Platen Regeneration: Remington Portable #2

A fellow typospherian entrusted this 1925 Remington Portable #2 to me.  It looked pretty good from a distance with nice decals and intact paint, but it had seen some action:

It was dirty:

It had a bunch of bent type bars that stuck up and collided with neighbors:

The worst thing about it was the petrified condition of the platen. It was a tragic platen—cracked, crusty, and crumbling:

And no feet—the rubber must have crumbled away. When I am an old lady and I write my memoirs about being an amateur typewriter repairperson, I am going to title it: Dirt, Drawbands, and Degraded Rubber  since it seems just about every dysfunctional typewriter I come across suffers from at least one of these maladies.

The feed rollers were just as bad as the platen – either they had crumbled off or had turned into hardened sticky squares.  You couldn’t feed a sheet of paper with that platen and those rollers.

But—but—but—as you can see from the picture above, IT TYPED.

OK, Little Friend, I said, let’s see what we can do for you.  Fortified by my recent experience fixing up a friend’s Remington Portable #1, I felt like I was up to the task.

I had several options for the platen:

  • Platen recovering from JJShort
  • Neoprene platen recovering by Steve Dade who does platen recovering on select typewriters – mostly old Corona and Remington portables. [Please note: sadly, Steve Dade passed away in January 2021.  He was a skilled craftsman and a generous sage of the typewriter world and is greatly missed]
  • A PVC Turboplaten from Dean Jones
  • Do-it-yourself platen recovering with heat shrink tubing

There’s a lot of discussion on platen recovering in the Facebook Antique Typewriter Maintenance Group and the optimal hardness of a platen. It shouldn’t be hard as a rock because it will feel and sound terrible and characters will punch through.  However, if it’s too soft, characters will punch through too.  From what I gather from the Facebook group,  a platen should have around a “just-right” Shore 90A hardness.  Here’s an interesting rubber material hardness table at https://mykin.com/rubber-hardness-chart/.  If what I am reading at the Antique Typewriter Maintenance Group is correct, a platen should be between a leather belt and shopping cart wheel in hardness.

In the FB Typewriter Maintenance Group, there are many OPINIONS on the wisdom of using heat shrink tubing for platens, with some frowning upon the method.   I am very open-minded and willing to experiment for the greater good. I am very 🙃.  As Smiley Bone says, “There’s always time for science!”

from Ghost Circles by Jeff Smith. I aspire to Smiley Bone’s level of silly niceness.

So I forged ahead and went the DIY route to see what kind of results I could get with heat shrink tubing.  For a single platen, this is not exactly the budget alternative. I am frequently tinkering with distressed typewriters, so this works for me. I ended up buying 25 ft of heat shrink tubing, a heat gun, and a Type A rubber durometer (Because Science).

I found an inspirational and very helpful platen recovering Instructable from Knife141. Knife141 also has an Instructable on efficient ironing. He’s kind of a Renaissance Dude.

There is also a good post from Ted Munk about adding a single layer of heat shrink to the existing rubber layer of a hard platen.  This Remington’s platen is just too far gone—a complete strip down and multiple layers would be required.

I started out by removing the platen.  The Remington Portable #2 has a screw on the end of the right platen knob.  It has a very thin, wide slot so I had to grind down a screwdriver head to fit it.

I popped the platen out and continued onto the feed rollers.  There are a total of eight feed rollers: four small in front and four larger in the rear.  The easiest way to get them out is to remove the paper tray. Backspace Does Not Erase has a terrific post on removing the paper tray from a Remington Portable #2 which was very helpful to me.

I flipped the typewriter over (with the typebars down) and tapped out the small knurled rods on each side that held the paper tray in place, pulling them out with needle nose pliers once the knurled ends were visible.

The paper tray lifted out in pieces and it was very dirty under there.

I took lots of pictures which were very helpful when I was reassembling.  The front feed rollers sit on rods in a thin, springy piece of metal that lies under the paper tray. This piece is very easily bent and is wedged under a center rod on the carriage

I then started work on the platen.  I measured the diameter of the cracked platen in several places and found it to be between 1.123 and 1.149 inches in diameter, right around 1 ⅛”.

Removing the cracked rubber covering with a utility knife and a screw driver, I found one end secured with a tiny brad. After removing the brad and doing some careful prying, I was able to skin the platen like a banana since the rubber had a fabric backing.  The core was a soft, rough wood which I sanded down a little.

I bought 25ft of commercial grade polyolefin heat shrink tubing, 3:1 Heat Shrink Tubing (Pre Shrink OD:1-1/2″ 25Ft, Black). I chose the heat shrink tubing without adhesive because I wanted to be able to remove it easily if it didn’t work out.

I cut the tubing a little longer than the platen core:

I had to remove the ratchet thingy at the end of the platen so that I had a uniform tube to work with.  I hate dealing with rusty screws and teeny parts that can get lost, but I was worried that the shrink tubing would split around this shape.

I used a heat gun and applied five layers of shrink tubing, one layer at a time, rolling between layers to keep the cylinder smooth and consistent in size..

Tip: start at one end of the platen and move your heat shrinking along lengthwise.  On one early layer I just did a generalized back and forth with the heat gun and I got air bubbles.  These eventually flattened but I could have avoided this if I had worked along the length of the platen

After I applied five consecutive layers of heat shrink tubing and reached an outer diameter of 1 ⅛ inches, I trimmed the ends with a very sharp utility knife:

I made new feed rollers with small size heat shrink tubing.  I tried to use fuel line tubing for the rear rollers.  Though that worked great on the Remington Portable #1, the outer diameter of the fuel line tubing was (weirdly) too large for the #2 and the rear rollers wouldn’t spin freely.

While I was re-inserting the platen, a piece from the ratcheting section by the left carriage return fell out.  Oh no. I should have secured those pieces with tape or rubber bands as RobertG. recommends.

I was so glad that I had this photo from the dirty dismantling process that I could refer to while I tried to figure out where the little spring wires go:

I finally got it all back together and re-inserted the platen. I straightened out the bent typebars and key levers with needle nose pliers and carefully cleaned the mechanical parts with mineral spirits, Q-tips, and love. My air compressor was very useful for blowing away greasy chunks.

The typewriter was looking pretty swell and typing nicely.

So what does my $30.00 durometer read? The new polyolefin platen has a hardness reading of just about Shore 90A – 95A—right there between a leather belt and shopping cart wheel:

For comparison, my Torpedo with a rock-hard platen that sounds like a machine gun reads about Shore 98A and the buttery soft platen of Blue Boy the Silent-Super reads just Shore 90A.

The results of the heat shrink seem pretty good to me, but to really put this platen through its paces, I needed typewriter feet.  This one came with no feet.  They must have crumbled off at some time in the distant past. The low-slung, exposed guts under the machine were dragging on the table without feet.

For feet, I had some options:

I decided to order feet from Steve Dade.  I found Steve’s contact information at Richard Polt’s Classic Typewriter Page and dropped him a line via email.

Steve promptly replied and sent me a set of beautiful feet. He offers a very affordable complete rubber package for the Remington Portable #2 (platen, feet, feed rollers), but I ordered just the feet.  I am very happy with my heat shrink platen and feed rollers right now, but I may change my mind.

The beauty of the invoice that came with the feet is killing me.

Ah yes, this is the life.  The feet grip the table nicely – no slipping. The feet raise the body off the table so there’s no funny business with mechanics dragging.

Regarding my heat shrink platen, it may be too hard. The periods and commas sort of punch through.  My durometer registers Shore 95A in places.  Overall, I am pleased.  The imprint is dark and nicely consistent, and the sound is not overly loud.  I think this platen recovering experiment is about 95% perfect.  It is a vast improvement over the cracked and unusable platen I started with.

What a nice project.  I spent several pleasant evenings listening to music, scrubbing the old guts and the type and key tops, and thinking my thoughts. So old is this one. Typists who used this typewriter in its prime are all gone. There seems to be no one out there who can tell me what this key means. Those that knew took that mystery with them when they shuffled off this mortal coil:

The season here is just beginning to turn.  The air carries a faint but distinct chill. I went to a funeral last week and that, coupled with the  shortening and darkening days, cause my thoughts turn to What It All Means. Perhaps it’s this: life is short and we need to appreciate its fleeting beauty, gentle pleasures, and small mysteries.  There’s so much joy in life and regeneration—typewriter-related and otherwise—and it’s good to consciously savor and actively participate while we can.

 

32 thoughts on “Platen Regeneration: Remington Portable #2”

  2. Congratulations on your great work.
    I never used more than one layer of heat shrink over a hard platen.
    several of my typewriters sit on feet from Steve Dade. He does excellent work.

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  3. Lovely and intelligent job on a tricky typewriter that really needed TLC.

    Ping A. also has a Remington with the “ST” symbol. Peter Stuart’s theory is that it stands for the Shanghai tael, an old Chinese monetary unit.

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    • The Shanghai tael seems the likeliest meaning of this symbol given the £ and $ also on the typewriter. Nice to know that this typewriter has seen a bit of the world.

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    • Chris says:

      The Potosi Mint Mark Theory
      Adherents of this theory also believe that the source of the dollar sign is to be found in the Spanish peso but they would attribute it specifically to coins minted in Potosi which was, as mentioned above, the world’s richest source of silver. The mint mark of the Potosi mint evolved to become a monogrammed PTSI with all those letters completely superimposed so that the symbol looked like an S wrapped around a T. The resemblance to the dollar sign can be seen from the images of the Potosi Pillar Dollars. Click on the image for a larger picture. The mint mark is near the date.
      Roy Davies – Last updated 30 September 2019.
      Thank you everyone who offered suggestions forthe “T” with superimposed “s”. I am unsure why this particular item has had me in a “poundery”, however; after many weeks of searching; I am finally able to say that the “T””s” symbol on the typewriter is from the Potosi Pillar Dollars.

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  5. Nick Merritt says:

    Mary, you are absolutely fearless. Wonderful work here. The piece that fell off the end of the end of the platen would have freaked me out. And that Shanghai tael character — I learned something today!

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  6. Chris Rust says:

    Please tell us: Were you able to find the “T & S” symbol was? I have an impression in the upper left corner of my mind; I have seen it—however it has not come yet. I have checked history of fonts, type setts, and etc and nothing has come up.

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  7. oh, wow – I would not have guessed that multiple shrink layers would render such a nice result and perfect hardness. Altogether excellent work! Had I known, I might have done the Deep Breather’s platen that way – but then I do feel good about tossing some business at JJ Short every year or two. I will certainly keep it in mind for the future, though. (and I’ll need to get another heat gun, as mine went with all the press stuff when we sold off the Press Room.)

    Clever, getting a durometer too. I may need to get one also to at least finally get a sense of what a single layer of shrink tube durometers out to.. it’s gotta be less than 90A for sure, as it is certainly much softer than my JJ Short recovered ones…

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    • Five layers of polyolefin 3:1 heat shrink on that size platen seem to produce a platen that is almost the right hardness. It may be a little too hard. I am using a relatively inexpensive durometer and there may be an element of operator error in its use since I haven’t been trained in durometer use. I think it’s a very usable replacement though and much better than the cracked and crumbly platen. I am going to Herman’s next week and will ask discriminating collectors what they think of the typing experience on the recovered platen.

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  8. Trenton Jennings says:

    Good to see your post. I was worried about your long absence.

    Good job on the restoration!

    If you ever want to restore glass keys such as this one with deteriorated key labels get yourself an EK Tool 1/2 in. circle punch and learn how to use Inkscape for the font. I have been able to find same or very similar font with maybe just a few characters to modify. I use dental tools to remove the rings, and I bend the tabs only about 45 deg. when I reinstall to avoid metal fatigue. Sometimes I enjoy a lovely pastel paper instead of the stock business-like white or black background. I’m thinking of someday making a ring die, but that remains a velleity.

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    • On the road a lot this past summer so I haven’t had much of a chance to do typewriter tinkering. I am actually on the road as I type.

      At Herman’s typewriter meeting in June I saw a presenter demonstrate the use of a key top removal and replacement tool. The tool removes the ring and glass without any sort of damage. I would love to find one of those but they are much sought after and hard to find. I often come across keys that have darkened, damaged legends and are very hard to read.

      I actually kind of love the yellow key tops of this Remington- and the punches of beautiful orange. This typewriter also has a key with an unusual character (the ST key), so I will probably keep it as-is since everything is very readable.

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  9. My admiration for your adventurous practicality just grows and grows! Brilliant job on your Remington. Re: “I made new feed rollers with small size heat shrink tubing. I tried to use fuel line tubing for the rear rollers…”, I have occasionally managed to get good results using the outer sleeve of standard household electrical cable. Here in Europe we have, for example, 230v mains electricity cable (consisting of three-core live.neutral and earth with the copper interior of either 2.5mm or 1.5mm) the ‘rubber’ outer sleeve of which just happens to provide a nice fit for some Seidal & Naumann Erikas and the Hermes 3000. I expect your tubing is often better but the cable sleeve solution can sometimes be helpful! Best as ever – Christopher

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    • Thank you for your kind words, but I move forward only because of adventurous typosherians before me who have carefully documented their experiences.

      Thank you also for the cable sleeve tip – I hadn’t thought to use something like that.

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  10. MrLarry says:

    I’m glad I got to see this. I need to try it. I’ve got an identical (55) Quiet Tab Deluxe that has an extremely hard platen. I’ll experiment with an easy one first. Thank you!

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    • I had problems removing the platen from my Quiet Tab De Luxe because of the weird platen screw which appears to require a 4-spline bristol wrench (which I don’t have) for removal. Other people have had success removing that type of screw with Phillips head screwdrivers or Allen wrenches – but not me.

      I plan to do platen recovering with the heat shrink only on split or otherwise unusable platens. I brought home a 1923 Underwood 5 with a completely split platen from Herman’s which will be the perfect candidate.

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  11. Mark Irving says:

    A most timely article! Last month I acquired my grandparents’ Remington Portable #2, which had been sitting untouched in an attic for 34 years. Its platen is all right but the feed rollers were badly decayed, misshapen and hardened. Your description, pictures and reference showed me where to look and how to extract the hinge pins to get at the rollers. (Your site was recommended on typewriters@groups.io.) Thank you!

    My renovated Remington front feed rollers use car screen-wash tubing; it proved just the right size, and I had some already. There wasn’t quite as much dirt under my paper tray as in your pictures, but plenty enough.

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  12. GS says:

    The TS sign is actually the erstwhile Chinese currency symbol for “taels”, during the semi-colonism period 1840-1945. I, a native of Shanghai, China, have at least three typewriters from that period that has that sign.

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  13. Type Fan says:

    Steve Dade’s contact information is no longer available on the classic typewriter page you link to. Some internet snooping has led me to believe the gentleman has passed away sometime in 2020. I am not aware of a legacy business at the moment, maybe someone else can chime in?

    Posting this as an FYI to anyone trying to source parts – might save some time and confusion. If you do find contact info, it might be best to leave the family alone.

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    • Sadly Steve Dade passed away in January of this year. He is greatly missed by many in the typewriter community. I will put a notation in my blog post noting this.

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  14. Andrew B says:

    I have just bought my first machine (a Remington Portable #2) and your blog and related links are a fantastic source of practical advice and usefule links. I have started to dismantle parts of the case to clean it thoroughly and discovered that all the paper feed rollers need replacing as well as the usual rubber corner/case mounts. Will keep reading for additional pointers.

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    • Andrew – Congratulations on your Remington Portable. They seem very delicate, but are surprisingly durable, solid typewriters. If only the rubber didn’t disintegrate. I am so glad that my post was helpful. I would have really struggled if not for the other websites I linked to in the post. Good luck!

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      • Abeck says:

        Not going so well withw the roller replacements, can’t seem to get the right diameters to fee through consistently.However, i had a separate question. The spacebar seems to have moved as now, when fully depressed, it hits the stops on the case. It didn’t do that before, i dismanteled it so I’vedisturbed something. It works when it’s out of the metal casing as it has full travel (no stops) but I couldn’t find any links on the height adjustment of the physical spacebar key itself.I could just remove the two stop bars but that seems inelegant. Any ideas or links you have come across?AndrewSent from my Galaxy

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      • So sorry to hear that! You may either need to sand down your feed rollers a little if they are too large or add a a layer of small heat shrink if they seem too small. In the US, most hardware stores sell heat shrink for electrical uses that is a good size for feed rollers.

        The spacebar. Hmm. I didn’t remove my Remington from its casing, so I didn’t have that problem. It sounds like it’s riding low in the case or the spacebar arms got bent down when dismantled. Sometimes when the feet are flattened or gone, the internal mechanics can drag, but that doesn’t sound like what you have there.

        Here is a post from Backspace does not erase (my favorite Remington portable site) which discusses a backspace problem:
        http://badonoer.blogspot.com/2014/10/adjustments-adjustments-adjustments.html

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