IBM Selectric Typewriter Sticky KeyBoard Key Stems Spacebar Repair Restore Fix Flush & Re - Lube 

Duane you are exactly what RU-vid excels at. What a monument to your craft you've assembled here. It's a joy to explore a slice of your life while trying to get this gummy old boat anchor humming. Thank you so much.

Thanks so much for this video! 5yrs later it's still exactly what someone needs to fix up an old Selectric III. I picked mine up at Goodwill for $25. Excited to bring this machine back to life!

I love the memories this brings back but I don't miss repairing these day in and day out.

I'm loving this video! Thank you for sharing your expertise. With these youtube videos people are still going to be maintaining selectrics in 100yrs from now!

I swear, you're making me want to start working on Selectrics :)

Misery must really like company because I actually enjoyed watching you free up those key levers and pawls. I say that because I didn't enjoy it when I was doing it myself hundreds maybe thousands of times. These are great videos and bring back a lot of memories. If we had had video techniques like this back in the sixties it would have been a lot easier to teach all those CE's we were hiring then.

Just wanted to say thank you so much for this video. Bought an old IBM Correcting Selectric III, and your videos with the I and II are instrumental in my fixing it.

Thank goodness for RU-vid! Just found one of these for $30 at a thrift store and the only real issues are a sticky spacebar and shift keys.

Thank you! We just fixed a typewriter at our office with your video!

Yay!!! I bought an IBM selectric typewriter at the thrift store for $10! It came with a cover, the manual, 5 typewriter balls and a cleaning kit. It is in perfect condition! But lately the "J" started sticking and, thanks to your video, it's fixed now! I also noticed the "foam" that was on the underside of the cover had all deteriorated and fallen between the keys, so I fixed that, too! Thank you!!

Very informative, I collect all vintage manual machine and now like to get my hands on the Selectrics , what a genius engineering .

I just fixed my Selectric 1 with the help of your video! thanks!

Thanks for referring me to this video. This is exactly what I was looking for. What tool are you using to apply the degreaser? And as far as the air goes, would a standard disposable can of compressed air be enough? Would mineral spirits be a suitable degreaser?

Very helpful! I have this job (and more) waiting for me on a Selectric I. Thanks for this video.

I brought home a Selectric III which I inherited (Saturday Sep 12) from my tax accountant. It had been in storage for many decades. Pulled the top cover, checked the motor pulley. Ran my finger over some of the grease and it was not gummy/varnish. I bit the bullet, plugged it in and it powered on. Tab operation and return a little sticky. Added a little lubrication to the rails and it freed up. Backspace tried to operate but wouldn't advance. The slide of the pawl which engages the teeth of the gear, was a little stiff. Some lubricant fixed that too. Bit my lip and struck a typing key..... It went through the cycle in slow motion and seemed to stall towards the end of the cycle. A couple more times and it freed up too. The only problem now is the ?,/ key hesitant to return, sticks on the up/return. The key doesn't always cycle unless you press it solidly and deliberately. Oddly the tab cord has a little fray in it. The machine prints every letter and numeral perfectly, even with the carbon ribbon which was on the machine, amazing. I believe I'll find someone local to go over it though just to be sure. No warm oil smell after it's been on either. It was a mystery machine as the my accountant made mention a few years ago that he had a Selectric in storage, but not the model. I'm glad in a way it wasn't a Model 50, 60, or 75 :o)

Excellent video Duane, keep 'em coming!

This doesn't seem too hard, just time-consuming. Would Acetone work in place of Lacquer Thinner

Any chance you could do a video about putting the spring set back? I knocked it off fully when cleaning. Oops!

Do you recommend removing all the sticky old foam inside and if so, what do I replace it with? Also, where would I get one of the bottles you use to squirt on the thinner? BTW.... Thank you very much for recording these videos. Your help is immensely appreciated!!!

Excellent video. I have two Selectric 2s that are sticky. The closest shop is 3 hours away so I will give this a try myself. I read the comments and noticed that you said we can leave them free of lube or use MG 401B. I have key & rotor (edit: key & rotor oil) which is intended for brass instruments (I can use them in old cameras). Will that do the trick or is the MG 401B better? Also, are you using an air compressor, canned air or a bulb syringe of some sort for blowing the degreaser off?

I'm assuming you've had yours forever, but do you have any recommendations for squeeze bottle applicators for the oil and solvent?

ONLY 35 years!? LOL. Great video. Thank you :-)

Great video of instructions. Thank you!

After you get all the crud out, do you oil those pivot points and what type of oil works best? Gun oil? 3 in 1 oil? Something else?

Thanks for making this video! I picked up a Selectric today and have successfully unstuck all of my keys. In the process of doing so I dislodged black e-clip seemingly from the right front. I can’t figure out where it goes. Any ideas? I see a lot of silver e-clips but no other black ones.

Just picked up a selectric ii with some sticky keys. From what I see, I will need a pick set, compressor, degreaser and lube. What else should I be looking for and what kind of degreaser and lube should I be lookin for? I’m hoping for Home Depot to have what I need?

After you degrease the sticky keyboard do you relube these parts, if so what kind of lube do you use?

I just finished cleaning all of the little pivots on my Selectric I - some of them were really stuck hard, but the lacquer thinner worked its magic after a bit. As you, I cleaned the pivots multiple times, blowing with air as well. One thing I noticed is that after a bit of time, they start getting a little stubborn again - not completely stuck, but a little gummier. I continue to clean those. My question is, do you lube those at all after they are all clean? Also, I noticed that my Selectric 1 doesn't have the holes to be able to push the rod out like the Selectric II you are working on. It doesn't seem quite so easy to get to that rod on this machine.

WONDERFUL MACHINE 👏👏👏👏👍🏻

*Instantly knocks off the thing I'm not meant to knock off*

My dad just recently got a selectric II and I've taken it upon myself to repair it, where might I get a pick set like the one you're using? some of the keys are extremely sticky and the pick set I found is a bit too big to get good leverage. never mind, managed to get them loose!

Try WD-40 and a hairdryer. The WD-40 is a very light lubricant and acts as a carrier; it softens and renews the dried out grease. Slowly warm up the metal parts with the hairdryer and the grease will re-flow and mix with the lighter lubricant. That's what I do with the Selectric II's. I haven't had any come back.

What should I do if a key or keys are repeatedly triggering? I pressed a few keys and the head typed them, then the head kept triggering. The head has gone all the way to the right but won't stop typing. I tried looking in the both the Selectric III owners manual and service manual but I couldn't find this symptom.

What grease should I use to replace the old oil ?

Very interesting!

Just bought a selectric in and started cleaning: tilted the machine up to check bottom: when resetting I found a little white plastic piece with double spring: any idea where this goes?

Im completely stuck with my Selectric, tab return and shift work, but i get no response from the space bar, and the keys can barely be moved at all, except for the F key (dose not do anything though). I have tried the above in the hopes that it will fix it, but alas, no such luck. The shaft that turns for printing can not be moved by hand. Any ideas as to what the problem is?

you didn't say - but people be careful the thinner will start to melt the key finish if it spills on them

really sorry but one more question - you only have selectric II and III for sale it seems. Is there something undesirable about the original?

What is the cleaning solution you are using to clean? My Grandfathers typewriter has several sticky keys.

alternatives to lacquer thinner? would krud kutter work as well? thanks

I have a selectric ii that has the j and = keys stuck so it starts to just randomly type each one. where would I look to un stic them?

Man, after watching this, I think I'd be inclined to just start pouring lighter fluid everywhere and on everything and then toss in a lit match just to make sure it was well and truly done :) I just bought a selectric I for $5 and have no idea what I am getting into :)

does it damage the machine to type with sticky keys?

How do you remove the vinyl sheet under the keys? I would like to remove it because it's all gunk under there?

i ain't doin all that

I'm about ready to throw mine in a ultrasonic cleaner. It works fine but is filthy and years from its most recent maintanice.

👍👍👍