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Home » Underwood » Universal » 1938 #F1193253
1938 Underwood Universal Serial # F1193253 1938 Underwood Universal typewriter, Serial # F1193253 Brent Wegher's 1938 Underwood Universal typewriter. 2026-07-14 From the Virtual Typewriter Collection of Brent Wegher: 1938 Underwood Universal Serial # F1193253 Local auction. Came with handwritten note dated 2003 stating typewriter was inherited from the original purchaser.
Looked like it had been stored inside carry case, but still lots of very fine dust everywhere, and case exterior lots of dings and scratches.
Latch and hinges fine, no signs of being dropped. Weight with case 15 pounds.
Machine mostly functional, but stuck ribbon, and every typebar sluggish, but otherwise no damage.
Carriage moves fine. Space bar works
Cleaned up well, turns out the shell paint was almost perfect, and no signs of rust or wear anywhere.
Flushed segment with solvent. Now every key working well. Segment sharp and shiny looking.
Also took time to touch up vibrator and ribbon drive gears. OK now.
Elite type with "UE" cast into slugs.
Platen hard but smooth, rollers have flat spots but not bad, paper feeds fine.
Measured platen width at exactly 9 inches
Bail moves well. Bail rollers with minor flat spots but working OK.
Return functions, bell and margin setting good. Back space and margin release good.
Extra cleaning shows remarkable condition, no sign of previous repair.
All machine screws that I can see look like new.
Typing like new now, good alignment. Carriage shift fine, shifts sound clunky.
Try to get photos in daylight to show paint with good color.
Added photo of serial number

1938 Underwood Universal #F1193253

Status: My Collection
Hunter: Brent Wegher (bwegher)
Created: 07-12-2026 at 04:13PM
Last Edit: 07-14-2026 at 09:29AM

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Description:

Local auction. Came with handwritten note dated 2003 stating typewriter was inherited from the original purchaser.
Looked like it had been stored inside carry case, but still lots of very fine dust everywhere, and case exterior lots of dings and scratches.
Latch and hinges fine, no signs of being dropped. Weight with case 15 pounds.
Machine mostly functional, but stuck ribbon, and every typebar sluggish, but otherwise no damage.
Carriage moves fine. Space bar works
Cleaned up well, turns out the shell paint was almost perfect, and no signs of rust or wear anywhere.
Flushed segment with solvent. Now every key working well. Segment sharp and shiny looking.
Also took time to touch up vibrator and ribbon drive gears. OK now.
Elite type with "UE" cast into slugs.
Platen hard but smooth, rollers have flat spots but not bad, paper feeds fine.
Measured platen width at exactly 9 inches
Bail moves well. Bail rollers with minor flat spots but working OK.
Return functions, bell and margin setting good. Back space and margin release good.
Extra cleaning shows remarkable condition, no sign of previous repair.
All machine screws that I can see look like new.
Typing like new now, good alignment. Carriage shift fine, shifts sound clunky.
Try to get photos in daylight to show paint with good color.
Added photo of serial number

Typeface Specimen:

Photos:
















Hunter: Brent Wegher (bwegher)

Brent Wegher's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]

Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 1521

Retired to the quiet of rural Nebraska to contemplate nature.
Typing down thoughts, prefer that to handwriting.
Not really a collector, just like to tinker on mechanical things.


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