If all they found was the teleprinter, and not the crypto machine, this isn't a big deal. That is just the Lorenz version of the Teletype Model 14 tape printer, built under license. These are not that rare. I have three of the Teletype Corp version. (One is in operation right now at the Clockwork Alchemy Steampunk Convention in San Jose. Visit the Telegraph Office there today.) The crypto machine part is separate; it's a big electric-powered rotor machine, like an Enigma with more rotors. This tape printer may be special because the serial numbers match a historic crypto machine, which museum types care about.
Here's my overhaul of the Teletype Corp. version.[1] Here's a Lorenz version someone else has.[2] Here's Bletchley Park's set, with the crypto unit and the teleprinter.[3]
After I got my first Model 14, I had the paper tape they need made by a company in China. The minimum order was 500 rolls, so I sometimes sell paper tape to museums. (I tried US manufacturers first. Either they didn't want a small order, wanted a very high price, or the edge quality of the paper was so bad the tape would jam.)
Here's my overhaul of the Teletype Corp. version.[1] Here's a Lorenz version someone else has.[2] Here's Bletchley Park's set, with the crypto unit and the teleprinter.[3]
After I got my first Model 14, I had the paper tape they need made by a company in China. The minimum order was 500 rolls, so I sometimes sell paper tape to museums. (I tried US manufacturers first. Either they didn't want a small order, wanted a very high price, or the edge quality of the paper was so bad the tape would jam.)
[1] http://www.aetherltd.com/refurbishing14.html [2] http://www.teleprinter.net/english/inhalt/t2.shtml [3] http://cryptomuseum.com/crypto/lorenz/sz40/img/301491/000/fu...