Walther RM

Walther RM

Walther RM is a pinwheel, handcrank-operated mechanical calculator, built by Carl Walther Abteilung Rechenmaschinen in Zella-Mehlis factory. The model RM was manufactured from 1926 to 1937.

This machine found its way to my collection from Finland in 2021.

Registers: 10 x 8 x 13
Weight: 4,3kg
Dimensions: 13 x 25 x 13 cm

Year of manufacture: 1935

Serial №: 33585

Manufacturer:
	Carl Walther Abteilung Rechenmaschinen Zella-Mehlis, Thüringen, Germany

Did you know ...?
Guns and calculators
In 1886, Carl Walther founded a gunsmith's shop in Zella-Mehlis in Thürningen, Germany. At first it was a small family-run company, initially with just a few employees. Walther built firearms for sports and hunting purposes. During the First World War, the company grew to a 500-employee firearms manufacturer, thanks to orders from the German army.

After the war, weapons production in Germany was banned. High skills in mechanics allowed Walther to diversify into a whole new area. The company began to manufacture pinwheel calculators, which required precision and reliability just as much as the firearms manufacturing. The first calculator was built in 1924; 15 years later, Walther had already produced 16 different calculator models.

After the Walther factory in Zella-Mehlis was destroyed in the II World War, the company was rebuilt in West Germany. In 1945, the Heidenheim factory was launched (precision mechanics); in 1947, the Gerstetten factory was launched (precision instrument construction); and in 1948, the Niederstotzingen factory started to manufacture pinwheel calculators.

In 1953, Gerstetten and Niederstotzingen plants were combined, and the Walther Büromaschinen GmbH was formed. The company was split into a weapons division and an office technology division.

As it was no longer possible to compete with cheaper products from abroad, Walther Büromaschinen GmbH went bankrupt in 1974.
_{Source: www.rechenkasten.de}