[Athena E.]

Gestetner machines​

Who remembers the old Gestetner machines? Long before photocopiers came along, Gestetners were the workhorses of schools, offices, and community halls. They used a special wax-coated stencil that was cut through with a stylus, and then ink was rolled or pressed through to make copies. The result? Newsletters, notices, flyers and letters–all churned out with that unmistakable ink-and-alcohol smell that some say left them a little light-headed!

They were clunky, messy, and unforgettable. All gone now of course, replaced by shiny computers and copiers. Did you ever use a Gestetner back in the day? Share your memories below!

Source: Australia Remember When / Facebook

 

[gamiry]

I certainly remember these machines. I was a 16 year old working for Mangrovite Industries in Lane Cove NSW and part of my job was to create the advertising brochures for the company. In my first year doing this I was thrilled to be given a little pen knife with the name on it as "a Christmas gift from the company for my ability with their machine"

 

[Viellarde]

I used this machine doing work experience in my teens. Messy for a couple of times but it could be mastered, and was.

 

[Benny's Light]

As a teacher I used the old gestetner to off to run off worksheets and booklets for students. I hated cutting the master as you had to type and try not to make a mistake. If you did, you needed to correct with a pink nail polish type corrector and then type over once dried. It was so time consuming and messy. The other was the fordiagraph printer with the purple carbon and the spirit that made the copies. When handed out to the students they loved the smell. You could always tell teachers back in the day as they would have black ink or the purple carbon all over their hands. Copiers and scanning printers are now the norm - so much easier, they even put the booklets together and staple them (what luxury!). Young teachers do not know what they are missing!

 

[Macarj]

We had one in our office in 1971

 

[Mindygirl12022]

Yes I did! These things were a beast to get the print right. You didn't just press a button to get copies, you had to put ink paper in between pages. They were a nightmare.

 

[Roh]

Do you remember the little bottles of pink liquid correction fluid that some people sniffed .... I was not the best touch typist of the day and therefore my stencils always had lots of pink spots ........ still the final product always managed to be correct and allowed me to print numerous copies. Better than the very smelly Mimiograph (at least I think that is what it was) which used a very flammable fluid to print copies which would fade over time ..... very messy as well as foul smelling). Life is less messy now we have computers and the internet.

 

[Dameliz13]

Yes, I remember using one to print off our monthly newsletter for my daughters dancing school. At the time I remember thinking how smart I was!
Yes, it was messy but a lot of fun.

 

[Reet]

I remember using one of those when I first started work. Very messy!

 

[mylittletibbies]

Me too. I was 16 working for a firm of consulting engineers in Melbourne.
Typing literally hundreds of the wax stencils for this machine, over the years I worked there, was a nightmare.
As the junior it was my job to print them off on the messy Gestetner. I was so glad when I moved up the ladder and a new junior was hired.

 

[Viellarde]

Yes, I remember using one to print off our monthly newsletter for my daughters dancing school. At the time I remember thinking how smart I was!
Yes, it was messy but a lot of fun.

And now you know you were indeed very smart! Look at the technology that replaced us!

 

[gamiry]

And now you know you were indeed very smart! Look at the technology that replaced us!

the technology that replaced what we used is ridiculous. So many of us has no idea what it's all about. I even use my computer like my old electric typewriter except this blasted computer constantly plays up and I have no idea how to fix it. We certainly had more brains than the current lots who only keep making things more confusing. Give me the simplicity of years gone by.