Pilot P3
A development by the Pilot Business Machine Company of Tokyo, Japan, as their final model in the range of Pilot calculators. Its predecessor was developed by the Keybar company in 1957, sold under that brand name for three years before being merged with the Pilot business machine company, who continued to market it with detail changes (cranks for the clearing instead of rather stereo-like round plastic knobs) and the Pilot P1 name. The machine immediately brings back memories of the Brunsviga 10 - the layout is quite similar. However, that is where the similarity ends - the Pilot machines are pinwheel machines, whereas the Brunsviga 10 is a stepped drum machine with "biquinary" stepped drums. I am not sure whether any Pilot P2's exist, or what they would even look like, but the P3 is quite common in Japan.This one came in its flight case (...) which unfortunately always loses red hair onto the housing of the machine, which then sticks because of static electricity.
The machine itself is small, and once you take the plastic shell off, it is even smaller. In fact, you need a large screwdriver to take the bottom of the shell off ...
...then a much smaller screwdriver to take out the screws that connect the machine itself to the top of the housing ...
...and then suddenly you find yourself in Japanese camera territory, with tiny screws and black painted brass plate. The mechanical part of the machine can easily be held within in one hand, and I would almost classify it as a miniature machine.
Inside, we can observe the tiny pinwheel cylinder, the cool spiral gears that connect the crank to the pinwheel cylinder, and generally the small size and precision in the gear trains and tens' carry for the revolution register -as well as the large spiral spring that puts the tension on the carriage.
Operation is totally uneventful. The carriage is spring loaded, and when extended to the right, it can be tabbed back one step at a time by the large green button at the bottom left.
These are some pictures of the machine:
