[GreenKeys] Kleinschmidt TT-4A

[Duncan Brown]

Greg,

The TT-4 was the basic tactical teletypewriter of the US Army from 1950 
into the 1970s.  (1948 isn't too far  off,  but production didn't start 
until about 1950.  Look at the nomenclature plate: there should be a 
"Contract number."  Usually the last two digits of the contract number 
is the year of the contract.)

During WWII, the US Army realized the importance of teletypewriters, but 
wanted something a little lighter than the Teletype Corp Model 15. 
Edward Kleinschmidt was one of the founders of the Teletype Corporation 
in the 1920s.  When the US Army announced that they wanted a design for 
a new family of machines, EE Kleinschmidt came out of retirement  to 
found Kleinschmidt Laboratories Inc. and design the new machine for the 
Army.  Other KLI machines that came out of the TT-4 design are the TT-98 
( a deluxe, fixed station, TT-4, and the TT-76, a tape reperforator and 
tape reader. (there were then many derivations of these machines.)  So  
the TT-4 is a "historic" teletypewriter, but there are very few (if any) 
individuals who would pay $250 for one.

The $250 (USD) price is high, even for one in perfect condition. The 
TT-4A is an early model, there were also "B" & "C" models, which had 
minor improvements.  $25 would be closer, especially  for unknown 
condition.  First  test of an unknown condition TTY is to try to turn 
the motor by hand (CW for TT-4). If it turns and things move inside the 
machine, it is probably usable.

Parts for any old TTY can be hard to come by, but they were built 
ruggedly and usually all an old one needs is cleaning and lubrication.

I was a US Army TTY repairman and worked on the TT-4s in Viet Nam. I 
always liked the TT-4 because they are relatively straight-forward and 
easy to work on.

Depending on their condition, here in the US, you might get both of them 
for $25.  But they are probably more rare in Australia.  If you can 
negotiate a reasonable price, I would take both of them.  Once you get 
them working, you can see which is the better unit and use the other for 
parts.

Have fun & good luck,

Duncan, K2OEQ
USASA 31J30




On 04-Jul-12 08:00, Greg Arnoldussen wrote:
> Hello.  I have found two Kleinschmidt TT-4A teletypewriters for sale 
> locally (here in Australia).  I had only enough time to take a 
> fleeting glance at the machines as I was on a short break from my 
> work, one has a cover and one does not.  He has tagged the machines as 
> being made in 1948 but I think they may be more modern than this.
>
> I am hoping someone in the "know" could provide a brief account of 
> this particular model.  From my limited reading on the subject they 
> appear to be fairly rare models?  He wants $250 each and as I do not 
> know if they even work (condition etc)  I think that is an excessive 
> price and I would have to beat him down quite a bit before I was 
> interested.
>
> I am interested in attempting to restore a teletypewriter of some 
> model and since they appear to be difficult to source here I think 
> these two machines might be a good place to start - however, in 
> addition to a history lesson I'd also like to know if (in general) the 
> parts are going to be a challenge to source.  Like I said they look to 
> be in OK condition.
>
> I hope to provide the forum with more details on the weekend - sorry 
> that they have been sketchy thus far!
>
> Thanks for your time.
>
> Greg.
>
>
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