Ok, when I bought the like new Underwood Standard No. 6
(Described in the previous post) the seller threw in an old manual adding machine that
came from the same estate sale. Now, I do not collect adding machines, nor do I
know anything about them. This one however
is in excellent shape, so I thought it would be worth knowing more about. The problem is that I can find
nothing on the adding machine that would identify the name or date of manufacture. It is obvious that the imprint on the Bakelite
machine cover is almost fully worn off.
So here is the question for those out there that know such
things. How can I find out the manufacturer
and when this device might have been made.
If you know or can point me in the right direction, please post a
response. Thanks!
Definitions—
Manual Adding Machine: Mechanical device that works similar to a manual cash register.
Bakelite: Plastic used in the 40's and 50's on many products.
I don't know anything about adding machines, but did see a couple (mostly "Burroughs"). Looking at the web, this style looks the most like a "Victor".
ReplyDeleteThat's what I thought, but seeing only the letter T as the first letter maybe points some where else. Name of a "Victor" model possibly? A mystery.......
ReplyDeleteThis one also looks awesomely clean and very period. (Most have this battered look from decades of office work.)
ReplyDeleteCould have been an Underwood branded version of another make? Quite a lot of 10-key machine makers by then I think. There's a site www.w-hasselo.nl that has much data I looked at also to find out more about my 1926 Dalton.
I have no idea whether you're still wondering about this, but your adding machine looks very much like a re-branded (or de-branded?) Victor Champion. We had one when I was growing up, and I've recently acquired one. The arrangement of the keys and controls and, in particular, the shape of the "clear" slider were the tip-off. Also, the rear view of yours shows the paper feed mechanism looks very much like my Victor.
ReplyDelete