Introducing the classic Curta Calculator poster for all Curta fans. This fabulous poster
shows a detailed layout of the inner working of Curt Herzstark's amazing machine. All Curta
parts are close to actual size and displayed in multiple exploded views. Every part is labeled
with its original name as designated in the Contina A.G. factory service manual. The elaborate
and detailed poster design was nearly a year in planning and execution. Original factory
photographs, drawings and artwork have been combined with new imagery to produce this engineer's
view of a mechanical masterpiece. Many thanks are due to Carl and Jack for their encouragement
and enthusiasm.
The Curta Calculator poster is very suitable for framing and will make a wonderful gift to any
Curta enthusiast. It is an essential element in any Curta collection.
The poster measures 24 1/2" (62cm) in width and 16" (41cm) in height and is printed on
high quality Strobe Gloss 100 pound paper. The poster will be shipped in a rugged 3"x18"
Kraft Mailing tube.
ORDER NOW!!!
Within the United States and Canada
For International Purchasers
US, CANADA, & MEXICO
The cost is $19.95 plus $5.05 for shipping.
One poster with shipping is $25.00
Shipping by USPS Priority in the US and Airmail postage to Canada or Mexico. -- OR -- -- OR --
(click here for US, Canada and Mexico)
INTERNATIONAL
The cost is $19.95 plus $8.05 for shipping.
One poster with shipping is $28.00
Shipping by International Airmail postage. -- OR -- -- OR --
US, CANADA, & MEXICO
The cost is $39.90 plus $5.05 for shipping.
Two posters with no additional shipping is $44.95
Shipping by USPS Priority in the US and Airmail postage to Canada or Mexico. -- OR -- -- OR -- -- OR -- -- OR -- -- OR --
INTERNATIONAL
The cost is $39.90 plus $8.05 for shipping.
Two posters with no additional shipping is $47.95
Shipping by International Airmail postage. -- OR -- -- OR -- -- OR -- -- OR -- -- OR --
US, CANADA, & MEXICO
The cost is $49.90 plus $5.05 for shipping.
Three posters with no additional shipping, the third poster is $10.00 for a total of $54.95
Shipping by USPS Priority in the US and Airmail postage to Canada or Mexico. -- OR -- -- OR -- -- OR --
INTERNATIONAL
3 CURTA POSTERS
The cost is $49.90 plus $8.05 for shipping.
Three posters with no additional shipping, the third poster is $10.00 for a total of $57.95
Shipping by International Airmail postage. -- OR -- -- OR -- -- OR --
US, CANADA, & MEXICO
You can also pay by mail with a money order or cash(US)
The poster arrived yesterday and it's terrific! You did a really great job on it and I'd think any Curta collector will want one too. What a great idea you had and thanks again so much for creating it. -- Greg -- Hillsboro, Oregon USA
The poster was received today in perfect condition. I thank you for your prompt and friendly service. I'll be framing it and hanging it in my den. -- Jim -- Beachwood, Ohio USA
Thanks! This will hang in my office at NASA. I have a Curta that I inherited from my great Uncle. -- Donald -- Huntsville, Alabama USA
I received it a couple of days ago... Thank you! It's wonderful! Now I just have to find a frame and it will hang in pride of place in my house. -- Cath -- Bedfordshire, United Kingdom
Your wonderful Curta poster arrived well yesterday. Thanks and best regards from Germany. -- Hermann -- Bayern, Germany
I have received the wonderful curta poster and I am inspired. I congratulate you too this excellent poster. -- Bernd -- Langerwehe-Schlich, Germany
I received the Curta poster and it is beautiful to my eyes. Even the sturdy custom mailing tube is a keeper. I have the poster displayed temporarily in a poster frame with a thin plastic cover until I have a permanent frame made for it. -- Robert -- Alpine, Texas USA
Hi Rick. Just a quick note to let you know the Curta poster arrived today. I am VERY pleased with it and plan to frame it for my office. Thanks again! -- Sam -- Ridgecrest, California USA
Rick - the Curta poster is absolutely fabulous, both the production quality and the concept. It's something NO Curta Home should be without. -- Skip Godfrey -- Billings Montana USA
Hi Rick, thanks a lot, I just received the poster! It is fantastic, really well done. Greetings from Madrid, Spain -- Angela
Speedy, secure shipment of an excellent product. Great gift! Thanks. A+++ -- Bruce -- Okemos, Michigan USA
The Curta poster is great. I'm very pleased. Sent quickly, too. Thanks! -- Paul -- Hartland, Michigan USA
Really beautiful item. Really fast ship. Thanks for a perfect transaction!! -- Kerry -- Sayre, Pennsylvania USA
Excellent item, fast ship and well packed A+++++ -- Brian -- Lawrence, Kansas USA
Thanks for the poster that I just bought. It is great. -- Mark -- Santa Clara, CA USA
Hi Rick, Received the poster today. BEAUTIFUL!!!! I left very positive feedback. Thanks again -- Tom -- Stoughton, Wisconsin USA
Hi Rick -- Beautiful job on the poster! 'twill be framed soon. -- Larry in Springboro, OH USA
The Curta poster is wonderful! Thanks so much. -- Pam - Tucson, AZ USA
Hi Rick, The poster arrived today—it’s fantastic! Absolutely beautiful! Thanks, Bob - Palo Alto, CA USA
Rick, Your work is outstanding! The poster is amazing; I've been studying it since it arrived. The detail and quality of the photos is excellent
and the amount of data you have included is impressive. I noticed your name in the CURTA article in the January [2004] Scientific American (in the box
on page 98 where the author, Cliff Stoll, thanks his elves) and now I know the source of some of the photos in the article since I visited your web site. -- Charlie -- Randallstown, MD USA
Rick, I got the poster and my engineer colleagues come to my office just to study it! Ray - North Bend, WA USA
Countries Sold To (so far)
Australia
Austria
Bahamas
Belgium
Brazil
Canada
Chile
Ecuador
France
Germany
Greece
India
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Japan
South Korea
Liechtenstein
Luxembourg
Mexico
Netherlands
New Zealand
Nicaragua
Norway
Puerto Rico
Portugal
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
Turkey
United Kingdom
USA - Every state except:
o Arkansas
o North Dahota
o South Dahota I can't beleive there are no Curtas in these three states!
The Curta Calculator simulation is a 3D re-creation of the original portable
mechanical calculator, invented by Curt Herzstark. Unlike modern electronic
calculators, the Curta was entirely mechanical. It could add, subtract, multiply
and divide, and unlike other calculators of the day, it could fit in your pocket.
While Curta for Palm OS is a fully-functional simulation of a Type I Curta, the interface differs slightly. Every effort has been made to give Curta the same "look and feel" as its namesake. However, some compromises have be made in bringing it to the Palm... (more - see web page)
Here is a great picture created by John Cherry.
He was learning to use ray tracing software (POV-Ray 3.02). This is a picture of his Curta Type II (number 546692).
The picture uses 16 Million colors.
There are equivalent versions of POV-Ray for MS-DOS, Windows 95/98 & x86 NT,
Macintosh, PowerPC, Amiga, SunOS, Linux (on Intel platforms) and generic
Unix.
Well I finally did it. Thanks to the support of my friend Carl I fully disassembled a type 1 Curta.
The really good news is I put it back together and it still works! This page is BIG so go here only
if you have a high speed connection or the time to spare. Each picture can be clicked on for a larger
view too. -Rick-
Here is a large selection of special Curtas. Many of the pictures are from the collection
of Hans-Rudolf Roshard.
The Skeleton Curta belongs to Richard Moor.
He worked for Victor Comptometer, in Chicago,
in the Research Center, as Prototype Model Maker from 1967-1976.
There are 3 cut-out "windows" on the clearing plate,
3 long "windows" on the upper knurled ring,
4 long "windows" on the lower knurled ring,
6 "windows" on the bottom plate, and the middle portion
of the unit is open. All of the Lettering, Numbers and Arrows
have been left INTACT, and the Little "rechnende Mocca-Mühle"
is still fully functional.
According to Reinhold Rehbein, the history says that, a short time before the factory
in Lichtenstein was closed, Curtas were made from different spare parts. Almost every old
Curta factory machinist has made a variant.
The CURTA company produced demo units for their sales force. According to a
conversation with a factory trained repair technician, they only produced one demo unit per
country that the Curta was sold in. If you own a Demo unit, send me a picture and I'll register it
on the Curta Demo page.
Here are the before and after pictures of Curta 2185.
It had extensive damage due to water contamination.
The Curta was sent to Jack Christensen for a major overhaul.
It was discovered in a flea market antique shop in Montevideo, Uruguay.
The original owner of the Curta was a busineman in Montevideo who used
to import merchandise from Europe. He died and his wife sold it to get
some extra money.
Jack sent some great emails detailing the restoration process.
A compilation of those emails can be found at the following link: Restoration of the oldest Curta...
The Oldest Known Curta Type II
Curta Manufacturing Evolutions
Here are three different styles of type 1 Curtas. Notice the difference between the handle top, the entry knobs, the labeling/lettering, and the storage cans?
The Helmut G. Ayen Collection Page is a set of 33 beautiful
pictures that I was sent from Helmut Ayen in Hossingen, Germany. He not only owns a pair
of type I and type II Curtas but also a pair of type I and type II Demo Curtas! Enjoy
the pictures and as always, click on any picture to get a larger version.
Prof. Karl Kleine found this picture in an article about use of
calculators in German schools. Guess what those boys of age 10
to 11 have in their hands???
CURTA Literature Listing is a list of all know CURTA
literature compiled by Rick Furr and Skip Godfrey. Please send us copies of
your literature if it is different so we can include it.
The CURTA Manual is a transcription of the
CURTA Manual titled "Your CURTA Calculator" on one side and
"The 4 arithmetical rules" on the other. Pictures are now included.
These CURTA Ads were from Scientific American, June 1961 and June 1971 respectively.
Office
Machine
Americana
CURTA Operation Manuals, Repair Manuals and More
Ernie Jorgenson with Office Machine Americana is now offering
copies of two CURTA Repair Manuals (These manuals were formerly
offered by Skip Godfrey). The two Service Manuals were obtained
by Skip Godfrey from Daniel Lewin in Germany. Daniels a law student and
met Curt Herzstark shortly before his death; Herzstark gave him the manuals.
With Skips and Daniels permission we are offering photo-reprints of these
Service Manuals to anyone who wants them.
Ernie is offering a total of 7 documents related to the Curta:
CU1. Service-Handbuch For Curta Rechenmaschine Model II 11 X 8 X 15.
This manual is written in German, however it has many 'exploded'
detailed service pictures of the Curta Model II.
$19.00
CU2. Service-Manual for Curta Calculating Machine Model 1 - 8 X 6 X 11.
This manual is written in English. Like CU1 it has many 'exploded'
pictures of the Curta Model 1.
$19.00
CU3. Curta - The Universal Pocket Size Calculating Machine System C. Herzstark.
This is a manual that explains the features of the Curta. Has a number of
very nice pictures. We assume that this piece was used to market the Curta.
$6.00
CU4. Instructions For The Use Of The Curta - Size 1: 8 X 6 X 11.
This is the operators manual that was included with a new Curta. Written
in English.
$16.00
CU5. Computing Example For The "Curta Calculating Machine."
Contains pages of practical examples for this fine machines. In English or French.
$17.00
CU6. Rechenbeispiele fur die Curta Rechenmaschine
$15.00
CU7. Die CURTA und ihr Erfinder Curt Herzstart (The Curta and It’s Inventor)
This is a wonderful piece printed in German. Lots of photos. Circa 1988.
$8.00
Please make checks available to:
Ernie Jorgenson
Please e-mail or send us your snail mail and we will send you our
FREE catalog of photo-reprinted old office machine manuals.
Jack Christensen repairs CURTA calculators. I've known Jack for
many years and can highly recommend him.
Here are a few questions I asked Jack:
What do you charge to clean a Curta?
Typically $115 to $280, depending on the type of Curta [Type I or Type II] and the
work involved. In those situations where only the upper carriage or the main body needs
work, the fee will be at the lower end of the price range. More often than not, the
entire machine needs a complete disassembly. It is my preference to thoroughly clean
everything, so the charges are usually toward the upper end of the price range. If a
full restoration is needed, the cost may even be higher. If something internal is bent,
out of adjustment, or broken, the entire machine usually needs a complete disassembly.
What do you charge when repairing a Curta?
I charge $65 per hour of my time. It seems my hours are about 90 minutes long,
however, because I rarely finish in the time I originally quoted. Extended
repair time is absorbed by me.
What spare parts do you have? Are they expensive?
I actually have many hundreds of new original Curta parts. Most are for inside the
instrument, though. I use them when I do general cleaning and repairs. Outer body
pieces, replacement cannisters, and external parts that are easily damaged or
broken due to abuse are not generally available, although I do occasionally locate
some these items. Sometimes I have to fabricate a part, or repair an item as best
I can. Obviously, this takes time, and the cost is high.
Parts costs are charged as the traffic will bear. I usually try to be blunt about
this to the Curta owner, often telling them that a severely damaged unit is best
sold as a "parts Curta". Unfortunately, I've sometimes had to tell this to someone
who wanted to repair a Curta looked upon as an heirloom. What to them appears to
be a minor issue actually turns out to be a major problem (e.g., a crank handle
tilted downward is due to a broken main shaft).
Costs for both a cleaning and typical repair is often between $150 and $250. I think
the most I ever charged for a repair was about $500...there were many serious problems
with the machine. Generally, when the price gets to be above $300 many people simply keep
the damaged Curta as a memento.
Can you replace a clearing ring? What costs are involved?
Plastic clearing rings are available. I have several new ones, but I typically do not
sell them separately as a spare part. Rather, I install them during a general cleaning
and repair. I can modify a Curta that originally had a metal clearing ring to allow a
plastic clearing ring to be used. There are special rivets for this purpose, which I have.
Metal rings are more difficult to replace. As with the plastic clearing rings, I will
only install a metal clearing ring during a general cleaning and repair. It takes a
special tool to properly swage the rivet in place. [Editor's note: Very old Type I
clearing rings were held on with a screw and nut. The nut was crimped to the screw threads
below the clearing plate. Don't turn the screw! You'll break the screw and/or strip its threads!]
I have only a very few new metal clearing rings for both the Type I and the Type II. I also
have used metal clearing rings [that were removed from damaged Curtas] for both the Type I
and the Type II. The new Type I metal clearing levers are so rare that I will only install
the ones I have on very old or very special machines. The cost for a new Type I clearing
ring is extremely high. The rivets needed to install a clearing ring are special too, but
I do have a few.
Jack's company, Timewise also manufactures a line of rally
equipment for TSD competition. The units include TSD computers for running
in a Computer Class, units designed for Odo Class competition, and
competition and checkpoint clocks. Jack can be contacted for special-order
equipment or particular modifications desired for Timewise equipment. Jack
also repairs older Zeron equipment. A wide selection of sending units are available.
This is a wonderful document. A must have for all CURTA enthusiasts! -Rick-
Curt Herzstark, OH 140. Oral history interview by Erwin Tomash, 10 September 1987, Nendeln, Liechtenstein. Charles Babbage Institute, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis.
Herzstark, an Austrian inventor and manufacturer of calculators, describes the development of the Austrian Calculating Machine Manufacturing Company (Rechenmaschinefabrik der Austria Erstanden Compagnie) and his subsequent work in the industry. The company, founded in Vienna by his father, Samuel Herzstark, in 1905, introduced the first electrically-driven calculator based on improved designs of the Thomas Arithmometer. Herzstark describes the disruption of the industry during World War I, his involvement with the company after the war, competition with American companies, and his first invention, a mechanical memory for holding subtotals, which appeared in 1928. Herzstark managed the company in 1930 and began work on his own design for a hand-held calculator. With the Anschluss of 1938, the company was again converted to war production, and produced custom gauges for German tanks. Herzstark, a Jew, was able to avoid arrest until 1943, when he was sent to Buchenwald concentration camp and worked as a technician. He recounts his arrest and internment, and how he completed the design of the CURTA hand-held calculator, a prototype of which was produced in Weimar, Germany, by Rheinmetallwerke at the end of the war. The Prince of Liechtenstein bought the design and the calculator was initially manufactured by the CURTA division of Contina AG of Liechtenstein. It was produced until 1972, when the electronic calculator forced it from the market.
The transcript is available in English and German, and can be downloaded from the CBI web site, at: http://www.cbi.umn.edu/oh/#H
Or, CBI can provide paper copies of the transcript for $0.25 per page + shipping.
English: 67 pages = $16.75 + shipping
German: 86 pages = $21.50 + shipping
Contact: cbi@umn.edu
Charles Babbage Institute at University of Minnesota
Order: Oral History Interview with Curt Herzstark (OH 140). Please indicate English or German.
For more information, see: http://www.cbi.umn.edu/collections/usingcoll.html
