[GreenKeys] Model 15 Electrical and Conceptual Help

Fri Aug 7 16:19:48 EDT 2026

got one on my M28. Fantastic!

On Fri, Aug 7, 2026 at 2:59 PM Mike Douglas via GreenKeys <
greenkeys at mailman.qth.net> wrote:

> Here is an easy way to connect a Model 15 to a modern PC:
>
> https://deramp.com/model15_interface.html
>
> Mike
>
> On Aug 7, 2026, at 12:04 PM, hwhall--- via GreenKeys <
> greenkeys at mailman.qth.net> wrote:
>
> 
> >What do I need to buy/build to be able to connect a computer to it?
>
> From your reading, you're probably aware by now that computers don't use
> the same digital codes for characters that are used in computers. It's
> possible to interface them but it requires some translation software or a
> dedicated converter box of some kind. The serial communications loops used
> in computers are also incompatible with the loops used to run the teletypes
> (different voltages & current levels).
> The barrier strip along the right side of the Model 15 is probably the
> best way to connect the machine to AC power and to a magnet current loop
> supply. The Model 15 manuals will show how all those little screw contacts
> are wired internally to the machine. From that you can determine what to
> wire up to the strip.
>
> Wayne
> WB4OGM
>
> On Wednesday, August 5, 2026 at 04:40:27 PM MDT, Thomas McCourt <
> imanirishmanfam at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
>
>
> Hello greenkeys, my name is Thomas, and I am a chemical engineering junior
> who has been interested in mechanical calculators and teletypes for a
> number of years. I was just able to acquire a model 15 off facebook
> marketplace about a month ago. From my experience with messing around
> with typewriters and my Friden calculators I feel pretty confident that I
> can figure out working with the mechanical side of the model 15, but I'm
> entirely out of my depth on the electrical side of things. How electrical
> stuff works on a fundamental level has been entirely non intuitive for me
> and is the reason I didn't go for ECE, and I simply don't know what I don't
> know. I don't want to fry components of this thing, so I'm here.
>
> I've done some research and I've watched all of the Curious Marc videos
> where he restores a 19 and a 15, and I've downloaded and started to read
> the manuals he archived. I also tried looking through the archives of
> greenkeys, but I didn't see any way of sorting it by topic. I still tried
> looking through 1.5 years of the subjects, but I didn't see anything which
> applied to my situation.
>
> My 15 came wired up with a 4 prong plug where 3 of the prongs are
> parallel and the other is perpendicular to the others. It also came with a
> stand which had 2 2 prong wall outlets, the 4 prong, some large 2 prong
> I've never seen, and ports for the send and receive. The stand itself had a
> male 2 prong plug. The last time this was used seems to be in 1958 in a
> hospital based on the paperwork that was under the stand.
>
> With all of that said, I'll ask my questions. Can the 15 be wired such
> that it can be plugged into a standard US outlet without the stand using a
> normal plug? From looking at a wiring diagram which looks like it matches I
> think it says that it can take 110V AC from the 4 prong plug, or 120V DC
> from a different plug. Next, how do I set up a current loop so it can just
> print to itself? What do I need to buy/build to be able to connect a
> computer to it? With the photo I hopefully attached correctly, what are the
> intended purposes of the ports under the stand? What are things I should be
> especially careful of when working on this, in any sense?
>
> Sorry for all of the questions and text, but I wasn't able to figure this
> stuff out from my research thus far,
> Thomas M
>
>
> <20260707_170540.jpg>
> <20260707_170548.jpg>
> <20260707_170525.jpg>
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> <20260707_170525.jpg>
> <20260707_170548.jpg>
> <20260707_170540.jpg>
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