The "Standard" was the second machine to carry the Facit brand, and the first to be built under Atvidaberg Industries.

This is an early machine from the 1920s, on an original wooden base. The base has been shortened on the right-hand side at some stage in its 80-year history, and the cover has been lost. The mounting for the the lock can be seen towards the right-hand front, at what would once have been the centre.

The rotor has 9 places, with a quick-clearing lever at the left-hand side. The 10-digit counter register is fixed in the body of the machine above the setting levers, with a 15-digit accumulator mounted in the moving carriage. The tens-carry on the accumulator extends to 13 places, with an overflow bell mounted externally on the left-hand end of the carriage. The counter and accumulator are cleared with just half a turn of the large wing nuts.

The counter register on this machine uses complementary red and white figures. Later versions (1928-31) provided a full tens-carry mechanism.

The carriage can be moved one step in either direction by pressing the two keys at the left front of the machine, or it can be moved continuously by turning the large knob on the left-hand side. One of the ten keys along the front is pressed down to raise an internal stop, and the knob is turned to bring the carriage rapidly to the required position. The stop keys are numbered on the metal escutcheon plate, and the active position is clearly shown through a peep-hole above the centre of the carriage. The positioning mechanism operates through a lead-screw, so that the carriage remains firmly in place with no ratchets or detents.

Facit's traditional pinwheel design was replaced by the ten-key Model T in 1932. The demand for the earlier design obviously continued, as Facit found it necessary to reintroduce a classic pinwheel model in 1935. In spite of the name on the rear panel, the Facit Model S is actually an Original-Odhner Model 7. Odhner apparently had a working relationship with Facit long before they were taken over in 1942.

The Odhner Model 7 is a basic pinwheel machine whose only "extra" feature is a push-button clearing mechanism for the rotor. There is no setting dial, no back-transfer, and no tens-carry on the counter. The Model 7 continued in production as the Facit Model S until 1954. The machine illustrated is an early example from 1935.

The first of the Facit "inverted" pinwheel calculators was the Model T from 1932. The Model TK is essentially the same machine with a number of mechanical improvements.

The machine illustrated is an early Facit TK from 1937 in a plain grey sheet-metal case. The top and back panels are pressed from solid brass sheet that is fully 1mm (0.040") thick. The only identification is the serial number and the word "Patent" stamped into the back panel.

Although model numbers and exterior styling changed frequently, this basic ten-key mechanism continued in production with only minor changes for almost 40 years, from the mid-1930s into the 1970s.

A Model TK from the late 1940s in a slightly fancier green sheet-metal case with a pressed-metal "Facit" logo. The agent's transfer on the front is from "Sydney Pincombe Pty Ltd" of Sydney, Melbourne, and Hobart. The serial number is stamped underneath.

The Facit Model LX combined the inverted pinwheel mechanism with a moving carriage to provide a high-capacity machine with 10 places in the rotor, 10 in the counter, and 19 in the accumulator.

The body of the machine and the setting mechanism are very similar to the TK. The carriage is mounted at the top, so that the register dials appear in the same locations. The clearing levers are mounted on the ends of the carriage rather than on the body, and the winding handle is slightly longer. The setting keys move the rotor in the usual manner, but the left and right shift keys move the carriage. The carriage travels up to 9 places. An extended tens-carry mechanism operates across the full width of the accumulator, so that the machine can multiply two 9-digit numbers and produce an exact 18-digit result.

The Model NLX replaced the LX in 1954. The only obvious external difference is in the rotor clearing handle, which now operates horizontally rather than vertically. Internally, however, the machine incorporated a host of changes to refine the details of the mechanism and simplify the construction.

The TK machines were re-styled in the mid-50s to become Model NTK, with the sheet-metal covers being replaced with a two-piece die-cast casing in two-tone green. The cover has no screws, but is held in place by two spring clips concealed in the holes for the clearing levers. The octagonal keytops have been replaced by round for the numerals and rectagular for the shift controls. The maker's details and serial number are on a large aluminium plate on the base of the machine.

A 1957 version of the Facit NTK in a plain grey case.

New model numbers were allocated in 1957, with the TK-style machines becoming Model C1-13. The mechanism did not change significantly, but the case and clearing levers were re-styled, the numeral keys became square, and the Facit badge became round. This 1957 machine is still finished in the earlier two-tone green, with the Facit name spelled out across the back on a row of separate small round buttons. The metal-foil label above the registers was prepared by the local agents as a conversion table from pence to decimals of a pound. A more technical label was available for scientific and engineering applications.

This C1-13 from early 1966 has the same TK-style mechanism in a rather more angular die-cast housing. The case is finished in a monotone medium-grey gloss. There is a rectangular name badge on the front, with larger square letters across the back.

The nameplate of this 1967 machine reflects the change in company name from Atvidaberg-Facit to Facit AB in 1966. The colour scheme of the C1-13 changed to a very light grey, with a black base and keyplate and white shift keys. The mechanism is basically identical to the previous version.

This 1971 machine was the final version of the C1-13. The die-cast housing has been replaced by moulded plastic in a medium grey, with a pale yellow background around the registers. Production ended in Sweden in 1972, but the C1-13 was reportedly still made in India into the 1980s.

Model CM2-16 from the 1960s was the first Facit calculator to use the now-familiar ten-key numeric keypad in place of the 2-row "Dalton" keyboard. The keypad mechanism achieves a very light touch by eliminating (almost) all spring tension on the downstroke, and using the rotor escapement and return spring to provide the restoring force for the upstroke.

The calculating mechanism is similar in principle to the Model TK, but is rather more elaborate. The rotor has been extended to 11 digits, with 9 in the counter register and 16 in the accumulator. The extra handle on the left-hand side controls a "back transfer" mechanism, which can operate between either the accumulator or the counter register and the rotor. (Most back-transfer mechanisms operate from the accumulator only, to allow re-use of the result from a multiplication. Back-transfer from the counter is a rare but valuable feature which provides the same convenience in division). The first three of the red control keys have the same functions as on the C1-13; the fourth (rightmost) is used to position the rotor for back-transfers. The machine has extensive interlocks to prevent mis-operation.

The CM2-16 is much heavier than the smaller 13-digit models, and is supported on rollers at the rear to allow it to be pushed back on the desk when not in use. The original owner of this machine has labelled it with the date of purchase: 18 May 1965.

Model CM2-16S is a "Special" version of the CM2-16 which omits the back-transfer mechanism. The machine has a different keyplate and a revised pivot arrangement for the register clearing levers, but is otherwise identical to the standard model. The published lists of serial numbers suggest that only 30 units were ever built (199001 to 199030).
Facit CM2-16S nameplate

Model CM2-13S is another "Special" version of the CM2-16 in the older 9 x 8 x 13 register configuration, and without the back-transfer mechanism. The unwanted components were simply left out during assembly.

Pinwheels 10 and 11 are still present and can be seen through the setting window at the left of the rotor, but they are not fitted with pins or setting rings. The accumulator carry drum still has all 16 places fitted, even though the register only has 13 places. The only components that are actually different in the 13S are the keyplate and register masks, the pivot post for the clearing levers, and a couple of spacers to limit the rotor travel.

The CM2-13S was functionally equivalent to the smaller and cheaper C1-13, and apparently was not a commercial success. Only a couple of hundred units were made during a brief period in the mid-1960s. The machine illustrated has a Sterling-currency conversion label above the register windows, indicating that it was sold prior to 1966.

The Facit model range was reorganised again in 1967, with new model numbers in a 10-XX series. Model 10-04 is essentially the same as the well-established CM2-16, but with a plastic housing, a much lighter colour scheme, and a pull-out carry handle at the front.

Facit's first electrically-driven calculators from the mid-1930s just used the motor to replace the winding handle. As additional automatic functions were added, the mechanical control systems became more and more complex, with operating levers sprouting from any available location.

This electric Model NEA from the 1940s is based on the 13-digit TK mechanism. The machine is deeper and wider than the TK, with the motor drive located at the rear and the mechanical control system at the right-hand end. The Model NEA performs fully automatic division and semi-automatic multiplication, but register clearing is still done manually by the handles on the left.

This machine illustrated was built in 1949, and was the main office calculator for a firm of surveyors in Melbourne during the 1950s. It continued in everyday use until replaced by a programmable electronic calculator in the mid-1960s.

The Model NE was produced for a short period in the mid-1950s as a simpler and cheaper alternative to the Model NEA. Its only automated feature is a mechanism which trips the main clutch when underflow occurs during division.

Facit's first fully-automatic calculator was the Model ESA (Electric Super-Automat) from 1945. The ESA extended the functions of the Model NEA (above) to include an automatic 8-digit multiplier, but it retained the manual clearing levers. Model ESA-0 from 1949 added a motorised clearing mechanism with three additional keys at the lower front. The keys and registers are numbered I, II, and III in left-to right order.

Model ESA-0 was re-styled in 1956 to become Model CA1-13. The one-piece pressed-metal case was replaced with a two-part die-cast cover finished in a light two-tone grey. The Facit name is embossed into the upper section and appears on the small round badge below the counter register.

This CA1-13 from 1963 uses an AC capacitor-run motor instead of the earlier universal (brush-type) motor. The only external changes are to the colour scheme and the Facit badge on the top panel.

A 1964 version of the CA1-13 in a more angular one-piece case, finished in a monotone grey gloss. This numbering of the registers has been reversed in this (and subsequent) versions - the setting register is now labelled I and the accumulator III.

A late-model CA1-13 in the light grey colour scheme. This model continued until the end of calculator production in 1973.

Facit Model CA2-16 from the 1960s is a fully-automatic machine with a 10-key numeric keypad and fully push-button operation. It is based on the 16-digit pin-wheel mechanism of the CM2-16 manual machine (above).

The keypad enters values directly into the 11-digit pinwheel rotor, and into an 8-place pinbox register which is used for multiplier or constant storage. The machine performs "short-cut" multiplication, and operates at 400 cycles per minute. The rotor travels the full width of the machine, so that it can engage with either the accumulator or the counter register. The rotor can receive back-transferred values from either register, allowing on-going calculations involving the results of a division, and it can transfer values between the registers, allowing the counter to be used as a memory or for the accumulation of products.

Fully-automatic mechanical calculators were complex and expensive machines, which were beyond the means of individuals and many businesses. This machine originally belonged to the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (now RMIT University), where it was used for teaching in the Department of Mathematics.

The Model CA2-16SX is basically identical to the CA2-16 above, but without the accumulation and back-transfer functions on the counter register (Register II).

Model 10-07 from the late 1960s was the last of the Facit electric calculators. It is functionally the same as the Model CA2-16 (above), but with some minor internal changes and a re-styled plastic casing instead of the alloy die-casting.

The "simplified" Model CA2-16SX was similarly re-styled to become Model 10-06.
Facit 10-07 keyboard detail (29kb)

The Facit operator's manuals were very clear and well-written. They contained detailed descriptions of all the controls and functions of the machine, and numerous worked examples of a wide range of calculations.

This Facit Model 1111 is a re-packaged version of the famous Sharp EL-8. The Sharp machine was introduced in November 1970, and is generally accepted as the world's first battery-powered portable electronic calculator. The CPU chips in this machine have date codes from October 1970 to January 1971. The display board appears to have been assembled by Canon, and is dated 46.8.23 (23 August 1971).

The design and operation of the (very similar) Sharp EL-8M is described in more detail on the Sharp page.

Facit 1111 (Sharp EL-8) logic board (39kb).

This Facit Model 1135J from 1971 is a (relatively) compact desktop machine with a 16-digit display and three accessible memories. It is based on a set of seven MOS-LSI chips from Rockwell in America.   More...

The manufacture of electronic printing calculators was made possible by the introduction of the low-cost EP-101 impact printer from Shinshu Seiki Corporation (later to become the Epson Corporation) in 1968.

The Facit 1148 appears to be a more refined version of the Sharp CS-743R from early 1973. The calculator has no numerical display, but prints all entries and results on a 15-column EP-104 impact printer. (The lower section of the case has mountings for the original EP-101 printer, but this machine has the smaller EP-104 mounted on an elevated platform). The processor uses two MOS-LSI chips from NEC, with five support chips and a host of discrete components. The keyboard uses separate mechanical key switches mounted on a circuit board in a metal frame.

When performing addition and subtraction the calculator operates in the same manner as the long-established mechanical adding and listing machines. Values are printed as they are entered via the add and subtract keys, and results are obtained with the (separate) total and sub-total keys. Entries or results can be added to (or subtracted from) the memory register, and retrieved with similar total and sub-total functions. A switch setting allows currency amounts to be entered without using the decimal point key.

Internal view (29kb)
Epson EP-101 printer description