1910 Royal Standard No. 1 "Flat-Bed"
Up for sale is a rather rare Royal Standard No. 1, which is affectionally known as the "flat-bed" because of its unique design. This typewriter was made in the USA in 1910- the last year the
No. 1 was made before it was subsequently replaced by the No. 5 in the years that followed. A lot on the history of the flatbed can be read here: https://www.antikeychop.com/royal-standard-flatbed-typewriter
To sum it up- this design is perhaps one of the most fascinating that Royal would ever manufacture, and this was their first model that hit the markets in any sizable numbers.
Despite its rather weird design and being over 110 years old, this typewriter is still in remarkable condition, and is fully functional right down to the bell. The only mechanical flaw is that the shift lock is slightly out of vertical alignment, as can be seen in the type sample. Holding the shift key down manually and typing with the other hand yields better results, but is of course a little inconvenient. That being said, that should not be a major deal breaker, since this machine is not exactly a typewriter I would recommend typing something like a novel on. While you can certainly use this machine somewhat reliably and frequently, there are simply better options ergonomically speaking alone. The rubber parts are largely in good shape from the rubber feet to the platen and feed rollers. While the platen does have some wear, it still feeds paper perfectly well and should last for awhile before needing to be re-covered if you still wish to use the typewriter heavily. Universal ribbons do fit this typewriter, although it is notable that this typewriter does not have a ribbon color selector, so it will only print in black (or whatever color the top half of the ribbon is). A ribbon color selector was added with the introduction of the No. 5 model.
Cosmetically, this typewriter does show its age somewhat, but is still in great shape for being as old as it is. The labels and pinstriping especially are pretty worn but mostly legible. The paint has a decent amount of wear, and some is missing in spots as visible in the photos. For this machine's age it is still in impressive shape overall. The nickel plated parts are pitted a bit in some spots, and there is also a bit of minor surface rust in some spots. Luckily, nothing is impacting the functionality of this machine as it works perfectly as mentioned.
If you're looking for a collectible piece of interesting typewriter history that can still be used somewhat frequently for smaller writing tasks, then this is an awesome investment.