26W16. Never trust a typewriter you can’t throw out a window

I enjoy repairing typewriters, but the Olivetti Lettera 36 tested my patience. It’s what’s commonly referred to as an “electric typewriter”, but should really be called an “electro-mechanical typewriter”. From the outside, it looks like a mechanical typewriter, down to the type bars and ribbon. From the inside, it’s another story entirely.Mechanical typewriters are wonderful machines that are entirely powered by your fingers. When you strike a key, your energy is transmitted through a carefully designed set of levers and springs, and the type bar strikes the paper. If you strike too hard, you might tear up the paper. If you strike too soft, you’ll get only a faint impression.At the same time, the heel of the type bar touches the universal bar, which trips the escapement rocker. The loose dog is pushed away from the star-wheel tooth, the carriage moves exactly one space to the left, and through another ingenious set of linkages, the ribbon feed rotates to expose a fresh portion of…