• 455 Martinson, Los Angeles
  • 8 (043) 567 - 89 - 30
  • support@email.com
  • ARISTO 90107 specially commissioned model for calculating the lifespan of filament lightbulbs
  • Koch, Huxhold & Hannemann (KHH) - made the surprising System Korte slide rule that does addition & subtraction
  • Smallwood Folding Shoe Sizing Stick in metric for French shoe sizes 10-48 in increments of a Paris point (⅔ cm)
  • Lawrence MIT Antenna slide rule for radar antenna performance was classified during WWII by UK & US governments
  • ALRO-made ruler unusually with a cursor for analysing ECG printouts of the cardiac Sinus Rhythms
  • Hatters Gauge - for measuring the size of a hat but unusually calibrated in metric & imperial
  • Glovers Rule - for measuring the length of a glove in imperial inches
  • Unusual non-logarithmic QR 41 military model by Dennert & Pape (D&P) for training anti-aircraft gunners
  • Colour combinations slide rule made by German WH-Wohnen for Interior Designers
  • Professor Fuller’s Drum Calculator from 1878 - made by W.F. Stanley
  • Modern wristwatch with slide rule bezel calculator made by German maker Kienzle
  • Ruxton made Multi-Vider combined drop-lead pencil & slide rule
  • Rare Otis King Model N for Retail & Monetary with white scales (422 & 424) on a black background
  • Darnley’s Rotable Lightning Calculator/Pencil Case calculating aid
  • Makeba made Kombinator combination pencil & slide rule
  • Rare Carbic-made Fischer Calculator slide rule
  • Specialist slide rule for a national home cable radio broadcasting system offered in The Netherlands from 1930 to1970
  • Smallest drum (≈ 2.4m) made by renowned Swiss maker LOGA

A man must have a hobby….

hobby

This non-commercial website was an amazing 60th birthday present from my soulmate Ros. But the website name is thanks to another family member - our daughter Siân. When asked as a teenager what I did, she often told her friends: “My dad? Oh, he collects expensive sticks of wood!”

When the latest computer is out-of-date inside 6 months, it may come as a surprise that the Rev. William Oughtred (1575-1660) invented his Circles of Proportion calculator around 1621. This analogue principle was in continual use for nigh on the next 400 years. My hobby is collecting and writing about this analogue calculating wonder - the SLIDE RULE. Over the years the concept was successfully adopted and adapted by many trades and professions. Remarkably being able to use such an elegant analogue instrument from a bygone age is still a licensing condition for all private and commercial pilots.

This website is a virtual “display cabinet” for my collection (as it gets uploaded) of slide rules, slide charts and mechanical calculating aids and a virtual “bookshelf” for my published articles.

My wish list

wishlist
Sought after models still missing from the collection:
MakerModel(s)
A.W. Faber-Castell1/38, 8/13, 8/14, 8/15, 20/44/3 & 51/88
Addiator GmbHOctadat
AHREND (Wed. J. Ahrend & Zoon)649, 651, 696, 698, 699 & 701
ALRO (All-Round)101, 10 RL, Beton, Cycloop, GoA, Ha.C/P/Q/V, Philips Calendar, Nomographie, Van Leer, Vonderlingenplaat & WeR4
AWF (Ausschuss fuer Wirtschaftliche Fertigung)SR703, SR705-709, & SR754
Controller Calculator200 R
DARGUE Bros. Ltd. / SimplonSub-Ivory SR-1 & SR-4 + Honduras SD10, WR-2A, WR-5 & WR-7
Fearns CalculatorsBarber Shop Harmony Calculator
FowlerNautical, Artillery, Kearns & Mackay
Inglisany FLASH RECKONER
ITAB (Internationaler Tabellenverlag)Multicalor Flachheizkorper & Styropor-Vollwarmeschutz
IWA (Ingenieurbuero fuer wirtschaftliches Arbeiten)15489 Harmonik
Johann Faber180/080, 180/082, 9201, 9202, 9203 & 9204
Keuffel & Esser (K&E)4081-3 Braille version
KOSMOSBook: "De Rekenliniaal" - 11th & 12th Editions
L&C Hardtmuth / Classic10" Series III
Lawrence Engineering ServicesS-M (C.V. Ore) & Exposure (MIT)
LOGA Calculator A.G.TF, T150, T300, O2 Calculator, 30 TxC & 75 Terminator
LOGAREX27705
Logomat Rechengeräte1300/1303
NestlerRP 75, Kreisrechner & Disc-O-Lator
S.R.&S.E. (Slide Rule & Scale Eng. Co.)- any -
Systeem Matthijssen- any -
UniqueJunior, Study 500/700/900 & J180/181/182

The history of the slide rule - how it all began ....

history

To learn more about the history of this calculating wonder check out the “Slide Rule History” by the Oughtred Society (OS) or my 2-page summary (in Dutch).

Need a “memory jogger” or just intrigued how such bygone analogue calculators worked, then the International Slide Rule Museum (ISRM) offers an online  teach yourself course: “How To Use The Slide Rule”. Alternatively download the self-running 35mm “slide show” Training Programme with synchronised audio commentary I digitalised. Afterwards try out some test calculations using Robert Wolf's online simulation of the classic Nestler 23R wooden slide rule. If this gets you thinking about starting your own collection, then the UKSRC/OSBeginner’s Guide to Collecting Slide Rules” is a must read.

For educators looking for maths related inspiration and teaching aids/material then you need to look no further than Nicola Marras’ slide rule inspired website. But if you are just looking for reference works/published books on slide rules try one of these inventories: List 1 or List 2.

news - So far 1536 items are loaded from my collection

news
10 April 2024

LATEST ADDITIONS – CHINESE

For calculating China is renowned for its use of the abacus or suanpan. But they also had slide rule makers. Interestingly they followed the East Asian fondness for producing models richly embellished with technical scales. Consequently specialist hyperbolic types are common. 

12 January 2024

SAD NEWS

Close friend Peter Holland, the well-known German collector, tragically passed away on 31/12/2023. Peter, just 68, was the respected foremost expert on German maker: A.W. Faber-Castell. In 2009 he published the 1st edition of his ground-breaking book on this German maker. The book’s popularity was so great it would be reissued 7 times before becoming a digital book in 2020 - so far downloaded over 2300 times. 

21 October 2023

ALRO book - RELAUNCHED

Dutch maker ALRO is famous for its circular slide rules where the lid doubles up as a desk stand. Otto van Poelje has meticulously catalogued and photographed every model (disc or chart) ALRO ever made. At the recent online 2023 Int. Meeting the book was relaunched. Watch the short video clip about the book here … and order your copy here … 

02 November 2022

MAJOR MAKERS IN PICTURES

Rod Lovett’s facility listing the slide rule models of 14 major makers has been expanded with 7 new image archives – click HERE to take a look.

26 July 2022

TWO IMPORTANT NEW e-BOOKS!

Thanks to Jose G. Fernández collectors can now download free-of-charge English & Spanish translations of Rechenschieber im Wandel der Zeit - a book published in 2009 by Guus Craenen. It charts the development and evolution of the slide rule from 1787 to 1905. Click HERE to go to the download webpage.

01 August 2020

MAGICAL SLIDE RULES

Did you know a special model exists for each house of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft & Wizardry? Depending on your Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff or Slytherin affiliations select your Harry Potter inspired sorcerous slide rule simulation from Robert Wolf’s website ...

01 October 2019

The IMPOSSIBLE is POSSIBLE!

Generically a slide rule can solve complex calculations but CANNOT do simple arithmetic. A rare and unusual exception is the newest addition to the collection - a System Korte slide rule that CAN add and subtract!

02 February 2017

TOP SECRET !!

Lawrence made the only known slide rule considered so vital to the WWII effort that the UK & US governments had it classified - based on research from MIT it calculated radar antenna beam patterns, beam width, gain, etc.

Latest additions

newadd

Slide Rules

Kienzle, Tachograph, Transport, C, Other/simplex, metal/paper