number…it was made in early 48′ but is the 47′ model). My ribbon advance also gives me problems! The ribbon shift only ‘clicks in’ on the left side about half the time, and never on the right side. I use a rubber band to tie it over on the left to the rubber foot, and on the right side to the Tab. This helps for the left side 100% but the right side is still hit or miss….I have to type with the cover up at times to make sure things are advancing.
I had a Sears Newport for a while that had an advance problem as well. I always just popped the top off when typing as well to make sure things were moving correctly.
I just bought this typewriter for my best friend for Christmas. I love it! I have been playing around with it and am realizing how fun typewriters are! I realized that you posted this blog a year ago, but when I searched info for it your blog popped up. Thanks for posting, it was very helpful!
You’re welcome. That is a great machine and an inspiring writing tool 🙂 I need to do write ups on a couple other manuals that I have in my own collection.
Thank you for posting this! It helps me so much! A problem I do have is that when I type, sometimes it skips a space as I type words or letters. So for example I will write, the dogs ran home. It will type th e dogs r an home. Or the dogs ran h ome. Do you or anyone here know how this can be fixed? E mail me at grkike@aol.com Thank you!
The ’47 Royal Quiet DeLuxe is a great typewriter and this model was a favorite of Ernest Hemingway’s, although he used many different typewriters over the years. Nice job highlighting this magnificent machine.