Replacement current column pointer installed

1053 COVER REQUIRES SPECIAL POINTERS DUE TO DEPTH OF ENCLOSURE

The cover of the Console Printer (1053) has the Selectric mechanism against the rear edge, leaving room in the front for the Console Entry Switches and other controls without interfering the the carrier and other typewriter parts. The extra room is only about two inches of depth, sufficient for the toggle switches and other additions. 

In an ordinary Selectric, such as office machines, the cover sits just in front of the typewriter mechanism so that the pointers for current position and margins are less than one inch long and still stick out of the front of the cover. The corresponding parts for the 1053 must extend out the extra two inches, thus the margin release levers and the column pointer are unique to this model.

The front panel of the 1053 has a plexiglass window running the width of the print line but a fraction of an inch high. There are column numbers and tick marks on this panel, allowing the operator to consistently set margins and space the carrier to a desired column of the print line. 

The tips of the margin levers and current column pointer are roughly triangular as they sit just behind the window, with the tip pointing at the tick mark where they are set. The margin indicators are blue and the current column pointer tip is metallic silver. The levers and pointer extend out from the margin rack and carrier and have the tip just behind the window at the appropriate height so they can be seen. 

SHEET METAL REPLACEMENT COBBLED TOGETHER

I measured the pointer from my working 1053 and fashioned a substitute from some sheet aluminum using tin snips and a drill, giving me a metal tip that would be visible in the window at the proper point. I mounted this and tweaked it until it was suitable. 

The pointer looks a bit rough up close, but all that is seen by an operator or museum visitor is the metal tip through the window. Just as the repair of the broken right margin lever is not visible except when opening covers or working on the machine, this pointer is similarly hidden.