Most of us might only be able to recognize his voice, his patient hands, and his preference for lacquer thinner, but all of us are richer in typewriter knowledge because of Duane Jensen’s kind sharing of his craft by way of his spectacularly helpful Phoenix Typewriter YouTube channel.
A bunch of us both watch and provide links to his library of typewriter repair videos on a daily basis. Many of us know how to tear down and build up a typewriter because of his tutorials and years of work. Once you attempt to repair a typewriter for yourself, you’ll realize how skilled he was to be able to simultaneously film his work while he did it. (I swear he had six hands….) He also patiently dispensed (and still asked for his own repair advice) on a regular basis on Facebook.
Thousands of his repaired machines will continue to give people joy every day. He’ll be missed terribly in the typewriter community, but fortunately some of his work and his spirit will continue live on online.
For those who don’t know him as well (yet), here’s an article about Duane from last year: Meet one of the few people in America who knows how to fix manual typewriters, and an excellent podcast from September 2024: Charm Type Repair podcast w/ Duane Jensen of Phoenix Typewriter.
Because it was his usual sign off, I feel obligated to quote him:
Phoenix Typewriter, Good Day!
—Duane Jensen
He gave so much to the community. I wonder how many typewriters have kept on typing because of his knowledge and guidance?
Rest in peace, Duane.
This is devastating. I’m very new to typewriters and his videos have been invaluable, I noticed he hadn’t posted any new videos in a couple of months, but just assumed he was just taking a break. Sad to think we won’t get any more videos, but his legacy will live on with his videos. I emailed him a few weeks ago and he got back to me just a few hours later. RIP to a legend.
Damn. 🙁 Such a nice man. I have an SM-9 with all new rubber he refurbished for me. I corresponded with him many times over the years. Such a loss. 🙁
So sad to hear- what a legend.
Rest in peace, Duane. Thanks for everything you taught us.
Loved his videos. Rest in peace.
I’ve so often been frustrated with a machine, ready to give up, only to find the solution calmly explained in his knowledgeable and comforting voice. Thank you, Duane, for all you taught me and so many others. Rest in peace
I was incredibly sad to hear he had passed. Just this week we learned how to replace the rubber grommets on an Olympia SM3 from one of his helpful videos. He will be sorely missed. He made the world a better place.
He’s the reason I have my collection. My wife bought me my first Selectric, but it had a couple issues and I studied his videos to get it working. That got me hooked and now I’m overrun with projects.
One of my Selectrics is only running today because he hooked me up with a part I could not find elsewhere. I point everyone with Selectric questions to his videos.
He will be terribly missed…
Sad. So sad.
What a legend, his videos helped me get into servicing my own typewriters and when I got one that was too advanced for my skill (selectric II) I was a 45 minute drive from his place and he did a great job.
This is a huge loss to the community as a whole. Rest well friend.
Nearly everything I know about typewriters comes from this man and his YouTube channel. Rest in peace, Duane.
Oh no: (!! I subscribed to his channel after joining this sub and he was always such a great guy!!! Truly a loss to the community and typewriting world. 🙁
Rest in peace
We are sadly watching the last of the last typewriter repair experts passing away.
I hope enough knowledge can be collected and taught so that we can keep our typewriters writing forever.
So sorry to hear this.
Really sad news. I’ve spent hours watching his videos and learned so much from him
I caught Duane in his shop a week ago Thursday and he brought me up to speed with everything. I’m glad I got to see him. I asked him a while back if he had people to help him with his business if he had to quit, and it sounds like he has a great community in Phoenix.
We are so fortunate to have a huge archive of videos, but I will miss texting with him and his assurance about solving complicated fixes.
It’s just sad, but he’s jamming with Neil Peart in a better place.
A true treasure. He will be missed.
Thanks, Duane.
Oh how sad
I am absolutely gutted. Loved him and his videos, they’re how I have pushed beyond what basics I knew when I got back into the hobby. My condolences to his family, friends, and loved ones.
I am so sad to hear this news. Rest in peace, Duane. You will be missed.
Ahhhh woooow. I spoke to him on the phone in 2025… He was a super nice guy. That’s really sad news.
RIP Duane, one of the few true masters of this craft. May those who followed in his footsteps carry the torch!
I had a few in depth conversations with him, considered him a good acquaintance of mine. I was deeply moved by him when I discovered his videos. on my first ever typewriter I had an issue and emailed him because I saw his videos and he helped me through it.
I’ve been crying even since I heard the news.
I am at a loss for words. My condolences to his family, may he rest in peace.
Rest in Peace Duane. Thank you for all you’ve done. You will be missed.
This is a truly devastating loss. Duane was a fountain of useful knowledge for all who love typewriters. Phoenix Typewriter, good day!
Thank you, Duane, for all that you’ve done for so many of us and so many of these machines. You will be missed.
I am very sad and can hear his voice signing off in my mind. Such a great person to share his skills and knowledge with the community.
An inestimable loss. An assuring beacon of craft and generosity. Much of what I know in fixing machines was to him, as it seems for many. May his memory be a blessing.
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This is such a big loss for the community, and very sad to hear. We’re going to miss him and his precious advice!
I do worry about his legacy. Youtube is very practical, but what happens when content creators pass away? Does the content stay up? For how long?
His content should be archived, because it’s invaluable, but I doubt Youtube will do anything about it.
This is raising a lot of questions about digital legacy.
Like so many here, I feel a great sense of loss from this news. He is the giant who’s shoulders I have stood on to learn so much, and to give me the courage to try many repairs myself. I have a deep respect for his skills and experience. I even liked his taste in music! That was often playing gently in the background of his videos. Sigh. A terrible blow for the typosphere.
Sorry to hear this, Chris.
Chat Saturday.
I’m very sorry to hear this. He will be greatly missed.
I would never have been brave enough to try and get my Smith Corona in working order if it wasn’t for his videos. He was a great teacher. What a terrible loss. I hope there is someway to ensure his videos are properly preserved for future generations of typewriter enthusiasts.
Very sad to hear this. I just exchanged letters with Duane a month ago or so. We’d talked on the Antique Typewriter Collectors Facebook about a part I needed and he sent it to me, no charge and no questions asked. His videos should be archived somewhere.
This is terrible news. Those videos were gold.
He taught me so much over the years. I was able to fix several typewriters on my own just by watching his videos. He will be deeply missed.
I am in shock and sad. Condolences to his family and friends. He will be dearly missed.
Like others have posted, he helped me greatly with my restoration of an IBM Selectric III, and his videos guided me in so many cleaning and repair tips. He was kind, patient and generous.
He was one of the first, if not the first professional typewriter mechanic (40+ years of experience) to make YouTube videos sharing his approach, showing how to go about cleaning and disassembling a typewriter, where to focus efforts and what to do to correct a problem, often “forming” a lever, link or a vibrator to fix a bent mechanism. All with a cell phone mounted on a mini tripod, put right between him and the machine, a real point of view camera shot. No shaking camera filming with him!
He was a huge fan of the Canadian rock band Rush, one could ofter hear their music in the background of his videos.
I am in shock and sad. Condolences to his family and friends. He will be dearly missed.
Like others have posted, he helped me greatly with my restoration of an IBM Selectric III, and his videos guided me in so many cleaning and repair tips. He was kind, patient and generous.
He was one of the first, if not the first professional typewriter mechanic (40+ years of experience) to make YouTube videos sharing his approach, showing how to go about cleaning and disassembling a typewriter, where to focus efforts and what to do to correct a problem, often “forming” a lever, link or a vibrator to fix a bent mechanism. All with a cell phone mounted on a mini tripod, put right between him and the machine, a real point of view camera shot. No shaking camera filming with him!
He was a huge fan of the Canadian rock band Rush, one could ofter hear their music in the background of his videos
I’ve learned so much from Duane over the years. My daughter and I have spent many hours enjoying his videos together. RIP to a good and patient soul, and gracious teacher. I hope Heaven has plenty of lacquer thinner (the good kind you get at the auto parts store), and that they appreciate how clean their typeslugs will always be.
Duane is the only reason that I, and probably a good number of people on this sub, have functioning Selectrics. The knowledge he shared on his youtube channel was (is) the best archive of Selectric knowledge to exist outside of the service manual itself. He made the world a better place by sharing this knowledge with the world.
I wish his family the best, and I hope his legacy lives on in the coming decades, in the form of all the works that are produced by machines he helped to keep alive.
I’m just another guy who fixed a couple of problems through watching his videos, who is now sad for a while….and a little bit scared since he wasn’t much older than me.
Through his videos, Duane helped me and so many others through so many typewriter repairs. Im so sad to learn of his passing.
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RIP Duane.
Oh no.
This is a real gut punch. He was definitely one of the pillars. He’ll be missed. I’m grateful for the legacy he’s left.
Oh no, devestating. R.i.p. my man.
Damn, I think that nearly every single video I’ve referenced for repairs was from him. Thank you for everything, Phoenix
Very sad to see this. I fixed all my Selectric issues with his help. He even emailed with me. He’s one of those people that the world needs more of. I hope his YouTube channel stays active. I used to watch him repair models I didn’t even have.
Anyone know what finally got him?
I was staying in Scottsdale Christmas-before-last and gave Duane a call to see about visiting him to take a look at what he had and to talk typewriters. He explained to me that he was sick but would make time for me if and when I was coming. It wound up that I didn’t have enough time to get out to Peoria, but I was touched by how generous he was willing to be with his time even when sick.
Oh damn, that’s a gigantic loss to the community 🙁
Rest in peace, Duane.
Ahh, this is sad. I have watched so many of his videos.
Deepest condolences and solidarity to Duane’s family, from Australia.
He will be sorely missed the whole world over.
Legit made me tear up☹️
Oh man, he was such a sweet man full of info for us machineheads. So happy that he made such good videos that we will be able to learn from for years to come.
RIP Phoenix Typewriter ♥️
Duane was (and still will be) my go to guy for repair videos. From my first major repair to all the little things I now do as routine service to my machines, Duane’s videos gave me the confidence to tear down a machine and bring it back to life. My heart breaks for his family and friends, and may his legacy continue on with the library of videos he has left for us.
thank you for everything, Duane. Rest in peace.
I’m very sad to hear this news, I learned so much from his videos. What an amazing impact he’s had and will continue to have, by creating such an archive of knowledge that would otherwise slip away with time.
I am so sad to hear this news. His videos have always been my first go-to when I have a problem with a machine. His videos will live on, so in a way he will always be with us.
Duane fixed and rescued my Olympia SM3 and even featured it on his channel. He helped me on so many machines like my Hermes machines. We will deeply miss him and have no one to turn to for help now. hew was a legend.
Such sad news… I’ve learned so much from his videos (and will continue to do so). RIP, Duane.
So sad to hear of Duane’s passing. He’s helped me in the past, and I always enjoyed his videos. I learned a lot from him. Rest in peace.