Short answer: No.
Medium answer: The Epoch is a recently manufactured manual portable typewriter that you can currently (March 2017) find for sale, new, from around $150 to $250. That is viewed as an expensive price by most buyers, yet assembly of a manual typewriter is a complex and labor-intensive process, so the profit margin for the manufacturer is necessarily small. The Chinese factory must be trying hard, too hard, to maximize that margin, because quality control is just not there. If you are lucky and get an Epoch that is basically in good shape, and if you are mechanically handy in case something needs fixing, then this model is not a bad choice if newness is important to you. It has a lot of features, and it will type, but it isn’t very precise or durable. If you don’t care about getting a new machine and just want quality, a well-preserved typewriter made in the 1950s or 1960s is likely to be better. I offer many suggestions in my book The Typewriter Revolution.
Long answer: OK, let’s give the Epoch its due: it is a good-looking typewriter. Some thought went into its styling, which is more or less contemporary and has some subtle lines. It’s only when you look more closely that you see rough edges in the plastic and slipshod manufacturing practices. …
The angled “wedge” shape is reminiscent of some electronic typewriters, while the black color is more typical of classic prewar machines. The back panel of the carriage is metal, by the way, but all other parts of the shell are plastic.
Yes, it’s a good piece of industrial design, visually speaking.
This typewriter has previously been sold under the names Olympia and Rover. The same mechanical design was introduced in 2016 as the W R Memory Keepers Typecast Typewriter, currently for sale by Michaels for $199.99. You can read Nick T’s review of that machine here. (Spoiler alert: he returned the typewriter.)
One seller of the Epoch warns buyers that it is “simple, basic” and “not in any way” like an electric or electronic typewriter. This vendor suggests that it can be used for filling out forms, labels, and envelopes, amusing children, or sitting on a shelf as a conversation piece. No refunds!
The twenty-first century deserves better. If the Epoch were built with more quality and care—and, no doubt, sold at a higher price—it could be an impressive machine. When will someone take the plunge and create an excellent manual typewriter for our age?
A novelist using an Epoch is featured in Modern Family ("Crazy Train", Season 7 Episode 21 http://abc.go.com/shows/modern-family/video/pl5520993/VDKA0_a7154hwb)
Yeah, poor things. you feel sorry for them almost, until you try one. /:
I think it was the Davis brothers that figured out they were IMCs:
http://davistypewriters.blogspot.com/2013/11/2013-new-model-typewriter.html
Thanks, I will add a link to their post.
Thanks! An unlikely scenario.
Hyperlink, for those interested. The scene plays after an ad.
A reader writes:
Reminds me of back in the '70's when a tech, talking about the Teleype Model 33, said "it's a bendadjust machine." When I said "what?", he replied, "You bend the parts to adjust the machine." And I have a tip for you: with that mixture of plastic and metal parts, if you have to secure a plastic gear to a metal shaft to keep it from turning, I use a hot glue gun. It adheres to both plastic and metal. In fact, it might work as a temporary fix for that "E" slug that is misaligned. Of course, you will have to desolder it first.
As far as a good, cheap working typewriter, it is hard to beat a thrift store Brother Daisy Wheel….with enough memory to do serious word processing. I love it when I want to make about 10 labels. But at 88 my typing has gotten pretty sloppy, and it is easy for me to edit and correct my mistakes without having to retype the entire letter.
It has the same look and quality as machines made in the 1980's. Cheap plastic and they don't stand up to use. You're better off getting a vintage Smith Corona or Royal from the late 60's. These machines still have some metal and will last forever if they are maintained.
I have played with the Olympia version, and it was better than the Roytype and "Olivetti" Chinese machines I have. It was probably also better than the Epoch because there did seem to be good quality control.
It's strange that these are the typewriters which lasted, even with the Olivetti Lettera 32 and Olympia SM9 being made as late as they were. Sort of makes you wonder how bad a Chinese made SM9 or L32 might be…
Doubt I'd ever have any of the Chinese typewriters. The knob collar screw looks like it could be a metric hex head set screw. As far as soldering the slug I saw a video before I started my trip of how to make a jig to attach type slugs. At minimum I'd think you'd need a plumber's torch with a fine tip like a jeweler uses to get the type bar and slug hot enough to melt the silver solder. Normal tin-lead seems too soft. Even the high melting point solder may not have enough silver content, but then this is a repair to get a Chinese typewriter working.
Okay somebody has to say it: This is a Royal Epoch fail.
Ha! Good one.
That poor machine is overly defective. Another typical, classical "Made in China". Honestly, I prefer a late 60's, 70's or early 80's mechanical typewriter. xD
I contacted Shanghai Weilv Typpwriter Comapny couple of years ago. I also posted on my blog about that frustrating experience and warned anyone who's interested in a brand new Made-in-China typewriter not to buy it at all. Quality control is non-existent for those village-level mills in China. If any fellow typospherian is interested in Made-in-China typewriters, I'd recommend those from the late 70s up to early 90s under the brandnames Hero, Flying Fish and Changkong. They are copycats of either Germany's Adler (the small kind, both carriage and segment shift) or Japan's 70's segment-shift Brother. These machines were built with a national mission: earn foreign currency at a time when China started to trade with the rest of the world. They are not any inferior in quality to the original ones! Sadly, the kind of craftsmanship one can take for granted from the older generation of Chinese is long gone. However, recently there's been a lot of discussion on media on what really has happened to the work ethic of modern Chinese. Experts urge Chinese manufacturers to think about their responsibility not only to their customers but also the image of China. We simply cannot live like pigs any longer–make do with shoddy products,eating poisonous food and living in poor sanitation. The added irony is that, in recent years, China is proudly talking about sending men to the outer space or rivaling US on all fronts but at the same time, we sell to the world products whose quality is frowned upon all over the world. Hopefully, things will soon change and as a Chinese person myself, I just hope that changes will come faster!
Thank you very much. I think things can improve. After World War II, cheap Japanese products were sold around the world and had a bad reputation, but obviously, Japan changed its industrial practices and transformed the reputation of its products.
I think a precise cut with a Dremel wheel might do it and some filing. I would not put it past the Chinese to as much lead as they could in these things.
Sir do u manufacturer types (character) in Tamil language
I am not a manufacturer. You can contact Shanghai Weilv, the factory that makes these typewriters, through https://chinatypewriter.en.alibaba.com.
I have a 1970 fleetwood