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1920 Remington Portable Serial # NA00317 1920 Remington Portable typewriter, Serial # NA00317 Brian Decker's 1920 Remington Portable typewriter. 2026-06-06 From the Virtual Typewriter Collection of Brian Decker: 1920 Remington Portable Serial # NA00317 2026-JUN-03 Update. Yesterday, Richard Polt created a gallery for his Remington Portable #NC00109, currently the 3rd earliest known serial number (October 1920), after NC00062 and NC00099.

2026-MAY-30 Update. Power outage here today for 5+ hours. It gave me time to clean this machine a bit and make a new typing sample, as well as some new photos taken outside, which I have posted here. I have had some further email interchanges with Frank Notten. He clarified that he did NOT own a #NA00340; that was a spreadsheet error, and the machine in question was, indeed, the #NA00346 of his 2017 ETC article. Here is a full list of the known serial numbers for 1920 Remington Portables. There have been a couple other sightings or rumors of potential 1920 machines reported, here and there, on eBay and elsewhere; but no serial numbers provided. If you know of a 1920 machine, please post it on TWDB!

1. NC00062 (October 1920). Found by Frank Notten in 2021. Current owner is still Frank Notten. This is still the earliest known serial number for a 4-bank Remington Portable typewriter. Does not have a TWDB gallery.
2. NC00099 (October 1920). Found by Frank Notten on eBay in 2017. Subject machine of his 2017 ETCetera No. 118 article. Sold to Rogerio Santovito in 2018. Does not have a TWDB gallery.
3. NC00109 (October 1920). Found by Richard Polt on eBAy in 2017. Also a subject of Frank Notten's ETCetera No. 118 article. Does not have a TWDB gallery.
4. NA00190 (December 1920). Found by Tony Casillo a long time ago. Sold to Mark Schrad, who is the current owner. Was the earliest known 4-bank Remington Portable until #NC00099 was discovered by Frank Notten. Has two TWDB galleries: one by Tony Casillo, one by Mark Schrad.
5. NA00259 (December 1920). Owned by Mark Adams. Has a TWDB gallery.
6. NA00261 (December 1920). Featured on page 52 of Thomas Russo's book, "Mechanical Typewriters". Presume that Thomas Russo is still the owner. Does not have a TWDB gallery, but is referenced by Mark Adams in his gallery for #NA00259.
7. NA00317 (December 1920). Sold by Robert Smudde on eBay to Brian Decker (current owner). Has a TWDB gallery (this one!).
8. NA00346 (December 1920). Owned by Frank Notten, and featured in his 2017 ETCetera No. 118 article, until he sold it to Nick de Mooij in 2018. Does not have a TWDB gallery.

2026-MAY-27 Update. Richard Polt got me in contact with Frank Notten, author of the ETCetera No. 118 article on early Remington Portables. He mentioned a #NA00340, which he owned but later sold. He wrote that, so far, he has not seen a November 1920 serial number, nor an example with a pre-1920 serial number.

2026-MAY-23 Update. I picked this typewriter up at the USPS on Friday, 5/22/26, and today I created a whole set of images to replace the eBay listing images for the gallery. This machine has a surprise or two. The principal one being that it has foot risers that are welded or glued on, as opposed to pressings that are integral with the body. This is a key feature called out by Frank Notten in his article entitled "The Beginnings of the Remington Portable Typewriter", in ETCetera No. 118 (Fall 2017), as being peculiar to his machine, #NC00099, as compared to #NA00346 and most other early Remington Portable examples. It's notable that the other two 1920 machines in TWDB as of this writing, #NA00190 owned by Mark Schrad, and #NA00259 owned by Mark Adams, both appear to have pressed foot risers as well, rather than separate foot-parts that were welded or glued on. This implies a bit of disarray in the process of changing design details as the factory struggled to ramp up production.

Additionally, #NA00317 has the smaller, less detailed Remington typewriter decal. In this gallery, I have included an image for comparison of the equivalent decal on my #NX13194 (May 1921). Also, #NA00317 has a sharp bend, rather than a gradual one, in the forming of the paper table. Again, I have provided comparison photos from #NX13194. The key attachment springs seem to be the more secure type, per Notten's article in ETCetera No. 118, more similar to #NA00346 than to #NC00099; although it's a bit hard for me to tell from the images labeled (7) and (8) in the article, #NA00317 seems to have more robustly attached springs as per image (8). Finally, unlike Richard Polt's #NC00109, and like every other machine I'm aware of, #NA00317 has just the one serial number, in the usual place.

I have not cleaned the machine, except around the serial number and rear foot welds for visibility to take the images. I basically just installed a good ribbon, fed some paper in, adjusted it (the feed rollers aren't so good), and started typing. Considering all that, it types pretty well. The typeface is pica, as I would expect it to be for most if not all of these early machines.

2026-MAY-16, Gallery Creation. This is the third typewriter I have purchased from the eBay seller "fairfaxoldstuff" since 5/3/26, just a couple weeks ago. He appears to have mostly Remington items. He told me that he's retiring soon, and planning to move away from the Fairfax, VA area where he is currently; so, he's clearing out his collection and other items. He told me that he had a 1920 Remington Portable specimen that he was planning to list, so I have been on the lookout for it. Today, he listed it for $150 "Buy It Now" (again with the same extremely reasonable $12.71 shipping to me), and I grabbed it. These initial images are from the eBay listing. I'll post my own images after it comes to me.

1920 Remington Portable #NA00317

Status: My Collection
Hunter: Brian Decker (bkdecker66)
Created: 05-16-2026 at 09:57AM
Last Edit: 06-06-2026 at 03:13AM

Description Hunter 53 Photos 0 Likes  Find on Ebay #AD  Find on Etsy #AD

Description:

2026-JUN-03 Update. Yesterday, Richard Polt created a gallery for his Remington Portable #NC00109, currently the 3rd earliest known serial number (October 1920), after NC00062 and NC00099.

2026-MAY-30 Update. Power outage here today for 5+ hours. It gave me time to clean this machine a bit and make a new typing sample, as well as some new photos taken outside, which I have posted here. I have had some further email interchanges with Frank Notten. He clarified that he did NOT own a #NA00340; that was a spreadsheet error, and the machine in question was, indeed, the #NA00346 of his 2017 ETC article. Here is a full list of the known serial numbers for 1920 Remington Portables. There have been a couple other sightings or rumors of potential 1920 machines reported, here and there, on eBay and elsewhere; but no serial numbers provided. If you know of a 1920 machine, please post it on TWDB!

1. NC00062 (October 1920). Found by Frank Notten in 2021. Current owner is still Frank Notten. This is still the earliest known serial number for a 4-bank Remington Portable typewriter. Does not have a TWDB gallery.
2. NC00099 (October 1920). Found by Frank Notten on eBay in 2017. Subject machine of his 2017 ETCetera No. 118 article. Sold to Rogerio Santovito in 2018. Does not have a TWDB gallery.
3. NC00109 (October 1920). Found by Richard Polt on eBAy in 2017. Also a subject of Frank Notten's ETCetera No. 118 article. Does not have a TWDB gallery.
4. NA00190 (December 1920). Found by Tony Casillo a long time ago. Sold to Mark Schrad, who is the current owner. Was the earliest known 4-bank Remington Portable until #NC00099 was discovered by Frank Notten. Has two TWDB galleries: one by Tony Casillo, one by Mark Schrad.
5. NA00259 (December 1920). Owned by Mark Adams. Has a TWDB gallery.
6. NA00261 (December 1920). Featured on page 52 of Thomas Russo's book, "Mechanical Typewriters". Presume that Thomas Russo is still the owner. Does not have a TWDB gallery, but is referenced by Mark Adams in his gallery for #NA00259.
7. NA00317 (December 1920). Sold by Robert Smudde on eBay to Brian Decker (current owner). Has a TWDB gallery (this one!).
8. NA00346 (December 1920). Owned by Frank Notten, and featured in his 2017 ETCetera No. 118 article, until he sold it to Nick de Mooij in 2018. Does not have a TWDB gallery.

2026-MAY-27 Update. Richard Polt got me in contact with Frank Notten, author of the ETCetera No. 118 article on early Remington Portables. He mentioned a #NA00340, which he owned but later sold. He wrote that, so far, he has not seen a November 1920 serial number, nor an example with a pre-1920 serial number.

2026-MAY-23 Update. I picked this typewriter up at the USPS on Friday, 5/22/26, and today I created a whole set of images to replace the eBay listing images for the gallery. This machine has a surprise or two. The principal one being that it has foot risers that are welded or glued on, as opposed to pressings that are integral with the body. This is a key feature called out by Frank Notten in his article entitled "The Beginnings of the Remington Portable Typewriter", in ETCetera No. 118 (Fall 2017), as being peculiar to his machine, #NC00099, as compared to #NA00346 and most other early Remington Portable examples. It's notable that the other two 1920 machines in TWDB as of this writing, #NA00190 owned by Mark Schrad, and #NA00259 owned by Mark Adams, both appear to have pressed foot risers as well, rather than separate foot-parts that were welded or glued on. This implies a bit of disarray in the process of changing design details as the factory struggled to ramp up production.

Additionally, #NA00317 has the smaller, less detailed Remington typewriter decal. In this gallery, I have included an image for comparison of the equivalent decal on my #NX13194 (May 1921). Also, #NA00317 has a sharp bend, rather than a gradual one, in the forming of the paper table. Again, I have provided comparison photos from #NX13194. The key attachment springs seem to be the more secure type, per Notten's article in ETCetera No. 118, more similar to #NA00346 than to #NC00099; although it's a bit hard for me to tell from the images labeled (7) and (8) in the article, #NA00317 seems to have more robustly attached springs as per image (8). Finally, unlike Richard Polt's #NC00109, and like every other machine I'm aware of, #NA00317 has just the one serial number, in the usual place.

I have not cleaned the machine, except around the serial number and rear foot welds for visibility to take the images. I basically just installed a good ribbon, fed some paper in, adjusted it (the feed rollers aren't so good), and started typing. Considering all that, it types pretty well. The typeface is pica, as I would expect it to be for most if not all of these early machines.

2026-MAY-16, Gallery Creation. This is the third typewriter I have purchased from the eBay seller "fairfaxoldstuff" since 5/3/26, just a couple weeks ago. He appears to have mostly Remington items. He told me that he's retiring soon, and planning to move away from the Fairfax, VA area where he is currently; so, he's clearing out his collection and other items. He told me that he had a 1920 Remington Portable specimen that he was planning to list, so I have been on the lookout for it. Today, he listed it for $150 "Buy It Now" (again with the same extremely reasonable $12.71 shipping to me), and I grabbed it. These initial images are from the eBay listing. I'll post my own images after it comes to me.

Typeface Specimen:

Links:

Photos:

Front image with typebars extended.
Front image with typebars extended.

Keyboard, left side.
Keyboard, left side.

Typewriter decal, showing an earlier, smaller and simpler version of the image.
Typewriter decal, showing an earlier, smaller and simpler version of the image.

Typewriter decal from #NX13194 (May 1921) for comparison.
Typewriter decal from #NX13194 (May 1921) for comparison.

Left arc of type slugs.
Left arc of type slugs.

Front view of full keyboard, typebars retracted.
Front view of full keyboard, typebars retracted.

Ribbon vibrator detail.
Ribbon vibrator detail.

Type slugs, middle set.
Type slugs, middle set.

Typing sample inserted in machine.
Typing sample inserted in machine.

Typing sample.
Typing sample.

Right side of keyboard.
Right side of keyboard.

Right arc of type slugs.
Right arc of type slugs.

Underside view of keyboard from front.
Underside view of keyboard from front.

Key lever springs.
Key lever springs.

Front left foot riser, bottom view.
Front left foot riser, bottom view.

Left front foot riser, top view of weld point.
Left front foot riser, top view of weld point.

Left front foot riser bowl pressing on #NX13194 (May 1921) for comparison.
Left front foot riser bowl pressing on #NX13194 (May 1921) for comparison.

Right front foot riser, view from underside.
Right front foot riser, view from underside.

Right front foot riser, from top showing weld point.
Right front foot riser, from top showing weld point.

Right front foot riser bowl pressing on #NX13194, for comparison.
Right front foot riser bowl pressing on #NX13194, for comparison.

Aft left foot riser, from underneath.
Aft left foot riser, from underneath.

Aft left foot riser, from top, showing weld point.
Aft left foot riser, from top, showing weld point.

Aft right foot riser, from underneath.
Aft right foot riser, from underneath.

Aft right foot riser, from top, showing weld point and serial number.
Aft right foot riser, from top, showing weld point and serial number.

Serial number detail.
Serial number detail.

Underside rear mechanism.
Underside rear mechanism.

Right forward quadrant view.
Right forward quadrant view.

Right broadside view.
Right broadside view.

Right broadside with typebars extended.
Right broadside with typebars extended.

Right rear quadrant view with typebars extended.
Right rear quadrant view with typebars extended.

Right carriage end detail. Note the sharp bend in the paper table.
Right carriage end detail. Note the sharp bend in the paper table.

Right carriage end view for #NX13194. Note the much more gradual bend in the paper table.
Right carriage end view for #NX13194. Note the much more gradual bend in the paper table.

Rear view with typebars extended.
Rear view with typebars extended.

Left rear quadrant view, with typebars extended.
Left rear quadrant view, with typebars extended.

Left carriage end detail. Note the sharp bend in the paper table.
Left carriage end detail. Note the sharp bend in the paper table.

Left carriage end detail for #NX13194. Note the much more gradual bend in the paper table.
Left carriage end detail for #NX13194. Note the much more gradual bend in the paper table.

Left broadside view.
Left broadside view.

Left broadside with typebars extended.
Left broadside with typebars extended.

Left front quadrant view.
Left front quadrant view.

Left front quadrant with typebars extended.
Left front quadrant with typebars extended.

Case front view. This is a typical case style for these early Remington Portables, until June 1921.
Case front view. This is a typical case style for these early Remington Portables, until June 1921.

Case bottom, showing attachment points for typewriter.
Case bottom, showing attachment points for typewriter.

Front view, taken outside, after cleaning.
Front view, taken outside, after cleaning.

Close view of keyboard, taken outside after cleaning.
Close view of keyboard, taken outside after cleaning.

Left front quarter-view, outside after cleaning.
Left front quarter-view, outside after cleaning.

Top-down view, outside after cleaning.
Top-down view, outside after cleaning.

Typewriter decal, after CAREFUL cleaning.
Typewriter decal, after CAREFUL cleaning.

Ribbon vibrator close-up, after cleaning.
Ribbon vibrator close-up, after cleaning.

Remington Portable decal, after careful cleaning.
Remington Portable decal, after careful cleaning.

Left spool, showing use of a cotter pin on this early specimen.
Left spool, showing use of a cotter pin on this early specimen.

Right spool, showing use of a cotter pin on this early specimen.
Right spool, showing use of a cotter pin on this early specimen.

Oblique left view with typing sample inserted.
Oblique left view with typing sample inserted.

New typing sample close-up.
New typing sample close-up.

Hunter: Brian Decker (bkdecker66)

Brian Decker's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]

Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 2970

My interest in typewriters started in 1997, when I was in graduate school at the University of Georgia. I purchased and read Darryl Rehr's book, joined ETC, and started reaching out to known collectors. I had several email interchanges with Richard Polt dating from that period. I also bought some of my first machines from Bob Aubert, and visited him at his home twice. After marriage and relocation to New England, I continued visiting antique shops and eBay, until other priorities put my typewriter hobby on hiatus around 2008.

In late 2024, I started up again, working on my machines and having some of them serviced professionally by New England Typewriter (NET) LLC (Merrimack, NH), until they closed their doors in December of 2025. Since mid-2025, I have been adding to my collection again, first with a Hermes 3000 purchase from NET, then with various auctions and purchases on eBay, when I find something that catches my eye.


RESEARCH NOTE: When researching the Remington Portable on a computer with lots of screen real estate, you may find that launching the Remington Serial Number page and the Remington Portable By Model/Year/Serial page in new browser windows can give you interesting perspectives on changes throughout the model series.

Typewriter Hunter Merch!