[ADXA] I made it, I made it!!

[Bill Priakos]

Well said, Joel….excellent assessment of our CW skills in the VERY old days 😊

Bill Priakos - W5SJ
10 Free Ferry Heights
Fort Smith, AR 72903
479.461.8368

[A Telegraph Key Is A Switching Device Used Primarily To Send Morse Code]




From: adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net <adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net> On Behalf Of w5znjoel at gmail.com
Sent: Wednesday, August 27, 2025 7:37 PM
To: 'Jon W. Reynolds' <KI5UCZ at jonwreynolds.com>
Cc: 'ADXA Reflector' <adxa at mailman.qth.net>
Subject: Re: [ADXA] I made it, I made it!!

Jon,

Way back when 😊 a lot of us old dogs got our licenses back in the 60’s up until about 1973 (and some in the 50’s when the Novice license became available in 1951) we were proud to have mastered 5 WPM to pass the CW exam and get our Novice license. Back then you had to pass the Morse exam or you never got a shot at the written exam, and if you passed the Morse exam but failed the written you had to take the Morse exam all over the next time you tried the written!

I doubt any of us old dogs, if we’re truthful and will admit it, had achieved “perfect” send and receive when we got on the air. Listening on the air during that time proved it because there were some really bad fists, especially some who thought they were “proficient” at using a Bug !

My point is, regardless of our CW prowess today we NEVER had “perfect” send and receive when we got our Novice licenses and got on the air. It was that on-the-air experience (us Novice dudes could only use CW back then) that allowed us to master the skill of copying Morse at elevated speeds.

You’re on the right track. Keep it up OM!

73 Joel W5ZN

From: adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net<mailto:adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net> <adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net<mailto:adxa-bounces at mailman.qth.net>> On Behalf Of Jon W. Reynolds via ADXA
Sent: Tuesday, August 26, 2025 4:37 PM
Cc: ADXA Reflector <adxa at mailman.qth.net<mailto:adxa at mailman.qth.net>>
Subject: Re: [ADXA] I made it, I made it!!

Thanks everyone for the encouragement! It's been a process, and it's not where I'd like to be on my recognition,  but from what I'm understanding and thinking, if I waited until my send and receive is perfect, I'll would never have gotten on the air.

I'm currently 4/50 on WAS and 2/100 to dxcc on LOTW. Cue our fearless leader's favorite saying!!!

73s
Jon
KI5UCZ



-------- Original Message --------
On Tuesday, 08/26/25 at 15:56 Dennis Schaefer <dennisw5rz at gmail.com<mailto:dennisw5rz at gmail.com>> wrote:
Congratulations, Jon!  Even those of us who have been doing CW for a long time remember the excitement and trepidation of those first contacts!  It’s kind of a big deal.

73,
Dennis/RZ

On Mon, Aug 25, 2025 at 7:44 AM Jon W. Reynolds via ADXA <adxa at mailman.qth.net<mailto:adxa at mailman.qth.net>> wrote:
Just thought I'd let everyone know, after about 7 months give or take of study,  last night I made my first and second cw contact. I was so excited I emailed the station for qsl confirmation because things were happening fast for me with the keyer and speaker. Got a return email confirmation KH6LC is in the log book,  8/25/25 02:47utc 14.028, 20wpm 50W out to my home made vertical antenna!

73s
KI5UCZ
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