I bought this Sears Citation typewriter at a flea market in Bremerton last weekend. Other than a cleaning, the only problem was both carriage release levers were broken, leaving two sharp-edged pieces.
These pulled off with pliers, leaving two 3/8th inch high tabs of steel, 3/16th inch wide by 75/1000th inch thick. Experimenting with brass tubing, I found some with 3/16th inch outside diameter, 5/32nds inch internal diameter, was a tight push fit over these carriage release lever tabs.
I cut a couple of 2 inch lengths of tube to make new levers. To strengthen the tubing, and make it look better, I put 5/32nd diameter brass rod in from the top, cutting it 5/32nd inch proud of the tubing. This was filed to chamfer the top edge, then super-glued into the tube, just below the top of the tube. That way, if I need to remove the levers at a later date, they remain just a push fit.
With some cleaning and a new ribbon, this is now a well-made and functional typewriter again.
Happy typing!
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