Typewriter Talk / Scheidegger Princess

**Posted by robmck** 01-11-2023 10:24:26

After watching a Joe van Cleeve video, I started looking around at Princess typewriters. I notice that several are badged as Scheidegger Princess typewriters. Are these just rebadges (like a Tower series 5, or Underwood Noiseless), or are they a different configuration or manufacture?

**Posted by Laurenz van Gaalen** 01-11-2023 11:45:33

According to Frank Hahne the Scheidegger is the same as the Princess 300:
https://typewriterdatabase.com/1967-scheidegger-keller-und-knappich-princessmatic.13120.typewriter

**Posted by Uwe** 01-11-2023 13:27:01

For what it's worth, I can add what I know about the company.

Scheidegger was a Swiss-German typing school that had several locations in Germany and throughout Europe (Austria, Belgium, England, France, Netherlands, Switzerland).

I believe that it was because of the company’s size, and its access to new typists, it logically branched out into selling private label typewriters. Some of these typewriters were identical to the manufacturer’s version of that model, but some were modified for Scheidegger specifically as machines designed to learn touch typing on. The Scheidegger Typomatic TMS branded Adler below is an example of one.

There were of course other typewriters available to learn touch typing; a number of different Olympia-Tip models immediately come to mind.

I don’t know how many different manufacturers produced Scheidegger-branded machines, but I have seen models made by Princess (Keller & Knappich), Adler (and Triumph), and Olivetti.

**Posted by robmck** 01-11-2023 18:21:52

Thanks for the information, Laurenz and Uwe!

**Posted by robmck** 01-11-2023 18:24:34

I'd not realized the extent of what Keller & Knappich (now KUKA) made: History of KUKA: Automation then and now | KUKA AG.

**Posted by Pete E.** 01-11-2023 18:28:26

I see these offered for sale at 2x less than the Princess 300's.

You could pick up a nice one, repaint the ribbon cover and then buy a plastic "Princess 300" logo off of one of the gals in the FB groups...and glue that in place on the cover. I think she moulds them and not just some 3D thing. She does Smith Corona and Olpympia piexe, too.

**Posted by robmck** 01-11-2023 20:51:55

Pete E. wrote:
I see these offered for sale at 2x less than the Princess 300's.

I noticed that too... Still somewhat expensive, but not the crazy prices of Princess 300s.

Pete E. wrote:
You could pick up a nice one, repaint the ribbon cover and then buy a plastic "Princess 300" logo off of one of the gals in the FB groups...and glue that in place on the cover. I think she moulds them and not just some 3D thing. She does Smith Corona and Olpympia piexe, too.

Alas, I'm not on Facebook. Do you know if they have some other means of contact?

**Posted by thetypewriterman** 02-11-2023 04:34:08

As Uwe mentioned, Scheidegger was a Swiss-based typing and office practice correspondence school. As far as I am aware, they didn't 'sell' their typewriters, they 'gave them away'. Of course, the price of the practice typewriter was rolled up in the expensive tuition fee, and you got to keep the machine after you had completed the course. As far as I know, they first went to K and K, and then when K and K finished manufacture, to Triumph-Adler. When T-A finished with the Gabriele, it left Scheidegger with a problem and they went to Olivetti. The Olivetti was a parts bin special, exclusive to Scheidegger and featured amongst other things an extended linespace lever. If you look at all the Scheidegger typewriters, the one thing that they have in common is that they have all the features that you would expect to find on a full-size office manual.

**Posted by Pete E.** 02-11-2023 07:12:44

Hi Rob,

I am afraid I do not now.

**Posted by Uwe** 02-11-2023 17:08:39

Thanks for the information, Tom. I've added your insights to my Scheidegger file.