12 Dec 2012, 13:52
Before you do anything else, record a video of turning it on and letting it sit for 5 minutes. Then type for a bit. Post it up. (That way, I can listen for unusual noises.)
In any case, the carriage advance mechanism is likely gummed up or broken. The fact that the thing DOES print tells me that it's probably recoverable, though.
Generally, the procedure for these things is to check for critical failed components (the main gear likes to crack, and that's no longer available), then soak the thing in a vat of solvent to get rid of all the gummed up lubricant, re-lubricate everything that needs to be lubricated, and then perform any necessary adjustments (in the order that IBM specifies, which is not necessarily the intuitive order), AFAIK.
I sent mine off to an ex-IBMer, and he refurbished the thing completely. It types great now (it has a bit of what IBM calls "flicking", but that's an inherent problem with using a light touch on the Selectric design - if you use a too light touch, the interposer lifts out before the head tilt/rotate mechanism engages, and you get an all zeros binary pattern, which is a hyphen).
Anyway, you might look for a typewriter repair shop, especially one that deals with IBM machines. DIY is possible, but can be amazingly difficult if you don't know exactly what to do.
