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My Lifelong Morse Code "KEYS" Journey to the WORLD!

✇Ham On A Bike
By: noreply@blogger.com (Ham on a Bike)
1 May 2024 at 01:32

 



In my previous post I touched on my Lifelong Morse Code Journey. This time I'll touch on some of the keys that have helped me on my journey to the WORLD!

As I mentioned in my earlier posts the key below was my first REAL telegraph key I used in my journey. . This key is over 60 years old and has been mounted on presswood, plywood, tables, plastic and currently this piece of granite.  I cannot recall the number of QSOs I've hammered with this key but it has seen me through Novice, General, Advanced and Extra code exams.  As I look back on my journey, not only is this my first piece of ham radio equipment but this instrument is my most PRIZED piece of ham radio equipment. 




When I decided to reacquaint myself with Morse Code, this was the key I used to re-start my journey. In 1983 when I decided to get relicensed as a Novice I purchased a Morse Code Practice Oscillator Kit from Heathkit.  I brought this out of mothballs to continue my Morse Code journey after a 30 year absence. 







Well, it seems that adage about "It's just like riding a bicycle" is true.  I connected my childhood straight key to the Heathkit Code Oscillator and pounded away. 







It didn't take long for my mind and appendages to work in unison. Thanks to operators like Lawrence N2VGA who made it easy to return to the Morse Code mode.






Now that I was reacquainted with doing Morse Code, I decided it was time for this Old Dog to learn a new trick. Even though I had been away from Morse Code for 30 years, the mode of CW has always been in the back of my mind.  Years ago I had purchased a Ten Tec Ultramatic Electronic Paddles to pair with my Ten Ten Omni 546D, only never to use it. Now fully engaged in Morse Code, it was time to continue my Lifelong Morse Code Journey and unbox this key to unlock the door to a NEW WORLD of operating CW.     PADDLES!





This was a difficult transition for me. It took weeks getting the paddles adjusted to my speed and touch. For me, this unit was so sensitive. It was an ALL NEW experience.  But I was not going to let this small piece of metal defeat me.  Operators like Bill,  K4NYM known affectionately as "The POTA Activator"; helped me navigate me through my unmitigated disastrous sending on far too many occasions. But for me, I remembered that as a youth Novice I never let my poor sending stop me from continuing getting on the air to improve my skills. You can practice as much as you like but REAL WORLD experiences are what HELPED ME.




And if that wasn't enough to keep my fingers busy, I had a couple of Bencher paddles laying around collecting dusk. So why not dusk them off and let my fingers tippy toe across their paddles.  I started off in low gear while getting the feel of these Bencher paddles, The BY-1 and BY-2.  




            



For me, these paddles had a different feel than the electronic Ten Tec Ultramatic paddles. I did not hesitate to jump on the air and make contacts as much as possible while making adjustments to the paddles for my personal feel. It didn't take long for me to get really comfortable at higher speeds while having a QSO



    
           
           



As I became more proficient in using paddles, I decided to get more involved  operating more SKCC Straight Key Century Club events and their SKCC Sked Page to garner QSOs. Since the club advocates the use of straight keys, side-sweepers (Cooties) and bugs, it was time for me to try something else new and different.  So I built my own Hacksaw Blade Cootie Key.  Talk about something WAY, WAY out of my COMFORT ZONE. This key pushed me in a good way. It made me become more aware of my sending and not running characters together. It was tough going but well worth it.




     


It took hours of practice and QSOs for me to feel comfortable using the Cootie Key.






  

                              Parks on the Air QSO with Rob WC1N


There is no doubt in my mind I would never have been able to take on this next key, If I had not tried the Cootie Key (Side-Sweeper) first.  Even after many hours of practice, many adjustments and many QSOS, I'm still not where I'd like to be using this next key.  What key?    "The Vibroplex Bug"





It boggles my mind how many operates have in my opinion mastered the use of this key at speeds which are way above my present skill level.  This is how it all started with me and My Vibroplex Bug.





Finally after many hours of practice and on - air QSO, I felt confidence enough with setting my Bug up for higher speeds like this Parks on the Air QSO with Tom NV4H.




Learning how to use these different keys has helped revitalize My Lifelong Morse Code Journey,  A couple of years ago I made a vow not to buy any more radios. However, I NEVER vowed not to buy any more Morse Code Keys.
Here 's what's next on my Christmas list. 

VizKey from Jim W6JIM collection of Keys


 
Santa, I've bene a good boy so far this year. H! Ho!
































 






















Good news and bad news

✇W2LJ QRP - When you care to send the very least!
By: QRP - When you care to send the very least!
11 April 2024 at 12:03

 First the good news ....... there is no bad news!

I spent a bit of time in the shack after dinner last night, and I hooked up the Vibroplex to the computer via that adapter from Ham Radio Solutions. The first thing I found out was that, as it has been such a long time since I last used it, the contacts became so dirty from oxidization as to prevent ANY dits or dahs from being created.


So out came the alcohol and a Q-Tip and an old business card that I found in our desk. Applying the alcohol and wiping it dry with the Q-Tip removed a lot of tarnish. Burnishing the contacts gently with the business card removed even more. The result was that dits and dahs are now being produced, but I have to go to my own Morse Code page connected with this blog to review the procedures for proper adjustment. Even out of whack, I was able to send some CW that the computer was actually able to decipher. My bug fist was not as bad and I had thought it would be! It's more like just plain ol' bad, instead of being horrible or atrocious. I do not think that I will be sending anyone screaming into the night with their ears bleeding, but it's going to take lots more practice before I'm confident enough to take it to the airwaves for some SKCC activity. It would appear that learning to use a bug is like riding a bicycle. You never forget how to do it, but if you've been away from it for a while, you can get pretty rusty.

After playing around with that for  bit, I turned on the KX3 and called "CQ FP" for the Flying Pigs QRP Club "Worked All Pigs" event.  I spotted myself on QRPSPOTS and I turned on RBN to see where my 5 Watts was taking me.


Not bad, as I was even heard down in the Cayman Islands! I was answered by a station most closer to home, however. Gene AA2YO (FP# 4650) from West Deptford, NJ answered my call and we had a nice 20 minute ragchew.  Central NJ to South NJ isn't a really big DX hop, but thanks to Gene, I have my first Flying Pig in the log for this newly revived event. It's a nice alternative to working POTA stations (as much as I love doing that!) with their brief "TU 599 NJ" exchanges. Sometimes you just feel the need for some Morse Code. (Sorry, Maverick!)

72 de Larry W2LJ
QRP - When you care to send the very least!

Begali Intrepid

✇Ham Radio - QRP
By: noreply@blogger.com (AA4OO)
11 May 2023 at 01:34

 The Perfect Bug?

In the Western World we are consumers.  Advertising drives us to think we'd be a bit happier if we had that new "thing", whatever the thing is.  It drives much of our economies and unfortunately keeps many burdened in debt.

That's certainly a pessimistic way to begin this but let's be honest.  No one needs a ~$580 morse code key.  Most of us are handy enough to make a straight key out of stuff laying around the house for free.  I have a number of very fine keys that I've purchased used. I've purchased most of them for well under $70, including my 1970s Standard Vibroplex Bug.


BUT... If we are ham radio operators regularly doing CW, then we spend a lot of time with a morse key under our hand.  I've said this previously, but when you are a CW operator you touch your key more than anything else related to the hobby.  You are moving it many hundreds to thousands of times as you send code.  Your keying becomes part of you and you are intrinsically linked with the ease or difficulty of operating the key for hours at a time.

So...  having a key that is easy to operate; a key that disappears under your hand is an enjoyable thing. 

Operating a Bug correctly, or more precisely in a manner that is pleasing to the person copying your code is more difficult than operating paddles with an electronic keyer.  When the bug was invented it was a tool used by professional telegraphers.  There were no electronic keyers, and having a tool that allowed them to send good code for hours on end with less mechanical stress on their bodies than a straight key was important, and they sought the best tool they could afford to allow them to do their work.

But no one reading this is a professional telegrapher, because that ship has sailed.

For those of us that choose to use a Bug, we do so for different reasons.  For me, I enjoy the control I have in forming my characters, as well as the extra level of difficulty in sending good code.  Why would I want it to be more difficult?  Well, why do we do anything that is challenging.  Being challenged is fun.  It drives me to improve.  It takes my mind off of things that might otherwise crowd my thoughts if I were not doing something challenging that is also fun.

I have operated a bunch of different bugs at my club gettogethers, from different makers.  They all have a different feel.  They all intrigue or annoy their user.  I have two Vibroplex Bugs at my station.  I've previously written about them.  They each have advantages and challenges but they share the same design and they have more in common than they do differences.

A New Design

Fortunately for amateur radio operators there are still new keys being developed, and in this case a new design for a semi-automatic key that has a markedly different design from most of the bugs that came before. 

The Begali Intrepid is distinctive in a few ways:
  • The pendulum hinge is at the rear of the key rather than the middle
  • The adjustments are all based on magnets rather than springs
  • The dwell for the dits has a real control, rather than using various pieces of foam, string or clips to change dwell time
  • The dit contact is a sprung plunger that always remains centered on the contact rather than brushing against it at various angles
  • The split lever mechanism operates at the center of the key placing the DAH and DIT contacts much closer to one another than a traditional bug
  • There is less mass in the pendulum itself than a Vibroplex Bug
  • It has a sprung, nylon wheel damper that doesn't clatter
  • It weighs a TON (well about 6 lbs) and feels welded to the desk without having to use non-slip material or using spit to semi glue them in place (yech, yes I use spit to hold my keys to my desk)
These differences really add up to make a semi-automatic key that feels markedly different than all other bugs available to amateur operators.

I've not had the chance to try the GHD fully automatic bugs, nor their bugs that use optical contacts.  That would be interesting, but they still fundamentally follow the Vibroplex model.


Preparing for Use

The Intrepid ships with a cable but there's nothing to plug it into on the key.  It's up to the owner to solder the connections.  I understand that some transceivers require different plug wiring but in general they are fairly common.  Be prepared to spend some time soldering under the key to wire it up.

I had some spare 1/8" plugs for projects, and with some heat shrink tubing and a couple pieces of wire I created a tidy connector for the male to male cable shipped with the key.


In Use

I spent about 2 hours practice sending into the practice oscillator that I built.   I had a Vibroplex Deluxe Bug next to it that I alternated with.  The range of DIT speeds on the Intrepid is impressive.  Other makers like Vizkey have created bugs with a similar range of adjustment, and the Deluxe Bug I use has a Vari-Speed that can match the Intrepids speed range, bu the Intrepid is easier to quickly adjust and more importantly can be done one-handed.  It will comfortably go from about 15 wpm up to 35 wpm and with the dwell adjustment makes changing speeds and keeping the DIT dwell correct, is singular.  I don't think any bug can match it in that respect.

It did require a change in how I operate.  The Vibroplex Bug fingerpieces stick out further and I have the habit of placing my index finger out over the top of the Bug.  The Intrepid doesn't allow for that.  I have to curl my index finger down to avoid hitting the bracing for the pendulum.

Because there is less mass in the pendulum it operates with a much lighter touch than Vibroplex Bug.  The pendulm movement is initated with less force and due to the isolation of the pendulum from the paddles you don't feel the pendulum moving as you do with a Vibroplex.  I kinda like the feedback I get from Vibroplex pendulum.  The Intrepid feels more like a single paddle key with an electronic keyer than a bug.

Because of the how the lever is split in the middle, the actual DAH contact is almost dead center in the key rather than toward the front.  It is far closer to the DIT contact than a bug.  I have no way to describe it other than to say it feels as if the DAH and DIT operations are more similar than they are different.

I tend to pivot at my wrist when I operate a Vibroplex bug, to control the timing of DIT to DAH transitions.  That doesn't seem to be as necessary with the Intrepid.  Again, it feels more like a paddle than a Bug.






The DIT contact is a sprung plunger that is always centered.  This is one of the biggest problem areas on a Vibroplex Bug and Begali has masterfully designed the proper contact.  Most Bug operators spend more time adjusting the U-spring to try and get proper contact than any other part of the key.  I assume this level of precision is just not something that Vibroplex wanted to spend the time on in manufacturing.


You'll notice there are spare holes.  I assume they are to allow the frame to be used for left handed operation.

The sprung teflon damper makes for clatter free operation.  No more ker-thunk as you transition from DITS to DAHS.  They key is markedly quieter in operation than any other Bug I've tried.  The only other key that comes close is the right-angle Vizkey.




The weights are easy to adjust but I have found that the set screws don't bite the pendulum as firmly as a Vibroplex bug and I have had them come loose a few times. When they accidently come loose they flop to one side and touch the frame, completing the circuit, resulting in a continous carrier. I'm a bit concerned about leaving the bug connected unattended to my tranceiver and having one flop over into transmit while I'm not at the station.


The laser etching is nicely done.  The model name can appear, white, gray or black depending on the angle of light.





The pendulum is hinged at the back of the key, making easy access to the adjustment weights.









Conclusions?

This is a very fine piece of engineering.  It will take me months to decide if stick with it over a Vibroplex Bug, but for now I'm thinking it was a fine birthday gift.





That's all for now

So lower your power and raise your expectations.







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