Frequently Asked Questions

A. In the Historic District of Riverside, California. Riverside is a BIG inland community east of Los Angeles, most easily reached from the 91 and 60 freeways. The closest major airport is Ontario International Airport. The Metro link offers train service to Riverside from Los Angeles and Orange County and if you take the right exit we are about a mile from the station via Uber or Lyft. Yes we offer full shipping services for repair and sales. Give us a call 951 384-0646 for all the details.

A. Please do, we love opening our showroom to customers, but are only open by appointment. We typically offer appointments Monday - Friday evenings and weekends during the day. Give us a call to set up your appointment.

A. Not likely but we can always try. We are one of a handful of full-service typewriter shops left and are usually blessed in a lot of repair and sales business. We will do our best to get your machine back to you as quickly as possible but lead times can be anywhere from a few weeks to many weeks. It all depends on how many typewriters are in our queue when you arrive. We do our best to make sure all machines get the attention they deserve as they may not be in a shop for another twenty years.

A. Typewriters and so much more! We offer typewriter ribbon, covers, care kits and other accessories in our showroom. We also have a variety of typewriter art and Original typewriter advertisements from 20th Century American Magazines complete with source information in our showroom. Above all, we provide a space of bespoke service for you to try-on your next typewriter with your scheduled appointment.

A. Most likely, yes. Bob is the brain, heart and hands of Typewriter Muse. We also think he's the best Typewriter mechanic around. He never brags on himself, so we will: this man has never met a typewriter he could not get working. His mind wraps around the parts of the machine and just knows how everything moves. He is inventive, often fabricating parts that cannot otherwise be found and resolving issues on mishandled machines. We want you to meet Bob. If you just can't wait, feel free to watch some of his YouTube videos, catch him as a guest in a Joe Van Cleave YouTube video or listen along as he guest hosts an episode of the Austin Typewriter Ink podcast.

A. As little as possible but as much as it takes. These machines are antique mechanical devices and Bob and his staff are precision mechanics. Bob will give you a free estimate when you drop your machine off at your appointment. If anything else comes up along the way, we will call you with an update and follow all laws and best practices for customer machine repair.

A. We take cash, Apple Pay, cash, tap to pay, cash, credit cards, cash, debit cards, cash, Venmo, cash, Zelle and cash. All transactions include sales tax where applicable and non-cash transactions are subject to a 3% convenience fee.

A. Mechanical work is a tactile, hands-on specialty. We do not diagnose or repair virtually. Like all mechanics, your machine must be physically in our hands for an estimate of repair.

A. We take donations on a case by case basis. Most machines people are letting go require several hours of cleaning, service and sometimes extensive repairs. As much as we would love to take every machine that comes our way, our storage capacity is finite. Let's talk about it and we'll see what we can do. Unless it is a rare bird of a typewriter, we probably won't be able to purchase it from you but, you never know. Feel free to give us a call and we can assist you in the best way to move your unwanted typewriter on to a new owner.

A. We absolutely will when your machine is in the shop for service or repair. If it isn't here in the shop, check out Ted Munk's https://typewriterdatabase.com for details on where and how to find your typewriter's serial number and cross reference his extensive data on machine makes and models throughout the history of these great machines.

A. We are fortunate to have a list of distinguished clients who love typewriters as much as we do, but we are bound to respect their privacy. Yes, being located in Southern California and having our reputation means that we recondition all the cool typewriters for all the cool and famous people. You name them, we have probable worked on their typewriter. But just to be clear, we cannot introduce you to Mr. Hanks or pass along your movie script to him or anybody else. We also cannot give you Joe Van Cleave's phone number or tell you what his wife made for dinner. And we promise, we will also respect your privacy in the same fashion. And yes, your typewriter will receive the same treatment as Steve Spielberg's.

A. Yes, we offer a full 3 way shipping service to wherever you may be located. We send you a custom box depending on your typewriter make and model then you ship it back with our return label. We can offer this service for a similar price that UPS charges to box up and ship your typewriter one-way.
We started this service for the ease and simplicity it offers you, the customer. Once we receive your typewriter, we can give it an estimate and let you know all we can do for you. Give us a call to set up this service 951 384-0646

A. 1) Take a look at the example of typewriters we have available here on your website.
2) Give us call and we can set you a virtual appointment over zoom or a video platform of your choice and we can bring you into our showroom virtually and show you your next typewriter.
3) We send you an invoice and then ship it to you.
Give us a call to set up your virtual appointment 951 384 0646