[CW] Need help to identify a one paddle key- Midland brand name

[Henry Mei'l's]

Ooops! The text on the cardbord box which housed my key bought at Lafayette 
Radio is :

"MIDLAND SEMI-AUTOMATIC KEY
             MODEL No 25 - 104
        Quality WORLD-WIDE Products"

It sold for $10.95 as shown in the 1971 (50th anniversay issue) Lafayette 
Radio Electronics catalogue, pg. 431 - (A) in captioned photo (item 99 F 
25520
under the Lafayette brand label - advertised as 'precision tooled' (!). This 
is NOT from memory -- a good friend of mine brought the catolo(u)ge with him 
from a vist to Chicago.

Just found the cause of  intemittent binding on dash movement: movable lever 
was brushing up against the underside of my (0.33uF) bypass capacitor, 
installed between the terminals  - so it wasn't the key  mechanism at fault. 
So I got something useful out of all this !

BTW a good gimmick for reducing contact jitter on dots is to squeeze a thin 
slice of  foam rubber inside the dot contact u-flat spring contactor.

HFM oz1uf, Cph.

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <meils at get2net.dk>
To: "CW Reflector" <cw at mailman.qth.net>; <meils at get2net.dk>
Sent: Tuesday, March 23, 2010 12:30 PM
Subject: Re: [CW] Need help to identify a one paddle key


> Yes, I also have one of these (complete with plastic cover and original
> cardboard box-). Bought it back in the late 50's; still using it on the
> air. Bought in on Manhattan's Radio Row (Cortlandt St.area - before being
> razed to make room for the WTC). Mine is labelled, "Lafayette" - at that
> time a distrubter of hobby  radio-electronics - something akin to today's
> Radio Shack.
> Drawbacks are that many of spacing adjustment nuts and particularly end
> stop screws aren't true and the main vertical support  bearing is
> difficult to adjust for minimum vertical wobble without binding. I've
> replaced the most askew adjustment screws. At that time Japanese export
> products were not up to par with regard to mechanical quality. That
> certainly has changed !
> However, the key does have a nice, crispy feel - when you finally get it
> adjusted. When I get tired of it, I switch over to my Vibroplex, which has
> a much more solid feel to it - but I like the single "thick"paddle on my
> Lafayette (maybe I should homebrew a thick paddle for my vibroplex).
>
> 73s, Henry OZ1UF-OU5T - Cph.
>
>
>
> Last year we aquired this Hi-mound MHK831.......new in the box unused ...
>>
>> We found only one other photo of a MHK831 on the net..
>>
>> I think it was made about 35 years ago ....  an letter with photos to
>> HI-mound in JA land got no response ...
>>
>> Does any one have any history on this key/paddle ?
>>
>> Whitey  K1VV
>>
>>
>>   ----- Original Message -----
>>   From: Howard Kraus
>>   To: CW Reflector
>>   Sent: Monday, March 22, 2010 9:40 PM
>>   Subject: Re: [CW] Need help to identify a one paddle key
>>
>>
>>   Yup, a Skilman, Lafayette, Hi-Mound, EF Johnson (and possibly others)
>> semi-automatic bug, missing the plastic cover.  Looks like a cap on the
>> key contacts to help eliminate pitting at the contacts (also seems to
>> soften keying).
>>
>>   73
>>
>>   Howard Kraus, K2UD
>>     ----- Original Message -----
>>     From: Mark Hogan
>>     To: CW Reflector
>>     Sent: Monday, March 22, 2010 7:22 PM
>>     Subject: Re: [CW] Need help to identify a one paddle key
>>
>>
>>     I posted them here
>>     http://btfom.blogspot.com/2010/03/help-identify-these-keys.html
>>
>>     Comments may be left on teh blog or reposted here.
>>
>>     Mark Hogan N5OBC
>>
>>
>>     On Mon, Mar 22, 2010 at 10:33 AM, D.J.J. Ring, Jr.
>> <djringjr at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>       A note to all.
>>
>>       I've sent a note to Chris about how to get the pictures through the
>> CW
>>       list, but I've neither received a further message from him or a
>>       "Mailman - Notice of Rejected Posting" which I receive as co-owner
>> of
>>       this list.
>>
>>       So I guess we have to QRX.
>>
>>       73
>>       DR
>>
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>>
>>
>>
>>     --
>>     Mark Hogan
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>>
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>
>


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