[CW] Fast hand speed - over 25 wpm

[David J. Ring, Jr.]

I, for one, would love to hear the story of how you learned of this 
technique - this was often used in the 1930s and '40s.  I've seen many 
pictures of mid-West stations with a telegraph key mounted on the right side 
of the radio cabinet, and it was manipulated by a motion similar to that of 
a bug:  The hand was laid with the side of the hand resting on the tabletop, 
the fingers curled inward touching the knob button and tapping it.  Some 
people merely used the same posture as sending "topside" on the key, but 
just doing it towards the left.

How did you learn this?  Was it a traffic handler?  An old-timer?

I am sure it would be an interesting story, Buck.

73

David Ring N1EA

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Buck - N4PGW" <n4pgw-list1 at towncorp.net>
To: <CW at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Monday, May 16, 2005 9:49 PM
Subject: RE: [CW] Fast hand speed - over 25 wpm


For what it's worth, when I was operating 20+ on a strait key, it was not up
and down, but left and right.  I had mounted my key on the side of the rig
and sent sideways.  I think my top speed was about 22 wpm, but when I
finished a long QSO or long period of operating, I needed my left hand to
help my right hand hold the fork so I could eat. Lol

Buck
N4PGW


> -----Original Message-----
> From: cw-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:cw-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On
> Behalf Of David J. Ring, Jr.
> Sent: Monday, May 16, 2005 6:48 PM
> To: CW at mailman.qth.net
> Subject: [CW] Fast hand speed - over 25 wpm
>
> Hello CW operators!
>
> A few years ago, someone on here mentioned that it was "impossible" for
> anyone to send 25 wpm with a hand key.  Some of those who said they "used
> to
> be able to" were no longer able to.  It takes constant practice to keep
> this
> speed.  I remember handling traffic from a ship with a South American
> Radio
> Officer, who was sending nearly 30 wpm - he was using a hand key - I was
> stunned.  I had been a bit critical of his fist, but seeing that he was
> doing it on an "up and downer" key, now I was impressed!
>
> For several years, I have been trying to find a recording of fast hand
> speed
> key sending.  I have just found one!
>
> The various Wireless Colleges, such as Colywn Bay, and London, and Bremen,
> Germany required that their students pass 25 wpm (125 gpm) minimum sending
> and receiving tests.
>
> I tried to contact the old students, but somehow they've aged and when
> push
> came to shove, they found that they could no longer (although many thought
> they could!) send 25 wpm on a hand key.
>
> Recently, I stumbled upon a page of recordings of mostly 78 records and
> Edison cylenders from the early 20th century - one had "fast radio code".
>
> I've copied the file and cleaned it up a bit and posted it here.
>
> The segment of the recording is about 42 seconds.  According to my
> counting
> and calculations, the code speed seems to be just about 27 wpm.
>
> I made a count of 19.2 words in 42 seconds.  This comes out to be 27.4
> words
> in 60 seconds.
>
> Here is the location of the file:
>
> http://www.qsl.net/n1ea/fast_hand_key.mp3
>
> Here is where the original sound file came from:
> http://www.normanfield.fsnet.co.uk/morse.htm
> (*There is also a recording of Thomas A. Edison sending morse there... he
> also invented the recording machine...)
>
> Here is what I decoded:
>
> NEAR RADIO CAROLINE FTO 81044 III 50S = DURP CASTELNUEVO = VAPOR ALCANTARA
> SALDRA BARCELONIA EL OCHO NOR
>
> 42 seconds long - RCI80 45USU =RTAB LEN +2
> 18.5 WORDD
>
>
> Note - at the time this was recorded, III was the signal for period in
> Internal Morse Code.
>
> The recordings of American morse on
> http://www.normanfield.fsnet.co.uk/morse.htm would also be of people who
> were first generation telegraphers - Civil War sounds.  This is what Morse
> Code sounded like in the 19th Century!!!
>
> 73
>
> David Ring, N1EA
>
>
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> CW at mailman.qth.net
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>



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