4 pieces filed under this tag.
Before the photocopier, every carbon-copied letter passed through a sheet of pigmented paper thinner than a magazine page. It is still manufactured, still useful, and worth learning to use well.
There are at least a dozen incompatible spool designs in common circulation. Buying the wrong size means a ribbon that will not feed. Here is how to identify what your machine actually takes.
The label just says 'universal typewriter ribbon'. In practice, the material — cotton, nylon, silk — changes the impression, the lifespan, and whether you can re-ink at home.
Universal spools, fabric versus nylon, DIN standards versus proprietary reels. A ten-minute job that looks intimidating the first time and never intimidating again.