original HP calculator cases.

[burkhard]

Is there a page somewhere where someone has endeavored to keep track of case variants that were available for different models? In the auction site / flea market world things are frequently "re-cased", and while it isn't a deal breaker, having the right case is a bonus.

A couple of questions in particular:

1. I know there are at least two varieties of cases for the 41 as I have one of each. They are very similar, but one clearly has a little more "breathing room".
• The smaller one looks to be about 1 cm shorter (eyeball estimate)
• The smaller one looks to be about 1 cm narrower (eyeball estimate)
• The mottled brown "pleather" material of the smaller one has a slightly different color cast... maybe a tinge of green.
• Does anyone know which case was used with what models and when? My "smaller" one came with a fullnut 1982 HP-41CV, while the bigger case came with a 1986 halfnut 41-CX. No idea if either was original to its calculator, though.

2. Although I know better, I tend to think of the HP-67 as being a "Classic" and thus would expect to have it come with an real leather case as was used with all the Classics. I'm not sure that is correct thinking, though. They started production in 1976 and had a relatively long run until 1982. Did it use the same case the whole time? If so, was it a real leather case (like a Classic) or a pleather case (like a Woodstock).

3. Did the Classics themselves use the nice leather case the whole time? The HP-80 in particular had a long run. Did they stick with the leather case throughout or did they start pinching pennies?

4. I've seen several variants of the Classics' leather case (the real HP one, not aftermarket). The version for the 65 (and 67, I assume) is a little bigger to give room for the slightly extra girth of those models, but there are also ones with/without an external pocket in the front and ones with/without a belt loop (pure nerd chic!) on the back. So how many design variations were there and when were these offered for which models? I've got one (apparently) original HP leather case that is so tight it seems made at 9/10s scale. It is "tight as the skin on a grape" on even the non-cardreader models.

It's a bit of a shame the proper case(s) for each model aren't shown on the Museum pages. They are a great reference otherwise for such information. Seeing a picture of the original case (or cases) for each model would be useful I think.

[Zaphod]

Quote:1. I know there are at least two varieties of cases for the 41 as I have one of each. They are very similar, but one clearly has a little more "breathing room".
• The smaller one looks to be about 1 cm shorter (eyeball estimate)
• The smaller one looks to be about 1 cm narrower (eyeball estimate)
• The mottled brown "pleather" material of the smaller one has a slightly different color cast... maybe a tinge of green.
• Does anyone know which case was used with what models and when? My "smaller" one came with a fullnut 1982 HP-41CV, while the bigger case came with a 1986 halfnut 41-CX. No idea if either was original to its calculator, though.

I seem to remember when I bought my 41 (brand new, but gone long since) the case had space to accommodate the 41 and the card reader attached, and I think there was a foam block in there to use the case when you didn’t have the card reader ?

Can’t remember the colour though.

[burkhard]

(11-12-2018 08:58 PM)Zaphod Wrote:  I seem to remember when I bought my 41 (brand new, but gone long since) the case had space to accommodate the 41 and the card reader attached, and I think there was a foam block in there to use the case when you didn’t have the card reader ?

Can’t remember the colour though.

Sorry, I should have been more explicit. This is just a slight difference of ≈1 cm in both length and width. It's definitely enough to see side-by-side however. Perhaps I should take a photo... I just checked and both cases are long enough to accommodate the card reader if attached. It's a real squeeze on the smaller case, however. Both probably both had those foam blocks but mine were undoubtedly lost by the previous owners long ago. The smaller case is still oddly long if someone weren't thinking about the card reader. It's like they left room for it, but not quite enough.

The color variation is subtle as well and might not show well in a photo. Both are pebbled fake brown leather but the color is a little bit different (more attractive on the big, IMO).

I actually have a second of the "big" cases and it seems identical both in color and size to the other big one. So my sample size is just two big cases and one small. There are some clear differences big↔small, however.

[burkhard]

Here's a picture of what I am talking about with respect to the two different designs of HP-41 cases I have. I lined them up such that you should be able to see how the "little" case is both a smidge shorter and a smidge narrower than the two "big" cases.

And the color is a bit different—a greenish cast on the "little" one, which isn't too appealing.

My guess is that the little greenish case was the earlier design, but fit was too tight (especially with the cardreader attached) and the color had taken some complaints, so they tweaked each a little "at some point" during production.

I just don't know when (or with which variant) "at some point" took place. Any ideas?