Original Odhner Calculating Machine - Lusid Model

After the Russian Revolution of 1917, the owners of the company founded by W. T. Odhner moved from St. Petersburg to Sweden to continue the manufacture of calculating machines. This machine dates from the Swedish phase of the company’s existence. It is designed specifically for calculations involving British currency.

The lever-set non-printing machine has a metal frame painted black with ten metal pinwheels and a metal base. Numbers are set by rotating the pinwheels forward using levers that extend from the wheels. Digits inscribed on the frame next to the rotating pinwheels show the number set. The machine has no separate set of windows to show these digits.

The carriage at the front of the machine has 15 windows for the revolution counter on the left. The three central dials have red digits, the others have white digits. The revolution register has no carry mechanism. A group of ten windows for the result register is right of the revolution register. Right of this are two split windows. The split window on the far right has four dials that can show numbers ranging from 0 to 11-3/4, increasing by quarters (for pence). The split window to the left of this has two dials which can show numbers from 1 to 19, increasing by ones (for shillings). A shaped metal piece covers the two split windows and another covers the two right windows of the usual result register. Sliding a lever moves one of these pieces upward and the other downward, so that either the split windows or the two right windows are visible.

Wing nuts at opposite ends of the carriage zero the registers on it. To release the carriage,one pushes down a lever at the front. Pushing other levers moves the carriage a single place to the right or left. A crank with a wooden knob on the right side of the machine rotates clockwise for addition and multiplication, and counterclockwise for subtraction and division. The set of eight pinwheels, the revolution counting register, and the result register each have one or more sliding decimal markers. Moving a lever at the top left of the machine switches between multiplication and division. A lever in front of this apparently relates to the units of currency used in calculations.

A mark on the front reads: AKTIEBOLAGET [/] Original-Odhner [/] GOTEBORG. The serial number marked on the back is: No61606.

This machine comes from the collection of Felt & Tarrant Manufacturing Company.

Reference:

Henry Wassen, Odhner History, Gothenburg, Aktiebolaget Original-Odhner, 1951.

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