This is the latest acquisition to my key
collection, It was purchased as "An early Ericsson" unfortunately it
is unmarked but looking at it I think it may be an
Öller key, I know the
Öller Ericsson and Lindholm and
Wikstrom keys and companies are all interlinked but this key does look like
an early design or perhaps a transition, if anyone better informed than me
has any info on it I'd love to hear from them.
The original condition I received it in can be seen below, all I have done
is to strip it down to the last nut and bolt wash all the parts in soapy
water to remove 100 years of tobacco smoke grease and dried Brasso, and wax
the base clean and re blue the rusty steel wood screws and reassemble with
slight lubrication, as I wanted to retain the antique patina yet have it
nice and clean and servicable.
This key is an eye opener for me, I've had my doubts about the actions of
Vintage Morse keys for a long time, it seems the older they are the worse
the actions become, however this key is one BIG exception, It really is an
exceptional key the action is superb, slinky smooth and precise, I'm just
amazed at the quality and yet it uses very simple axle type bearings? it has
to be in the weight as it is the biggest and heaviest key I have used, just
proves there is always something to learn with Morse keys.
(And when I use this key I can feel the ghosts of all the operators that
must have used it over the years close by )
The next question for me is, would it be possible to make a close copy :))))
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