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1949 Royal KMG Serial # 4053408 1949 Royal KMG typewriter, Serial # 4053408 Suzanne LaPierre's 1949 Royal KMG typewriter. 2025-06-18 From the Virtual Typewriter Collection of Suzanne LaPierre: 1949 Royal KMG Serial # 4053408 I inherited this KMG from my cousin who, we believe, inherited it from my grandfather, a WW2 vet. The KMGs were painted gray with leftover military paint from WW2. Currently, the carriage sticks a little- I have to nudge it along when it doesn't respond to the space bar. I haven't given it a thorough cleaning yet, so that should help. However, all the keys and parts move freely, so I feel confident about getting it back to full working order soon. The "*" key doesn't work and thus is missing from the typeface sample.

Update: It takes a village to save a typewriter! After cleaning and Magic Margin wrestling, there were still significant problems with the carriage movement. Long story short, members of the local typewriter community helped bring this beast back to life. Ross Landis did some work on it, with advice from Lucas of Typewriter Chicago, and then Mary Echevarria finished the job. Mary found that a screw had been sheared off, probably from a jolt while shipping from my cousin's home in California to me in Virginia. She disabled the tabulator brake gear system and that fixed the carriage stalling and grinding. Now it types nicely, as seen in the newly uploaded type sample. Check out Mary's blog at MyOldTypwewriter.com to read more about how she fixed it: https://myoldtypewriter.com/2025/06/16/good-enough-is-very-fine-royal-kmg-tabulator-issue/

1949 Royal KMG #4053408

Status: My Collection
Hunter: Suzanne LaPierre (BookMouser)
Created: 02-02-2025 at 08:13AM
Last Edit: 06-18-2025 at 06:13AM

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Description:

I inherited this KMG from my cousin who, we believe, inherited it from my grandfather, a WW2 vet. The KMGs were painted gray with leftover military paint from WW2. Currently, the carriage sticks a little- I have to nudge it along when it doesn't respond to the space bar. I haven't given it a thorough cleaning yet, so that should help. However, all the keys and parts move freely, so I feel confident about getting it back to full working order soon. The "*" key doesn't work and thus is missing from the typeface sample.

Update: It takes a village to save a typewriter! After cleaning and Magic Margin wrestling, there were still significant problems with the carriage movement. Long story short, members of the local typewriter community helped bring this beast back to life. Ross Landis did some work on it, with advice from Lucas of Typewriter Chicago, and then Mary Echevarria finished the job. Mary found that a screw had been sheared off, probably from a jolt while shipping from my cousin's home in California to me in Virginia. She disabled the tabulator brake gear system and that fixed the carriage stalling and grinding. Now it types nicely, as seen in the newly uploaded type sample. Check out Mary's blog at MyOldTypwewriter.com to read more about how she fixed it: https://myoldtypewriter.com/2025/06/16/good-enough-is-very-fine-royal-kmg-tabulator-issue/

Typeface Specimen:

Photos:



Photo by Mary Echevarria, after repair.
Photo by Mary Echevarria, after repair.

Hunter: Suzanne LaPierre (BookMouser)

Suzanne LaPierre's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]

Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 222

I am a librarian, artist, writer, and co-author of the book Desegregation in Northern Virginia Libraries (The History Press, 2023). If I'm working on a book or article for publication, I'm on a computer. However, I use my typewriters to create poems, type-doodles, art, and to write snail mail letters. I find the tactile nature of typing on a manual machine soothing and joyful. Each typewriter seems to have a soul and a story. Currently my collection is centered around midcentury models.


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