Thanks Steve and DaveC for the charger info. I made a battery pack using NiCd cells and connected it to the calculators battery compartment. The display lights up and displays the number "6". I can switch to Prgm mode and it shows "000". Most keys have no effect. Some keys show dim "1"s on the right side. Seems the calculator is broken. Or is there anything I can do?

Is the 'low battery' lamp at the bottom of the display on? Is the printer switch off? Is there a card stuck in the mechanism? More when you have had a look at this (but you'll need a screwdriver) :)

There is a lamp at the top of the display and it is off after i charged the batteries completely. I opened the case and checked for any disconnected wires or stuck cards. There aren't any. When i switch to program mode and hit the "6" key many times, sometimes the program counter advances to 001 or 002.

Next I'd check for stuck keys. It would be unlikely that the keyboard is corroded as examples I have seen have gold contacts. You are still getting the 6 on the display when you switch it on?

If you live in or near Vienna, we could try to open and repair it.

Thanks Reinhard, I took it apart and repaired the keyboard. It's working fine now.

BTW, do you know anybody in Austria who still sells magnetic cards?

Sorry no, if I find some on ebay or so, I could import them and send you an offer, but sometimes the guys bidding there are really nuts. I don't know anybody in Austria selling them.

It seems weird, that we communicate in English, when we are both from Austria, but I think it's polite to the other users of the forum. Do you agree ?

You are right about eBay. Sometimes the prices are ridiculous. I just need one card to test the reader. What do I do with eighty cards for 30$ when the reader doesn't work?