You just picked up a dusty, but somewhat functional Olympia SM3 and you know that you need to replace the rubber body bushings to prevent your carriage from hitting the body panels and scratching the paint job. The problem is that you've got a lovely new-to-you typewriter in front of you, and you don't have the patience to not type on it until you've done this easy repair.
I've never seen it mentioned anywhere, but I've got a quick, temporary solution that'll get you typing in just a few minutes. (Incidentally squished, old rubber bushings is the number one issue with vintage Olympia SM3s, and if you've not come across it, I've written out the details for a permanent repair/replacement solution.)
One can remove the two front smashed bushings near the space bar on either side and pair/stack them up with the two smashed bushings in the rear. It may take a bit of removing some of the "proud" protrusions to smooth the bushing pairings, but it'll work. In my case, I used an X-acto knife (though a pair of scissors might also suffice) to slim down portions of the bushings that were sticking out. This also helped to keep the bushing combination from being too tall and not allowing me to get the shoulder bolt back into the machine.
The one issue you may encounter with this solution is potentially while typing with the shift lock engaged. This is because the front bushings help provide the proper clearance for the space bar while the shift lock is enabled. Typically one doesn't type in all caps, so you might not notice this subtle issue at all.
Another possible solution depending on your particular machine is to swap the front bushings with the back ones as the rear ones typically carry more weight and are more squished than those in the front. Your mileage may vary based on your particular machine.
If nothing else, hopefully either the swap or the stack hack will help get you typing right away while you wait to pick up some replacement bushings from the local hardware store.
Good luck and happy typing.
The one issue you may encounter with this solution is potentially while typing with the shift lock engaged. This is because the front bushings help provide the proper clearance for the space bar while the shift lock is enabled. Typically one doesn't type in all caps, so you might not notice this subtle issue at all.
Another possible solution depending on your particular machine is to swap the front bushings with the back ones as the rear ones typically carry more weight and are more squished than those in the front. Your mileage may vary based on your particular machine.
If nothing else, hopefully either the swap or the stack hack will help get you typing right away while you wait to pick up some replacement bushings from the local hardware store.
Good luck and happy typing.
Today is my blog’s 24th blogiversary!
I started my first (previous) blog on this 220th day of 2002 using static HTML + CSS and one file per (Gregorian) month, with fragment links for specific days, posts within a day, and topics within a post:
https://tantek.com/log/2002/08.html#L20020808
No Javascript. No CMS. No SSG. No GitHub.
Just BBEdit and SFTP.
I’m still using BBEdit with my current blog, and now scp instead of SFTP.
Previously:
* 6th: https://tantek.com/log/2008/08.html#d08t1923
* 5th: https://tantek.com/log/2007/08.html#d08t2359
* 4th: https://tantek.com/log/2006/08.html#d08t2359
* 1st: https://tantek.com/log/2003/08.html#L20030808t2359
This is post 14 of #100PostsOfIndieWeb. #100Posts #indieweb
#blog #blogs #blogiversary #staticHTML #HTMLCSS #NoJS #NoJavascript #NoCMS #NoSSG #NoGitHub #BBEdit #SFTP #SCP
#Blaugust #Blaugust2026
← https://tantek.com/2026/219/t1/open-web-free-content
→ 🔮
I started my first (previous) blog on this 220th day of 2002 using static HTML + CSS and one file per (Gregorian) month, with fragment links for specific days, posts within a day, and topics within a post:
https://tantek.com/log/2002/08.html#L20020808
No Javascript. No CMS. No SSG. No GitHub.
Just BBEdit and SFTP.
I’m still using BBEdit with my current blog, and now scp instead of SFTP.
Previously:
* 6th: https://tantek.com/log/2008/08.html#d08t1923
* 5th: https://tantek.com/log/2007/08.html#d08t2359
* 4th: https://tantek.com/log/2006/08.html#d08t2359
* 1st: https://tantek.com/log/2003/08.html#L20030808t2359
This is post 14 of #100PostsOfIndieWeb. #100Posts #indieweb
#blog #blogs #blogiversary #staticHTML #HTMLCSS #NoJS #NoJavascript #NoCMS #NoSSG #NoGitHub #BBEdit #SFTP #SCP
#Blaugust #Blaugust2026
← https://tantek.com/2026/219/t1/open-web-free-content
→ 🔮
The open web has an amazing amount of free content that is actually free, both freely accessible without payment and free of conditions to access. No tracking cookies needed, no logins needed, no ads needed.
A few examples:
* blogs. my blog, and every other #indieweb blog (with the exception of sites hosted on content services that show ads without the consent of the blogger). Personal blogs are free to read because it’s a hobby and a way of keeping up with family, friends, colleagues, acquaintances, people we’ve met once at a conference, people that inspire us.
* Wikipedia is free, largely donor supported, partly via donation banners.
* Open Street Maps is free, similarly.
* Internet Archive is free, similarly.
* Government sites are free, supported by taxes.
* Public library sites are free, similarly.
* Museum sites are free, supported by their donors, and in-person visit fees.
* University sites are free, supported by endowments and student tuitions.
There is plenty of free content on the open web, sustainably supported by non-toxic and non-surveillance models.
The open web as a whole does not depend on any particular business model.
Previously: https://tantek.com/2010/281/b1/what-is-the-open-web
This is post 13 of #100PostsOfIndieWeb. #100Posts
#openWeb #freeContent #blog #blogs
#Blaugust #Blaugust2026
← https://tantek.com/2026/217/t1/indieweb-ai-policy
→ 🔮
A few examples:
* blogs. my blog, and every other #indieweb blog (with the exception of sites hosted on content services that show ads without the consent of the blogger). Personal blogs are free to read because it’s a hobby and a way of keeping up with family, friends, colleagues, acquaintances, people we’ve met once at a conference, people that inspire us.
* Wikipedia is free, largely donor supported, partly via donation banners.
* Open Street Maps is free, similarly.
* Internet Archive is free, similarly.
* Government sites are free, supported by taxes.
* Public library sites are free, similarly.
* Museum sites are free, supported by their donors, and in-person visit fees.
* University sites are free, supported by endowments and student tuitions.
There is plenty of free content on the open web, sustainably supported by non-toxic and non-surveillance models.
The open web as a whole does not depend on any particular business model.
Previously: https://tantek.com/2010/281/b1/what-is-the-open-web
This is post 13 of #100PostsOfIndieWeb. #100Posts
#openWeb #freeContent #blog #blogs
#Blaugust #Blaugust2026
← https://tantek.com/2026/217/t1/indieweb-ai-policy
→ 🔮
▶️ watched episodes 1-6 of Silo over the past week, most while I was a bit under the weather. Excellent dystopia concept and show. Pausing before watching episode 7, titled “The Flamekeepers”.
#Silo #SiloTV #AppleOriginal #AppleTV
#Blaugust #Blaugust2026
#Silo #SiloTV #AppleOriginal #AppleTV
#Blaugust #Blaugust2026
