In 1926, Royal introduced their first portable typewriter. It was offered in both solid colors and two-tone paint schemes. It was slightly redesigned for 1930, and came in blended "Duotone" paint schemes, and had hinged ribbon covers. Royal was the first manufacturer to offer hinged ribbon covers on a portable typewriter.
![[Royal Portable]]() |
| Royal's first-generation portable typewriter, 1926 |
![[Royal Portable]]() |
| Royal's second-generation portable typewriter, 1930 |
The second-generation design of the Royal portable would continue until 1934, when it was replaced with a new model, offering a new innovation--Touch Control. Touch Control controlled the tension of the keys to the user's preference. This model was discontinued in 1942. It was often referred to by the prefix of the serial number--the Model 'O'.
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| Royal Model O Portable, with Touch Control, 1934 |
This typewriter was replaced in 1939 by the new Magic Margin portables. Magic Margin automatically set the left margin with the flick of a lever. (Until 1946, only the left margin could be automatically set.) The margin was set to the position of the carriage--when the carriage was moved, and the lever was flicked, it would change the position of the left margin.
A more subtle innovation was Shift Freedom, which meant the type segment shifted instead of the carriage.
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| Advertisement for Magic Margin portables, 1939 |
![[Royal Portable]](http://www.mrmartinweb.com/images/type/royalportable.jpg)
![[Royal Portable]](http://www.mrmartinweb.com/images/type/royalportable2.jpg)
