Comments on: Erika M

By: Nikola Braun

Nikola Braun — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 09:50:34 +0000

Interesting article, thank you! I bought an Erika M some years ago at a local fleamarket here in Munich and just had it restored because my teenage daughter is into these vintage things. Was wondering about the production date … pre-WWII? Mine has a QWERTZ keyboard but black keys.

By: Wally Beagley

Wally Beagley — Sat, 14 Oct 2023 02:34:56 +0000

OK, I see,
I toggled the color switch back and forth a few times: from black to red and back to black and it started working properly, The 1/2 in. ribbon is fine

By: Wally Beagley

Wally Beagley — Fri, 13 Oct 2023 20:31:21 +0000

Hi,
I am trying to restore an old S&N Erika that looks like the M but has 5-tab printed on the frame. I have the keys working mostly, but the tops of the letters don’t print because the ribbon is narrower than the height of the guide and slips down to the bottom. It looks like it might require a ribbon wider than the standard 1/2 in. Any thoughts would be appreciated.

By: Erika

Erika — Tue, 25 Apr 2023 16:19:20 +0000

In reply to Suzan.

Very rare model, I’d love to have this great find love writing as well my
Name is Erika M. Awesome you came
Upon this!

By: Vaclav

Vaclav — Wed, 19 Apr 2023 00:25:48 +0000

Nice article about very nice typewriter. Erikas are impressive machines, but you can’t forget also their bigger brothers — Seidel & Naumann Ideal. Ideal D33 has been my first typewriter since my childhood that we have at home. I still have it and love it, it’s big desktop machine, very certain in his workout, can be hard typed as well as surprisingly lightly. Heavy shift is a little downside that is on the other hand nicely balanced.
So it isn’t true that S&N wasn’t making desktop machines — Ideal A1, A2, B, C, D, D33 were these bigger ones.

By: Vlastimil

Vlastimil — Mon, 03 Apr 2023 14:50:19 +0000

In reply to Sana. Hello there! In these pre-war Erikas are all basic mechanics same, models differ in design and features as previously mentioned tabulator, margin button, carriage catch and so on.

By: Daniel Marleau

Daniel Marleau — Thu, 16 Feb 2023 01:41:58 +0000

In reply to Jan Tore Svendsen. Wonderful story about Hermine Marie Erika.

By: Jan Tore Svendsen

Jan Tore Svendsen — Tue, 14 Feb 2023 20:50:19 +0000

Thank you for an interesting article and view about the Erika’s.
Absolutely stunning machines. I have an Erika 5tab in perfect condition – with white qwertz keys. Bought as a memory from my first trip to Germany back in 2006 were i together with my german girlfriend at that time visited her parents in Munich. I fell totally in love with this machine and the 5Tab was the real start for my fascination for typewriters.
Never cross my mind before you mentioned it that most manufactures promoted their own company names on the machins first and foremost – except a few like Seidel & Naumann’s Erika’s. That is a sweet twist – the story behind the name is tho even more sweet – and you are right, there is something noble, teutonic or should we say cherisable about the name – the machines are namely named after Naumann’s only grand daughter – Erika! (Hermine Marie Erika Naumann, 1907–2000).
Btw, quite remarkable just the fact that Erika herself lived into this century!

By: Sana

Sana — Fri, 01 Mar 2019 19:13:39 +0000

Hello Daniel,
thank you for the Article. I have a question. What do you think of the Erika Modell S?
I live in Germany and in the internet there are usually some of them for sale.
I think Modell S is very beautiful, like all of them… 5, 6, M… from that old series.
Maybe there are a view more Numbers, I don’t know yet.

Thank you

By: Nick Jacobs

Nick Jacobs — Mon, 12 Feb 2018 04:17:07 +0000

Great hearing about your Erikas..I’m looking for a ten. I have fives,a six?????What?…some M’s and a 9. The nine is still superb…but those M’s and fives are just special I would not be concerned about the qwertz keyboard as regards the Z and Y swap…I find that’s easy. The thing I like least is the apostrophe is sent to the corner lower right..upper case. The Erikas have a superb key action. I have SM-3’s ..they are excellent machines…but personally I find the touch of Erikas DELIGHTFUL..snappy fast..light (the keys are engineered differently from all others…look in the space vacated by the typebar when you type you’ll see a spring where no other typers have them,….I do delight in many other portables…Groma N’s, Kolibris, 40’s-50’s Torpedos….Triumph Perfekts (I have an american keyboard one..from MAINE???..Royal P,O and Quiet deluxe …Remington 5’s ahh what bodies…Smith Coronas(many great machines…40’s 50’s sit down and write a novel..)Olivetti Studio 44’s…key action not sexy..but what fine machinery…….The Erikas 5 up to ??..I havn’t tried 10,11,12’s yet…are beautiful machines….the 5’s great compact portables..among the very best..The M’s are in a master class…..The carriage shift is better than most (better than an SM-3)…..My Erikas have a NUMBER of keyboards even the german ones vary…my four Erika 5’s are all slighty different..I THINK one is swiss??….and I found two english keyboards..here…worst faults…the rubber-platen-feed rollers are more prone to slippage than other makes…not alot but more than normal..so check on that before buying…good luck typing…Nick