I used to live in Southend and I'm pretty sure it wasn't MY shed! The search for the motor seems a little more complex because the volunteers who went along to buy it failed to note her details or address, so they're appealing for her to get in touch - perhaps the motor will be "available" at a much higher price! Amazing what is out there, tucked away in dusty sheds and generally forgotten until executors and the like start clearing out. I wonder how the Lorenz machine got there, in the first place? Nazi spy survived all through WW2, sending secret messages about shipping in the Thames Estuary and RAF Rochford?
This was posted on the yahoo cryptocollectors group today: "One of the people responsible for buying the machine now on display at the TNMOC tells us two things: 1) The purchase was made around two years ago; it has been undergoing cleaning and restoration since then. This particular model was not known to have been associated with the SZ42 until the cleaning was underway and the military labels were found. So, not at the same time at all.... 2) In general, they are not that rare: the German Lorenz company was manufacturing these devices under license from the Mokrum and Kleinschidt Corp of Chicago, USA, There it is known as a Teletype No. 14. In fact the GPO (the British posts and telecommunications authority of the time) used them in the U.K. as well, where it was known as a Teleprinter No.2.)" So 'Nazi machine' may not be the most apt description (but makes better headlines) and probably, like the SZ42, it was constructed with American standard threads rather than German metric or even Nazi threads. Although the Lorenz parent company, ITT was rumored to have Nazi connections.