What's new
30/12/2023 The last update of 2023 - an Archimedes C1 has landed here, has been cleaned up a little and added to the page of the C2.
03/12/2023 A large box arrived with some new acquisitions from the Land of the Rising Sun - I had some fun this weekend cleaning up two Toshiba machines, the 13-TB (of which I had an “anonymous” copy already) and the 20-TC.
25/11/2023 Some older things have apparently been lying around for a while, and I forgot to publish - In spring, I worked on the world’s only remaining Herzstark Multimator for the Arithmeum. You’ll find the page here.
24/09/2023 A very nice announcement this time, which probably also helps explaining why I've been a bit absent in the past few months. Together with two colleagues, I have opened a (physical) exhibition on 400 years of mechanical calculation at the University of Antwerp. Since Antwerp may be a bit out of the way for many of you, we've digitised the catalog too, and you can find it here. Enjoy! A print version will be for sale in the forseeable future, should you like to add it to your library.
01/07/2023 An interesting machine surfaced, not too far away, so I picke dit up and restored it to working condition. You don’t see many of these, the electric Melitta.
23/04/2023 I have managed to spend some time in the last weeks to finish up one of the larger projects in the workshop I’ve been alluding to these last two years - it’s taken a lot of time, and there were a lot of hurdles. I’m sure you’ll be able to appreciate that by how hard to understand the resulting webpage is - my apologies for that. In order to get a flavour of how the machine operates, scroll down to the last two videos on the bottom of the page, which - spoiler alert - include a demonstration. So you already know - it ends well! Without further ado - here’s the webpage about the Burroughs Moon-Hopkins Billing Machine! I've also added, as Burroughs is apparently the brand of the day, a Burroughs Class 5 and Burroughs Ten-Key machines.
21/03/2023 I bought an interesting machine yesterday, that proved to be a quick easy fix - don’t want to withhold it from you - the Comptometer E.
02/01/2023 Well, a few days of holiday, and at least I manage to have something to put online - I bought a Bloch calculator for calculating cutting time in metalwork, and also added a video to the Archimedes C page. There's much more, if only I could find the time to work on it ...
29/11/2022 It’s not been a good year for the website, not for lack of projects, but for lack of time. A very small update - a new logo for one of the machines that has been part of th ecollection the longest - my “long MADAS”
10/08/2022 Really, half a year wihtout an update ? There is still a lot in the pipeline, and also a few new machines which have not been photographed yet, but we’ll start with this little gem for now: a very early Schubert AR. Hopefully the next update before the end of the year ...
30/01/2022 It's been frigthfully busy - there are all sorts of exciting projects coming up, but none of them are currently finished, so you will need to have a bit of patience... What I have for you today is a Nisa K5, as well as a Badenia Duplex.
11/12/2021 One more project finished - the restoration commission of the Shires Multaddiv - a very interesting and rare machine in its own right, and I'm happy I can document it for you.
03/10/2021 Well, finally some exciting new projects that have been completed. One is the restoration of an extremely interesting machine that came from the Russo collection, and is now in the Arithmeum - the Ensign calculating machine - it is like no other calculating machine in existence - if you manage to find one for me, I’ll pay good money for an example! The second is slightly less exotic, but still quite exciting - Not a real four function calculator, but a (late) wood-cased comptometer. There are more projects under way, but this is all I could finish this weekend ...
28/08/2021 Even the summer holiday did not manage to calm things down, so this update is not even a real update - I have just added two machines that were sold over the summer to the short-crank Brunsviga list. Some projects are ongoing, but unfortunately none are currently complete enough to show!
23/05/2021 It has been a while - this covid-19 crisis increased my workload a bit beyond what was still comfortable, so I'm afraid most projects went onto the back burner for the past few months. I hope that will improve soon. For now, I've added this lovely machine to the website - a Schubert DRV.
13/01/2021 First post of the new year! - I've added a page on the last version of the Thales GEO with back transfer.
06/12/2020 It is "Sinterklaas" here in Belgium, who brings gifts to children. I have already received my gifts in advance, so I'm now passing them on to you. I spent part of the summer restoring the Laughlin prototype machine that was bought by the Arithmeum. It was not entirely a succes, but hey, at least you can read about it. The other machine that is new in the collection is without doubt the largest one - but not the heaviest, that honour goes to the double Millionaire. It was painstakingly restored, bith mechanically and comsetically, and is now quite spectacular. It's a printing XxX, which is timely, because Erhard Anthes has written an article for the December edition of HBW about early printing calculators. Become a member of the ifhb and check it out!
01/11/2020 Two more interesting machines that have more or less recently joined the fold: a Stima 4 Universal, and a Multo ADDO 13 in its original box.
25/10/2020 Here's an example of the first and only Danish pinwheel machine - the Calco. I've also added some links to the links page and updated some information on Tiger calculators.
11/10/2020 Another two pages for two interesting machines - a Thales GE which was a restoration commission, subject to a few issues, but is a really nice machine when done, and an Original Odhner type 12, which is apparently a very rare beast, found in Sweden.
27/09/2020 Well that was about time ... the next updates won't be so long in the making, I have at least another three projects nearly finished which deserve their own update, but we'll start with this - another unicorn has joined the collection, in the form of this beautiful Brunsviga model N.
11/07/2020 A beautiful machine has recently joined the collection. It is a Saxonia in a wood box, s/n 8284, that needed some cleaning and restoration, mainly to the box. And afterwards, it is just a very pretty machine!
13/06/2020 Two more really interesting machines for the month of June. One is a Saxonia/Burkhardt that was imported into France as Eurêka, the other a very special Original Odhner - I've never seen one like it.
03/05/2020 I promised you another update, and I hope it will not disappoint. Now that the article has appeared in Historische Bürowelt last month, I can finally give you a bit of background on the Optimus calculator. Enjoy!
14/04/2020 It has been nearly three months, and in the mean time the world has changed. I found these little guys to be responsible. Dangerous little buggers! On the positive side, I have been keeping busy. Back in January, I spent some time documenting this little gem of a machine, a Cellatron R31 - probably my ugliest calculator, and I still don't have it working correctly. In a whole different league is this machine - Dorr E. Felt's Comptograph, formerly in Thomas A. Russo's collection, and a commission to calcusaur.us by the Arithmeum. Finally, I updated some pages, sometimes with small corrections, sometimes with new information, with thanks to Timo Leipälä - namely the ones on the Odhner AVK, the Contex, the Facit Standard and the Kirja. And I have another exciting update in the works...
19/01/2020 A new machine has joined the website - a wood-cased TIM model 1.
02/01/2020 My colleagues, mathematicians Paul Levrie and Rudi Penne have written a book (in Dutch) titled "The beauty of primes" . I have been so free to combine Paul's hobby with mine, in this little video. Enjoy!
30/12/2019 At the brink of 2020, I have a few days off, and hence I can work on (and actually finish) some calculators. So here they are - a Bunzel typ 5 (of which I already had one), and a machine of which I can never remember the name, so I always need to go look at the type plate - a Mechanical Accountant Model H from the Russo collection.
11/11/2019 I've been promising you a big project for a while now - and well, here it is. I've been very busy restoring the prototype Thales Electromat in the collection of the Arithmeum, and I recently finished it and brought it back to Bonn, where you can now see it again in the exhibition. In addition, I fixed my electric Lagomarsino-Numeria and added it to the Lagomarsino-Numeria page. From the auction of Thomas A. Russo's collection, I won his Arrow calculator, which was in need of a bit of an overhaul. Finally, I also added the link to Ed Rupp's youtube channel to the links page.
06/10/2019 OK - one more - I dragged an early Chateau/Dactyle machine home from France a few weeks ago, and managed to clean it up a little in the mean time.
05/10/2019 What a busy end of the summer that was ... I quickly took some pictures today of two machines that I acquired recently - a Lagomarsino-Numeria 5905 and a Facit 1004. But pretty soon I will have another very exciting project to show!
28/07/2019 I'm just back from a quick hop over the Channel for a pre-brexit visit to the UK, and I keep getting haunted by rare Otis King calculators. For the story, go here
21/07/2019 A new machine in the collection - a Marchant Pony B with a bit of a twist - the makers plaque is different from any other I've seen. If anyone knows of a machine like this, please let me know!
13/07/2019 Doesn't time fly ... I have added a description and some pictures of one of my most complicated fully automatic machines, a Monroe 8N-213.
27/05/2019 It has been over 6 weeks again, but I spent my time rather usefully, spiffing up a functionally challenged Sanders calculator, as well as the Arithmeum's Adsumudi - a quirky machine if there ever was one - be sure to watch the video on how it operates!
12/04/2019 I purchased this machine, a Sörensen arithmometer, in Stockholm at auction, and made a quick round trip to pick it up. It's worth every krona I paid for it - a real dream of a machine, and in fantastic condition. Enjoy!
24/03/2019 It's not every day you get to unwrap a brand new (old) calculator ...in this case a Monroe LA7-200. I've made a long video about it, that shows the machine operating at the end.
10/03/2019 It's been a very busy month at work, but also behind the scenes a lot has been happening here. I'm happy to present the result of a really, really tough restoration that took a lot of time. But because it is an extremely rare machine, it was worth every minute! I've restored a Britannic Duo that looked like it just spent 50 years at the bottom of the sea ... Enjoy!
10/02/2019 Another machine that passed through the workshop recently is this Odhner tandem - rare as hens' teeth, and very intereesting indeed! I could not resist assembling all my geodetic calculators in one spot for a photo-opportunity, and you will find another teaser in there ...
27/01/2019 Another new machine (literally, it has never been used) has been added - a Triumphator KN. I've also slightly reorganised the pages on the Brunsviga G's, separating the restoration part from the description and pictures of the finished machines. I've also made a page comparing the Brunsviga G/MG machines in the Brunsviga museum catalog (courtesy ACONIT.fr).
06/01/2019 A few days of holidays, and the new pages come flooding in ... here's the next new machine in the collection- a Fridén D10.
03/01/2019 First post of the new year - happy 2019 everyone! A new page about a Russian machine from the 1920s, a Kirja.
27/12/2018 I bought and fixed an Italian Everest MaximAR. Also, I added a link to the websites of John Scriven and Antonio Pérez-Prados.
16/12/2018 Another machine which isn't mine - a Walther DMKZ that came in for a bit of TLC.
22/11/2018 So here's the first finished project - a very special Brunsviga MDIIR which I was asked to restore. Enjoy!
1/11/2018 As a number of very interesting projects are drawing to a close (about which more in the not-so-far future), more machines from the Japanese box: A Tiger H68-21 and H62-20. Enjoy!
6/10/2018 Apologies for the long radio silence, it's not been for lack of new machines but rather for lack of time. A new box arrived from Japan, with these little jewels inside: another Bluestar, a Pilot P-1, and a Maruzen.
14/08/2018 I also cleaned up a MADAS VIII I bought in the UK.
11/08/2018 A new addition to the collection fresh from Sweden - a very, very early Odhner's arithmometer.
22/07/2018 A machine that has been standing around for a few weeks waiting for some small repairs, and for being photographed - the Archimedes LoD.
16/07/2018 A new addition to the list of short crank Brunsviga machines today - they keep coming out of the woodwork!
14/07/2018 Two more machines to add - well, one machine, and one calculating disc. The machine is a Romanian Bolyai, the calculating disc is an Optima.
18/06/2018 I've added a "Triumph" machine that of course isn't - it's a Triumphator. I've also added a video of my coordinate calculation on the Archimedes GEMRZ to the coordinate calculation page
10/06/2018 More fall-out from the Breker auction - I also bought a slider Unitas. I have also added a dedication to the Brunsviga Expo pages.
27/05/2018 One of the new purchases from yesterday's auction - a Monroe L with sliders instead of a keyboard.
13/05/2018 Two new machines today - a Hannovera B I bought in Essen, as well as an Archimedes GEMR that I repaired for someone. Enjoy!
25/04/2018 Well, that's a fast update ... this is just a short report of the 2018 IFHB Meeting in Essen at the start of April. The theme was "green".
23/04/2018 Another new machine, and what a whopper it is. We're continuing the electric and automatic theme, with the Archimedes GEMRZ.
06/04/2018 More fallout from a few days off work around Easter. I have uploaded a much clearer article on the Odhner Lusid, that I wrote for Historische Bürowelt, the periodical of the IFHB. Look below the machine pictures for the technical explanation of how Odhner united the nondecimal UK currency with the pinwheel calculator. In addition, I have been working on a Badenia TEG13.
02/04/2018 I definitely wanted to put something up on the website after the Easter weekend, and since I have a number of projects that aren't quite finished, I had to find one I could finish now. So without further ado - here it is - a Rheinmetall RII which I brought back from the dead.
18/02/2018 The two last machines from the Japanese box - a BlueStar and a Pilot P3
10/02/2018 Since I've been a bit negligent, you get another new machine within the same week. Yesterday, a big box arrived with a number of Japanese machines. This is the first one, and it is a really strange one too, that I haven't seen anywhere else until now. I am happy to present - the _LUX_.
05/02/2018 First post of the new year, apparently - a belated happy 2018 to all my readers! In an incredible turn of events, at the very end of 2017, I bought a second example of the Brunsviga G. That's over 2% of the total production sitting in my workshop. It did need a bit of work though - you can read all of the story here. The first machine then left the collection for a new home, where it will be on public display. More news when this actually happens.
23/12/2017 A new addition to the website today is the Taiyo Model 23 calculator from Japan. At the very least rare in Europe, and probably the first one you've seen!
03/12/2017 I discovered today that one of the Dactyles in the list never had picture added and just referred to another Dactyle's page. Fixed now. I've also added a Chateau/Dactyle manual/catalog (in French) which was kindly scanned by a collector friend. It clears up a bit of mystery on the model designations of the Dactyle and Chateau machines.
01/12/2017 I've added pages for two new machines - a Peerless baby, and a rarer variant of the Brunsviga B, the simplified Brunsviga BK. Enjoy!
26/11/2017 Couldn't resist to add a family portrait at the bottom of the Brunsviga H page.
25/11/2017 Finally, the "secret" project has been completed today, and can be unveiled. A few weeks after the Brunsviga G in France, I was made aware of its smaller sister, the Brunsviga H, in the UK. Here's the full story!
12/11/2017 While the "big" project slowly advances, here is a machine I've bought yesterday as a bit of a mystery. Discover with me what it really is ...
22/10/2017 Another weekend with another few free hours, so more calculators added to the site! Nothing too exciting I'm afraid - they are a Monroe L-160, an Everest Z4 and a Facit C1-13. I've been putting a lot of hours into a project lately that will hopefully be completed in a few weeks. It is one of the worst condition machines that has ever passed through the workshop, but I'm convinced I can get it working properly again, and it will have been worth it! Stay tuned ...
26/09/2017 Another machine was added to the early Brunsviga page, but a much more exciting addition to the website today is the Brunsviga G. To the best of my knowledge, this is the first and only machine of this type that has been found - if anyone knows of another one, please let me know!
10/09/2017 Last week, a machine arrived which I bought at auction in Sweden - it is a Multi-Divo, the export brand for Schuster's Berolina.
19/08/2017 As promised, I put the contents of my library online. There is a link in the left container which will take you there. I also added a story about John Napier.
14/08/2017 Back from holidays, I received an email from a Dutch fellow collector about short-crank Brunsviga N° 333 that he found. Hence I had to update the early Brunsviga page . I've copied the pictures from rechenmaschinen-illustrated that were only referred to earlier into this page now too, to make it a beter overview in chronological order. Enjoy!
I'm moving my workshop, which is always a bit more work than originally anticipated, so progress on a number of the ongoing projects has stalled for now. The next big change to the website will probably be an inventory of my calculator-related library ...stay tuned!
08/07/2017 Final update before the summer holidays (not that you'd notice, when was the last time I wrote another update within two weeks ?) - I've added Odhner arithmometer Nr. 4739 to the page on the Odhner model A/Ag. I've also added the Vaucanson Modele D, and the Walther WSR110 and WSR160.
01/07/2017 The website I used to use for photo hosting changed its terms of usage, and now explicitly forbids third party hosting. This was apparently followed two days later by strict enforcement, resulting in all the pictures on this website being replaced by an advertisement saying "buy our 59 EUR/month third party hosting plan". Thus, I had to replace all the links to images on the site with links to their new location, and I finally decided to host the images myself. That means paying for more bandwidth and storage space, but it's not a ridiculously larger amount, like what photobucket (there, I wrote it now) charges. It's bad enough I had to bear their atrociously slow and advertisement-ridden interface for most of the evening to recover my images in a folder format that could be transferred without too much hassle - the interface makes me want to poke my finger through my eye into my brain after 2 minutes flat ("Oops! Something didn't click" - well, then fix it, morons, and make sure it doesn't happen again!). In addition their daily emails about "upgrading your account, since you are near the storage limit" that I've been getting for the past few months are really starting to annoy me as well. Not exactly the kind of reliable partner I'd trust with my images, and certainly not for this kind of extorionate amount of money. As right now, any links to any pictures that I ever posted on any website (forums, for example) have been irrevokably replaced with their advertisement, I can just as well abandon photobucket completely right now. I get the impression that that is what they wanted anyway, and I'll be happy to oblige. Now, rant over, back to working on getting all my images back up... if you find any lingering issues from this update, please let me know so I can fix them!
17/06/2017 Some more interesting stuff - I've added a page for the very beautiful early Burkhardt Modell A, as well as a video of some statistics calculations on the double Millionaire, as well as speed trials between the Millionaire and a TIM-Unitas
07/06/2017 Added an Addo-X to the list. Well, not a real Addo-X ... but something that looks like it.
01/06/2017 Well, the collectors' meeting in Cologne was rather fruitful this year - check back in the next two weeks for more pages on machines I bought. For now, I've just finished the restoration of a double carriage Millionaire. Updated the short crank Brunsviga register with a new machine.
06/05/2017 More Odhners to add - I bought a strange Odhner 6, which didn't really turn out to be an Odhner 6 after all.
16/04/2017 Another small addition - the light blue Odhner 7.
11/04/2017 I added a meeting report on the stories page, and decided to make a web version of the exhibition I staged there. It is a good place to start a leisurely stroll through a small part of the collection, and get a feel of the development of mechanical calculation.
26/03/2017 A restoration that has eaten up most of my time in the past months is finally more or less finished - the Marchant H9. I also added a page on a visit to Paris, to listen to Valéry Monnier and Yves Serra giving a talk on the history of the calculating machine, complete with demo.
15/01/2017 First post of the new year, and also an embarrassingly long pause since the last one. There are quite a number of projects right now, all very exciting, but unfortunately also all unfinished. In addition, my job is keeping me rather busy. But excuses, excuses - I have added my Lindström Records to the list and made a page for them, as well as added a new link to the duimometer by Diego Cueva.
31/08/2016 Added information and pictures of the Procenta at the Tekniska Museet in Stockholm to the Preciosa page.
04/08/2016 An update that is not an update in se, just a very exciting find brought to my attention by Martin Reese - the patent for the Brunsviga K! A short explanation has been added to the relevant page.
10/07/2016 I bought another early Brunsviga from Sweden, and go into the chronology of the patent decals for a bit here.
12/06/2016 Something else that came from the collectors' meet in Köln is this Mercedes-Euklid 16 which caused me some trouble to get into working order. I also obtained some quite rare Otis King cylindrical slide rules. They're not real mechanical calculators, but what the heck ... for the right price, they are for sale.
29/05/2016 The collectors' meeting in Köln was quite fruitful, and I have obtained what was described by the seller "a little Thales" - the DER/S. I also realized that an ebay find from November had not yet made it onto the site. This is my third Thales GEO, the somewhat later version with twin counter register.
06/05/2016 Added a page for the Tiger calculator, as well as a link to the stunning digital arithmometer.
07/04/2016 Finally another update! I have adapted the pages for the Thomas machines, have finally added pages for the short-crank Odhners too, and in addition have created pages for the Barret and Swift adders, as well as for the Olympia RT4. I also detail my repair of the Comptometer Super Totalizer. I hope the next update will be sooner!
23/01/2016 I added another machine to the list and made a page for it - a Spanish Famosa VAC.
18/01/2016 Happy New Year! I have added pictures to the page for the second Brunsviga MD I bought this summer.
04/12/2015 Following the publication of my article in Historische Bürowelt (Nr. 102, pp 3-5) on what may or may not be the Brunsviga K, the story is also added here under "Stories". Enjoy!
17/11/2015 Added a link to Robert Maøík's youtube channel, as well as his wonderfully practical ideas on how to make good use of the extra counter register in the Triumphator CB.
14/11/2015 I came back from the collector's meeting in Köln with a number of new machines. The first one is a Triumphator CB - the only one known in the world. The second one is a Marchant XL, and then there is a Thales MEZ. In addition, I added pictures of the second Thomas Arithmometer to the relevant page. There are a number of machines still to come, I have already added them to the list where possible.
19/10/2015 Long ago, I promised on the page for the Monroe G, to scan the manual I bought for it. I finally got around to it. Here it is.
11/10/2015 Another cute little addition, that isn't really a four-function calculator - "The Adder".
19/09/2015 Well, that has been a while - unfortunately, I've been swamped with work, so this is probably the first weekend in months where I could find a little time for myself. I made a new page for a Lipsia 11R, with the original manual. Also, through a stupid coincidence, believe it or not, I've found and bought yet another Thomas Arithmometer. More on this machine soon.
10/07/2015 A long time ambition has been fulfilled - I am now the proud owner of a Thomas Arithmometer. I have also added a page about the very cute Triumphator K2.
04/06/2015 Added another new machine to the list and made a page for it - a Mercedes-Euklid 29. Also slightly updated the page for the Mercedes-Euklid Mod. 1.
01/06/2015 Added a new machine to the list and the early Triumphator page. Some machines, including the other large early Triumphator, were sold at the collector's meeting in Köln, others had not yet made it onto the list anyway.
10/05/2015 Added a link on the main page of the site to a new page for the temporary exposition in the Arithmeum in Bonn.
01/05/2015 Added a new machine to the list and the Triumphator D page, and added a page for the Monroe G.
16/04/2015 Updated the page for the Rheinmetall machine, which has been cleaned, repaired and restored. Also added a link to the page of Gonzalo Martin.
03/04/2015 I have updated the links page, removing links that no longer worked, updating where necessary, and adding three very cool links at the bottom to models of Chebyshev's calculator and Babbage's difference engine - all built with toy components (Fisher Technik, Lego, Meccano ...)! Also, I've updated the main page, which hadn't been changed for three years, and being all text was not that attractive.
31/03/2015 Some small changes in the list - I've sold the Brunsviga Nova III, and acquired a Walther SMKZ and a Zagreb calculator (now I can finally say the collection is "from Alpina to Zagreb"... ba-dum tissssh). I've also been tinkering with a Rheinmetall calculator with an extra totalizer. With the Thales CES, the Walther SMKZ and this machine, it seems all my latest acquisitions have an extra memory! Due to an attentive reader, I've also corrected the page on the Lipsia 7, which is actually a model 7, and not a model 8 as was first mentioned.
23/03/2015 And yet another update in the Thales CES restoration - which is now finished.
17/03/2015 Another update in the slow restoration of the Thales CES. The top covers have been painted.
14/03/2015 I simply had to do an update today, as it is pi day - in American date format, today is 3/14/15, so at 9.26.53.58h was a very special time! I have added some progress to the restoration of the Thales CES, and added pictures of the Adix that I recently decided to refurbish as well. And now I will have some celebratory pi !
08/03/2015 I decided to add a story on how the machines fit into the house, and how they are displayed. If you want to see what the collection looks like, go here.
28/02/2015 Two new machines join the fold- I bought a Comptometer SuperTotalizer (no page for that yet), just because it is rare, and another machine has been added to the list, although it will still need a bit of repair work done to it. This is a Thales CES - the special model with the extra memory at the bottom for continuous calculation as well as having a grand total separately from the partial sums. Also quite rare, I'd think!
22/02/2015 Well, that was "interesting" ... if anyone has come here wondering what happened to the ebay auction for the Alpina I had for sale - the answer is that it was stopped by ebay, because the brand name "Curta" was in the auction title, and this could possibly irritate people looking for a Curta. I'm sure the 70 members watching the auction and bidding on it will now not be irritated at all because this 7 day auction just disappeared without a trace, 12 hours before it would end. I'd suggest you try ending your own auction 12 hours before its end (say, because you've received a better offer outside of ebay) and watch them throw a tantrum about that ... Great call, ebay. So - I have changed my mind, and sold the machine to an interested party outside of ebay. If they can sabotage me, they ought not to earn any money on my sales either. With apologies to the bidders and watchers. Also, while we're complaining about ebay ebay anyway, have a try to inform them of the umpteenth scam using recycled photo's of a Payen arithmometer being sold far below the normal price, while it is clearly not the seller's to sell. They will simply not allow one to flag an auction as fraudulent - unless the copyright for the pictures used is your own. How that is a sound business model is somewhat beyond me. They actually promote their customers being scammed ? Anyway, rant mode off, back to our regularly scheduled calculator talk.
16/02/2015 I have put some machines surplus to requirements up on ebay. There is a Curta, an Alpina, a Triumphator VII and an Odhner Lusid. Happy bidding!
13/02/2015 Another new acquisition has joined the collection - a later example of an Odhner Arithmos TYP5 ... but the condition is just awe-inspiring.
06/02/2015 As promised yesterday, pages added for the Triumphator D, and the grievously forgotten Triumphator C, as well as the Brunsviga 13P.
05/02/2015 Some new purchases in the last few days. I have added a page for the Richmond. I also bought a Triumphator D, and to my dismay discovered that my Triumphator C wasn't in the list, nor had its own page, yet. I did have a picture up as a size comparison with the Triumphator I . I also bought a Brunsviga 13P. I hope to be able to feature these last few machines soon.
23/12/2014 I have added a few pictures to the MADAS IX MAXIMA page, because I made a new clearing knob for it, and am showing you how.
22/11/2014 Well, with the advent of the weekend, I've worked all day not only to post pictures of all the machines in the list of 2 days ago, but also to actually complete the list of machines - every machine now has a picture page, with the exception of machines that have been sold before they were photographed, and the two other Marchant Twinplexes, because they are not in a state fit for photography right now. Pictures of those will be posted in due time. For now, the site is ...finished - until my next purchase! That only took 3 years and 8 months! What has been added is: Brunsviga C, surprising Dactyle, Odhner 18, Schubert E, MADAS IX MAXIMA, Triumphator VII, Triumphator CN, Triumphator CN1, Brunsviga B, Facit Standard, Marchant XLA, Kling Kasse, MADAS BTG, Marchant EEG9, Olympia RA16, Thales GEO, Brunsviga Nova 13, Rokli 6R, MONOS and the Multo-ADDO.
20/11/2014 I've been a bit negligent I'm afraid, and haven't been updating the site as I had promised to do. This is a very frustrating update for the reader, because I have only added machines to the list, without adding machine pages or pictures. Still, I hope this will serve as a catalyst for adding them soon. Machines added are the Brunsviga C, the latest Dactyle, which is a bit special, yet another (late) Marchant Twinplex, a new Odhner 18, a factory-new Schubert E, a MADAS IX MAXIMA, a Triumphator VII, and an early Brunsviga B. Machines that have been sold are an Odhner 18, a Brunsviga B, and the Kuhrt AB2, which was a bit of a mistake to sell, because I've since found out that only 26 machines have been built - damn! More on all of this, hopefully soon ...
18/10/2014 Added a Pascal machine to the list (a Vaucanson in disguise), as well as a second Odhner LuSiD.
12/10/2014 Well, this has been a very active weekend - I think this is the largest update I've ever done, with 18 machines added. The finish line is in sight, and I'm now starting to make pictures of the last unphotographed machines in my collection. I've added pages for IMCA, Muldivo AER, Melitta VII, Monos, Original Odhner 33, M.J. Rooy, Walther EMKD, Comptometer M, another Alpina, Vaucanson AVA13, Brunsviga MJ and MJR, Original Odhner 239, Original Odhner 6, Facit 7, Facit T and finally the Hannovera CK. I've added a Multifix EIR to the list too.
22/09/2014 I forgot that I made a page for the Hamann-Manus C2 machine in July - I've just added it to the site.
19/09/2014 Added pages for the Thales CE and the Peerless IIa.
13/09/2014 Added a few new machines to the list (Multo, Odhner Lusid, Peerless, Thales CE - it has been a busy month!) and created pictures pages for two more, a Tate's arithmometer and a very early Fuller's spiral slide rule.
22/07/2014 Added pictures of all the Monroe machines to the list, the model F, model K, model K for pre-decimal English currency, and also a page for the Corona full-keyboard adding machine. Oh, and the Brunsviga A!
20/07/2014 Added pictures for the Mira Visier, Brunsviga Nova I, Rema I, Hamann-Manus C, and the Alpina N° 6617. Added a Monroe F (!) to the list.
10/07/2014 Added picture pages for the DEMOS III, Hannovera A, Triumphator machines and the Lipsia 1.
29/06/2014 More catch-up done - I unearthed and dusted off part of the collection still stuck in the attic, and added pages on the Brunsviga B, Brunsviga MIII, Brunsviga MR, Esacta, Marchant Pony B, Rapid calculator, Rema II, Muldivo M, and Original Odhners N° 31 and 24. Slowly but surely, we're getting there!
28/06/2014 Catch-up time! Added an Archimedes Junior page, a page for the IRIS and the Original Odhner 127, and another Dactyle to the list. Added pictures of the Odhner's Arithmometers to the relevant page, added some more family pictures of the Brunsviga J's. Also, I placed an electronic copy of my Brunsviga N°633 article on the website.
02/05/2014 Another new page - for another Dactyle.
27/04/2014 A new page for the Odhner 18 and 20 models.
22/04/2014 Added some information about a funny carriage to the Brunsviga J page.
28/03/2014 Added a page on the MADAS VII T.
23/03/2014 Added a page on the Brunsviga J.
17/03/2014 Added an online version of my article on the identity of Brunsviga N° 633, added a Brunsviga MJR to the list, as well as a "mystery" Brunsviga you'll hear more about later.
09/03/2014 Added the full-size Mira 3 to the page on the Mira 3 Junior, and added the Arithmos 1 to the Arithmos 5 page. Updated the list accordingly.
02/02/2014 First update for 2014 - an Odhner 32 was added to the list. January has been the month with the largest number of unique visitors and visits ever. The puzzling thing about that is that a large part of the visitors originate from obscure Russian websites which apparently link through en masse to my page on the Lipsia 8. I don't really understand the economics of that. If anyone web-savvy enough to understand how they make money from this could explain, I would be most grateful.
31/12/2013 Last update for 2013 - an Odhner 35 was added to the list, with picture page. Also updated - added the manual for the Bohn Contex 10.
26/12/2013 Belatedly added the Bohn Contex 10 to the list, with a picture page.
15/12/2013 Updated the list and the page on the Kuhrt with a new machine.
07/12/2013 Added a very elaborate story on the history, restoration and operation of the Sanders calculating machine.
06/12/2013 An article of mine was published this month in Historische Bürowelt N° 94. It is titled "Brunsviga N°633 - eine Dekonstruktion". This periodical is part of a subscription to the International Forum for the Historical Office World - www.ifhb.de. I owe many thanks to Valéry Monnier and dr. Jasmin Ramm-Ernst for input, and to Jasmin also for the translation into German. The article more or less conclusively proves that short-crank Brunsviga N°633 never was a Brunsviga in the first place, but is an early Odhner's Arithmometer, constructed in 1891 and sent as a sample to Grimme, Natalis & Co when they obtained the manufacturing license for Europe. An English translation is provided in the members' area of the ifhb.de website, so I would recommend you to become a member!
23/11/2013 Added a link to www.madas.ch and updated the list with machines sold and bought.
03/11/2013 Added a story about the restoration of a Marchant Twinplex double machine. October has been the most succesful month of the year so far, with over 500 unique visitors to the website. The Kuli sale, which was posted on CALCList, may have something to do with that. It did not sell though. If you want to make an offer, feel free - it will go on ebay shortly.
26/10/2013 Added a page for the Original Odhner Arithmos typ 5. Some machines now on ebay - look for seller cris-stenella .
23/10/2013 Added another early Brunsviga (N° 302) to the list, unfortunately without pictures. The Kuli is now for sale - make me an offer!
24/09/2013 Added more pictures on the MADAS VIIet page, added the Remington Rand R51 page, and added an Original Odhner 20 and Muldivo AER to the list.
14/09/2013 Added the Adix and Kuli page.
11/09/2013 Added a page about casting keys for a new acquisition, a MADAS VIIeT.
17/07/2013 Another early Brunsviga was found - see the list at the early Brunsviga page.
29/06/2013 Added a page for the Jion B's.
27/06/2013 Added the Triumphator P Duplex page.
05/06/2013 Added notes about packaging calculators when shipping them. Also added an Original Odhner 13 and a Walther RMK to the list.
26/05/2013 Added entries for the Multi-Divo and the Brunsviga M24. Made very small changes to the list of short-crank Brunsvigas, with regard to the presence of the "A" behind serial N°s 202, 214 and 224.
05/04/2013 Added a story about the Preciosa calculator.
26/03/2013 It has been a while, but a lot of picture pages have been put up and machines added - check the list for Brunsviga A, B, D13Z/18, Triplexes, Midgets, MII, Nova III, and also some Odhners (A and AVKD), Mira 3, and Marchant Standard.
20/01/2013 Added pages to the list for the TIM and UNITAS machines and the Odhner 25.
19/01/2013 Added Brunsviga N° 225 to the early Brunsviga page.
30/12/2012 As a final addition for 2012, I have added pictures of the Lipsia machines, Vaucanson A.V.A.20, the Triumphator H2, the Britannics, and the Brunsviga 10 and MH. I also fixed some of the Brunsviga expo room pictures, which turned up missing somehow. Added a link to the Computarium. December 2012 has been my top month in terms of visitors and pageviews since I started the site. Happy 2013 everyone!
13/11/2012 Added pictures of the Odhner 16, Mercedes-Euklid and Marchant XL
11/11/2012 Added a page for the Odhner 135, and adapted the coordinate transformation page with its use.
30/10/2012 Added Brunsviga N° 291 to the early Brunsviga page.
19/10/2012 Still dusting off machines, but added a Brunsviga Midget and Odhner LUSID to the list, and added a story about Turing's double Britannic.
21/07/2012 I'm dusting off machines, and taking pictures at the same time. Added pictures of Antares, Archimedes D, Brunsviga B, Brunsviga ZK, Brunsviga MD, Brunsviga MB, Cosmos, Dactyle A and Dactyle B.
28/06/2012 Finally, it is time to start adding new things to the website - I haven't moved and cleaned the rest of the collection yet, but I have access to some of the new arrivals, so I have added the Odhner LUSID page, and an Odhner 6 to the list.
24/06/2012 A hard weekend's work put all the picture links straight again. Please let me know if you find any that might have escaped and are still broken.
22/06/2012 It finally had to happen - on checking the site today, all the pictures were gone. I do not host the pictures on my own server due to bandwidth issues, but this means that I now have to change all the links, on every single page of the website, in addition to uploading all the pictures to another server, and figuring out what went where exactly. So please bear with me as the site slowly recovers ...
14/03/2012 On pi-day (3/14), time to add some of the recent acquisitions to the list, while the infernal rebuild of the house goes on. Perhaps two more months. There are an Odhner 16, new Thales GEO, Brunsviga Nova I, an Archimedes D and another Alpina. Pictures after the furniture is back and all the dust is gone ...
29/02/2012 Two more early Brunsvigas surfaced, and were added to the early Brunsviga page, together with some more information.
15/01/2012 Happy New Year! Reorganised the "stories" part of the site, made the link to the Baldwin prototype explicit, and added a story about a Brunsviga MH that is doing rather poorly.
17/12/2011 Added more information and pictures to the early Brunsviga page.
12/11/2011 Added some information (and pictures) to the early Brunsviga page.
4/11/2011 The infernal house rebuild drags on - I have added a link to curta.li, and added a Marchant XL and an Odhner A to the list. No more pictures, unfortunately - everything is covered in dust.
31/08/2011 It seems there is not much happening anymore here, and in fact, that is indeed the case - I am very much short on time, with the house rebuild which is moving along at a glacial but steady pace, and the picture server going belly-up, so I will have to find a new spot to host the pictures within a relatively short time. If there are any more changes, it will be that first.
20/06/2011 Added Kees Nagtegaal's site to the links section
15/06/2011 Linked through to the BRUNSVIGA Expo of the BLM, which was digitised in a separate section of the site.
10/06/2011 Added a page for the Kuhrt machine to the list, and added a few links, to Wilfried Denz' and Georgi Dalakov's sites. Stay tuned for the "surprise project", which is currently in the proofreading stage.
31/05/2011 Added a link to Reinhold Rehbein's website. Added Dactyle A, Facit T to the list, scratched one Hannovera AK that has been sold. In case you are wondering why nothing seems to be happening, I am working on a big "surprise project", which will nearly double the current size of the website ... check back in a week or two!
11/05/2011 Added a picture to the early Brunsviga page, and updated the links page with Mark Glusker's site.
20/04/2011 Added pictures of HL-21, Feliks M, Brunsviga A and Château to the list.
19/04/2011 Added pictures of the keyboard XxX to list. Dug up and added the serial numbers of the Marchant electric, the Feliks M and the Nippon HL-21.
04/04/2011 Started an experiment with an external image host to decrease download volume ... hopefully you shouldn't notice! Added Friedel Schmitt's page to the links section.
29/03/2011 Updated the page on early Brunsvigas (click through to it at the start of the Brunsviga B story) with more machines.
27/03/2011 Added Orga, Marbel Blood Cell Calculator and Brunsviga D13R1 to list, Thales CER/D to the stories.
26/03/2011 Added link to Eduardo Guillem's site. Updated all 30 pages with the "What's new" link to this page. Removed erratic counter from front page, and inserted a flag counter. That ought to be fun!
23/03/2011 Added pictures of the Calcorex machines, Thales A (also a story), Archimedes C, Austria IV and Alpina to the list. Added this "What's new" page to the main page menu, as it is a very handy feature for returning visitors.
22/03/2011 Added story about coordinate rotation with double calculators and the Brunsviga 183
21/03/2011 Added Multifix pictures, and a Multifix manual to the list.
20/03/2011 Added stories about the naughty Thales GEO, the 1877 Odhners, and the Baldwin Patent Model (at the bottom of the Odhner article)
15/03/2011 Added the Remington Rand and Schubert pictures, as well as a lot of serial numbers to the list.
10/03/2011 Added story about early Curtas, and the Curta picture page (inside the early Curtas story)
09/03/2011 Site is up, with stories about MADAS, Millionnaire, Brunsviga 183, Brunsviga Mod. 1, and Bunzel-Delton. Also the article on The Brunsviga PJ16.