K&E's Beginner's Slide Rule Line
Almost from the beginning, Keuffel and Esser sold slide rules for beginners
The Keuffel and Esser Company, USA, founded in 1884, sold slide rules from Europe starting in 1886 and began manufacturing their own rules in 1891. They were the first major U.S. company to design and manufacture high-quality slide rules, and continued doing so until 1976. Early in their production history the company introduced a less expensive rule for students as first shown in their 1897 catalog. Providing inexpensive K&E slide rules with the same scales as their popular premiere models, but for teaching the basic use and care of slide rules, K&E improved the probability of future customers choosing K&E rules for professional use — a good marketing strategy.
A fine chronology of their “Beginner’s” rules can be found at the web site maintained by Clark McCoy where he and Michael O’Leary have documented much of K&E’s model line. Further information on the Beginner’s rules can be found in a 1995 article in the Journal of the Oughtred Society by Babcock.1 In addition, the Paul Tarantolo Collection, maintained by the Oughtred Society, has a collection of over 30 different variants of the Beginner’s model with suggested date information.
For me, the K&E Beginner’s Rules have turned into a nice sub-collection that is relatively easy to build up, and that nicely illustrates the development of the line over time. With the exception of the earliest iteration of this rule, I have come across most other versions that were sold over its 70 years in the K&E catalogs. The earliest model number was “1749-1”, but was changed to “4058” which lasted for over six decades. A newer all-plastic model with a scale re-arrangement – the “4158” and the “68-1892”, also labeled “K12 Prep” – replaced the 4058 line in 1961 until about 1972.
The Beginner’s line at K&E began with the same scales as found on their premium mahogany Mannheim slide rule, the Model 4041, which had the A/B, C/D scales along with S, L, and T on the back of the slide. This lasted until 1944, when the Beginner’s model was changed to the scale set of their popular Model 4053. In 1961 a modified version of this scale set was introduced which placed the scales on the back of the slide onto the front of the rule. This version lasted until the end of the line in about 1972. But in addition to these major changes, slight variations were implemented over the years which makes this model one of K&E’s most varied.
Below I have reproduced a timeline from the McCoy site, where the bulleted lines contain comments from McCoy that he generated from the information found in the K&E catalogs on his web site. As noted by McCoy, “Exact timing is not possible because of the time between catalogs.” So the dates used below refer to the dates of K&E catalogs. Images of relevant items that I have collected are interspersed among the comments made by McCoy and O’Leary, with my own comments found in italics.
The K&E Beginner’s Slide Rules
Pre-1915:
1897 — The 1749-1 model number was first shown and referred to as the “Student’s Slide Rule” in the K&E catalog. It is described as having a white paper face with printing on it. It had a celluloid cursor with a metal frame around it.
1901 — The 1749-1 model number was changed to 4058 and the cursor was different.
In the catalogs shown on the McCoy site I found that the 1749-1 and the 4058 were described as paper scales adhered to a wood frame until at least 1911. The Tarantolo Collection has a nice example of these rare items, which is dated as 1909.
1915 — The rule had the printing directly on the boxwood frame. The cursor is of bent celluloid with a steel spring.
The 1913 and 1915 catalogs do not mention the physical composition of the rule, but the 1915 catalog shows a change in cursor from a metal cursor to a “transparent Xylonite indicator, with steel spring”. The image of the 4058 in the 1915 catalog shows a “pi” symbol next to a gauge mark on the A and B scales, while the image found in the 1913 catalog has the gauge mark (a line) but no “pi” symbol. McCoy points out that by 1915 the paper scales were replaced by direct printing onto wood.
One slide rule I have, shown below, has interesting features and appears to me that it might be from about 1913-1915. If so, it is the earliest 4058 I own at the moment. It has scales printed directly onto the wood, not onto paper.
In the above, note the model number is on the left, there is no π symbol (though there is a gauge mark line at pi), no Patent number, and no L scale label on the slide. The slide rule itself has no reference to “Student” or “Beginner”. The Montreal facility, referenced on the box, was created in 1908. Below is an image of the instructions that came in the box shown above, and were written in 1909. They refer to the Student’s Slide Rule; its image does have a π symbol:
The Tarantolo Collection shows a slide rule with these same features and is dated as 1918, yet it does not have the pi symbol shown in the 1915 catalog. His collection shows the “pi” arriving on a rule in about 1921. Perhaps the rules sold and the rules shown in the instructions were not always identical in every detail.
Here, we have π symbols and gauge marks on the A/B scales and the 1916 Patent is present. Also the L scale is labeled. Note the 4058 label is now on the right end of the slide. This is similar to one in the Tarantolo Collection dated 1921.
On the above slide rule we see the term “Student’s Slide Rule” on the back, and the table on the back has been changed. This cursor very likely is not the original. From the Tarantolo Collection the addition of “Student’s Slide Rule” on the back appears on a rule from 1923.
1925 — The N4058C was introduced in the catalog. The 4058 was also offered. The N4058C has an all glass cursor with wood blocks. The name was changed from “Student’s Slide Rule” to “Beginner’s Slide Rule”.
I have yet to find a rule labeled N4058C. My presumption from the Tarantolo Collection is that it would be just a 4058, but with an all-glass cursor (the “C”, presumably). Perhaps the “N4058C” labeling was found on the box?
1930 — The 4058W was introduced in the catalog. The 4058 and N4058C were also available. The 4058W has a white paint type finish that the scales are printed on.
A similar rule to this last example is found in the Tarantolo Collection, dated 1936.
1936 — The 4058C replaced the N4058C. We cannot tell if there was an actual change. The 4058 and 4058W were also available.
The above rule matches one found on the Tarantolo site that dates to 1937, which also has the metal cursor.
1939 — The 4059, an 8" version of the 4058, was introduced. The 4058, 4058C and 4058W were also available.
The 4059 would be nice to find someday! An example of this rule can be found here and here.
1942 — The 4058D was introduced replacing the 4058 and 4058C. The 4058D had a celluloid cursor like the 1915 version. The 4058W was still offered. The 4059 was not offered.
1943 — The 4058W is the only offering in the K&E catalog. The 8858 was offered as a loaner during the war and could be traded in when K&Es production was back up. The 8858 was a 4058 with a cardboard box with special instructions on the box.
Another one to be on the lookout for. One can view an example of the 8858 here.
1944-b — The N4058W is released and the 4058W is not shown in the catalog. The N4058W has the 4053 scale set with a “plain frame Glass Indicator”.
The “1944-b” refers to the second catalog that was released that year. We see the change in scales from A [ B C ] D to A [ B CI C ] D K, and the change to a glass cursor with metal frame. The slide rule above agrees with one on the Tarantolo site, dated 1946.
1954 — The N4058W is shown with an all-plastic cursor.
1959 — The N4058W is last shown in the 1959 Price List.
Note the new table of “Conversion Factors” on the back. This would have been the last style of the Beginner’s slide rule labeled as a Model 4058. By 1961 the new “K12 Prep” slide rule took its place, the year before I went into Kindergarten (the “K” in “K12”).
1961 — The 4158 (K12 Prep) was released. It is not shown in any catalog. It was the predecessor of the 68-1892.
1962 — The 68-1892 (K12 Prep) replaced the old 4058 group.
It was in 1962 that K&E began using their new Product Numbers that began with a “68”. A link to the conversion of their numbering can be found on the McCoy web site.
1972 — The K12 Prep is last shown in the 1972 catalog.
The 68-1892 in the last image above is the special edition model, mounted on a heavy leather pad for ease of operation on a desk. (Note: There are no scales or other text on the back of these newer-model “K12 Prep” rules.)
Keuffel and Esser’s Beginner’s slide rule family was used for introducing students to the slide rule in the initial training of future scientists, engineers, and business executives. It was not unusual for schools to buy supplies of Beginner’s rules to be used for several years by many students. As ascertained from the 1929 K&E catalog according to Babcock, “the 4058 with the Xylonite indicator was $0.75, the 4058C with the frameless indicator was $1.00, and the 4058W was $1.25, or 33% more expensive than the 4058. However, this was still much less expensive than the $6.50 for a basic model 4041 Mannheim rule.”
The evolution of the K&E Beginner’s rules over the years makes this model and its variations an attractive sub-collection to seek out, and I still have a few variations to find and properly identify. Happy hunting!
Bruce Babcock, “K&E Student’s and Beginner’s Slide Rules – 1897-1954”, JOS Vol.4, No. 2, p.41 (1995).
I didn't realize that the humble K&E beginners rule had so many variations. I have a few, but never paid much attention to them. Now I will have to see which ones in the article they match up with.
I didn’t know that K&E had an office in Montréal. Lo and behold, I bike past it everyday on my way to work. I now wonder if my 4058W could have been made there. Thanks for the great post, Mike!