DIY spy: Make your own WWII Enigma Machine

Send your own spy messages with this Enigma Machine replica by ST-Geotronics on Instructables.

(Credit: ST-Geotronics)

You don’t have to be a Bletchley Park alumnus or a wealthy WWII military collector to lay your hands on an Enigma machine. With some savvy technical skills and computer coding, you can make one yourself.

The Enigma machine was an intricate crypto device used primarily during World War II by Nazi Germany to send encoded messages to its military forces. Originally, Enigma machines were used by businessmen in the ’20s who wanted to keep commercial messages secret. In 1923, the German Navy used its own Enigma machine and by the 1930s, it became standard equipment by the German Intelligence divisions.

In October 2013, a 1944 German Enigma machine was available for auction at Bonhams with an estimated worth of up to $82,000. At another auction in 2010, a 1939 Enigma machine fetched $110,900. Over 100,000 Enigma machines were made, but very few had the Enigma insignia.

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