1963 Hermes 3000
This Hermes 3000 from 1963 was actually my second purchase of a Hermes with Pica typeface. What I didn’t notice until after I sold this is that this one has the Director Pica, which has some very cool subtle differences from the standard Pica. I intended for this to replace my ‘62 3000. The keys on this one are so much shinier than the ‘62. And the margin indicator ribbon is redder. My ‘62 also had a paper bale gauge that was so yellow you couldn’t see the ribbon through it! I figured I’d take the best bits from both machines and turn this one into my “ultimate Hermes”.
Well, as I started thinking about selling one of these machines, I decided that it would actually be easier to sell the “better” one, and I don’t mind the quirks on my ‘62. My only bit of seller’s remorse is that I was so focused on the functionality and condition of these machines that I totally spaced the difference in typeface. It wasn’t until I sold this machine and started using the other one that I suddenly realized I was missing something. Check out my typeface sample below. The Director Pica is really cool!
This ‘63 didn’t arrive in perfect condition. I did fix a couple of things, which I’ll show below…
As had been the case with my ‘62, the margin indicator ribbon was broken. But this one at least had a fully functioning spring. I just needed to re-attach one side of the ribbon in back and re-thread it a bit.
Technically, it doesn’t line up perfectly on the right side now, as the ribbon is about 3/8ths of an inch shorter due to having snapped off near the attachment. But the left side is right on, and the right side is close enough.
In this picture, you can see the piece that holds the ribbon in place, attached with the screw to the left of my pick. You can make some adjustments on the ribbon indicator placement within the paper bale by moving the connector back and forth on that screw. There is one of these on each side. You need to move the back panel with the pop-up paper holders to get to this stuff.
The paper holders were completely bent out of shape on this machine. One of the screws had fallen off, and those “fingers” fell down into the back panel a bit. The previous owner then just closed the case down on the partially exposed fingers and bent them in places they weren’t meant to be bent.
I tried to gently re-form them and one snapped off. Argh! I did end up finding somebody with a parts machine, though, and bought their entire pristine condition back panel with perfect paper fingers. Problem solved (if a little expensive at $30 + shipping)!
Type Sample
Image Gallery
Video Demonstration
I did a more extensive demonstration for this one, to share with the person I sold it to. This shows all of the features in action.
Unpacking Instructions
I created an additional 5 minute video for my sale of this typewriter. Here, I show how to unpack the typewriter from the case and re-engage the carriage, which I zip-tied down ala the Typewriter Justice method.