I headed to a nearby suburb a couple weeks ago to pick up a Hermes Baby with a carriage bail issue. Owned by local typewriter enthusiast Suzanne, the Baby needed a spring replaced in a procedure that sounded much more complicated than I would have thought. Replacement involved something about special tools and torsion springs. 😬

On my way out the door after picking up the Baby, I asked Suzanne if she had any other problem children, and she showed me a Royal KMG in the trunk of her car. The KMG had been her grandfather’s, and Suzanne had become the custodian for it after her cousin died.  The KMG is named “Larry”,  after her grandfather.

The KMG had some kind of serious issue that caused the carriage to stall on typing. On carriage return, there was a noticeable roughness and grinding. Another local typewriter buff Ross had taken a look at the KMG and posted about it in the FB Antique Typewriter Maintenance group. He had come away with some very important insights, but the KMG remained dysfunctional. I told Suzanne I’d take a crack at it.

Suzanne and I got the massive machine out of her trunk, and I brought it home to my garage.

It’s a 1949 by serial number KMG – 4053408

The KMG is very similar to the KMM, but it’s gray. The color is “Gray Frieze”—I have heard that the “G” in KMG stands for “Gray”.

So the KMG was stalling during typing and returning roughly. Ross had removed the platen and taken a couple videos of what was happening underneath the carriage. Here are my edited versions of his videos that he had posted in the FB group:

 

And here is the KMG on carriage return. It had a rough, grindy feel. Truly painful:

Ross posted on the FB Typewriter Maintenance group about this KMG, and Lucas Dul of Typewriter Chicago observed that the tab brake gear should not be engaged in normal operation.

The tabulator brake gear assembly (A.K.A. Tabulator Governor Pinion Brake) slows the roll of the carriage during tabbing and is seen on Royal standards after about serial number 2,462,654.

Here is a good video of a Royal KMM of what should be happening during typing. Notice how the tab brake gear is not engaged during normal operation:

I read through Ross’ post a couple times and thought over Lucas Dul’s observation before setting to work. I hoped that it was just a case of gummy parts preventing normal operation, so I started with cleaning and lubrication.

I removed the cover plates and platen. I wish I had seen this Phoenix Typewriter video before dismantling because Duane removes fewer screws:

Removing the platen on a Royal KMG is super easy and requires no tools. Unlike a KMM, you do not need to remove set screws and platen knobs on a KMG. Just pop open the cover on the right end of the platen to expose the neck. Know that it can be stiff and sticky.

And then lift your platen out. Easy-peasy.

The carriage release levers on both sides felt dead and limp—they didn’t spring up. I cleaned with mineral spirits and lubricated all the pivot points for the carriage rack with Tri-Flow. That woke the carriage release levers, and they began to spring properly.

That still didn’t fix the carriage stalling and grinding. I then proceeded to cleaning and lubricating the tab system with no success. I started to get the sneaky suspicion that the KMG had something bent/damaged in the tab system. It had been shipped across the country to Suzanne and had perhaps either landed on its back or taken a hit to the back. The cover plate that protects the back tab system tower had a screw head sheared off as if by great force. Suzanne had found the screw head buried underneath the platen. With the tabulator cover off, I considered the possibility that the mechanism was mashed.

I more I worked with it, the more convinced I became that there was something smooshed in back. The machine wasn’t completely setting and clearing tabs.

I finally decided to go with the nuclear option and disable the tabulator braking system. I disengaged the tabulator brake gear by removing this spring highlighted in yellow:

Once the spring was removed, the brake gear slumped down out of the way and no longer engaged the carriage rack. No more stalling. No more grinding. Just sweet Royal standard typing. No more tab braking, but that’s a trade-off I can live with.

IMHO, having a functional tabulator on a typewriter is not mission-critical. Disabling the tab brake in this case turned a nonfunctional typewriter into a typewriter that types like a Royal standard should.

If I had a comparison machine like a KMM or another KMG, I think I could straighten out whatever was bent in the tab tower and enable tabbing again. However, without the comparison machine, I did not want to mess in back since margin system parts are in there.

To return the KMG to almost complete functionality, I installed a type bar link that was missing on the */- key. Since I didn’t have a Royal standard link, I made it out of a paper clip:

The original type bar links are made out of stiff, strong steel which is almost impossible to bend. The paper clip is easy to bend and durable enough for a key that doesn’t get much use (*/-)

If you are working to reattach an original type bar link, you may want to watch the following video. In it, Duane chases the segment wire to free the type bar for link attachment.

The KMG is a great typer now. I really could not have made it operational without Ross’ post on the FB Antique Typewriter Maintenance group and Lucas Dul’s observation. My fix is “good enough”, and this is now a very fine typing machine.

I was thoroughly distracted by this KMG last week when I was supposed to be packing for trips. I have two family weddings on two weekends in a row. My daughter-in-law sent me Joan Didion’s packing list for inspiration. I smacked my forehead. I had forgotten to pack cigarettes, bourbon, and a typewriter:

“This is a list which was taped inside my closet door in Hollywood during those years when I was reporting more or less steadily. The list enabled me to pack, without thinking, for any piece I was likely to do. Notice the deliberate anonymity of costume: in a skirt, a leotard, and stockings, I could pass on either side of the culture. Notice the mohair throw for trunk-line flights (i.e. no blankets) and for the motel room in which the air conditioning could not be turned off. Notice the bourbon for the same motel room. Notice the typewriter for the airport, coming home: the idea was to turn in the Hertz car, check in, find an empty bench, and start typing the day’s notes.”

Joan Didion, The White Album

Here’s Joan Didion and her KMG circa 1972. It’s from Jill Kementz Photo Journal: Beds and Their Bedfellows:

The KMG dominates the picture and demands words. The author really has no choice but to obey the KMG.