[CW] New RadioTelegraph Operator License- and other codes

Wed May 22 22:16:05 EDT 2013

We went to the US Army Intermediate Speed Radio Operators School In Ft Dix in 1955...12 week course .. CW 4 to 6 hours 
a day ... Passing grade was 12 WPM ... 18 WPM was the highest test speed ... Class size was about 30 ... 5 flunked out or were caught cheating and were thrown out .. About 25% passed the 18 WPM .... no mills ....we had to copy on paper .... 
I had a Novice ticket before I was drafted so we passed the 18 WPM in about 3 weeks .... 
Ended up running the CW training tapes and machines for the rest of the course .... 

Whitey K1VV 

----- Original Message -----
From: "Joe K2UF" <joe at k2uf.com> 
To: "CW Reflector" <cw at mailman.qth.net> 
Sent: Wednesday, May 22, 2013 3:47:49 PM 
Subject: Re: [CW] New RadioTelegraph Operator License- and other codes 

I went the army route in 1961 at Ft Devens,MA. I could not type so when I passed 18WPM using a pencil I had to move to a mill. 4 hours a day typing practice and 2 hours trying to copy on the mill. (the keys on the practice mills were blank). I was able to get to 30WPM by the end of the course. The Army incentive plan worked very well. ( I enjoyed going home on weekends). 

Joe K2UF 

With enough THRUST pig fly just fine. 

From: cw-bounces at mailman.qth.net [mailto:cw-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of N7DC 
Sent: Wednesday, May 22, 2013 3:20 PM 
To: CW Reflector 
Subject: Re: [CW] New RadioTelegraph Operator License- and other codes 

You think maybe today they would input your transmit thru a program such as CW Get, in order to copy you? Maybe the computer gives out a blaster alarm when it sees them pass? hehe 

As a civilian govt employee, I took some loooong code tests: We didnt get to copy just one minute perfect copy. It had to be one minute for each additional 10 wpm we were copying. In other words 5 full minutes of perfect copy at 50 wpm . Of course, by that point, it was all done on a MILL. Just going from 30 wpm to 40, for instance meant 3.2 minutes for 32 wpm: 3.8 minutes for 38 wpm. Then 4.8 minutes for 48 wpm, etc. We might copy half an hour or more, screwing one letter up, within our time period, and at the point, it started all over again. 

In the army, it was the same standard as FCC testing - just one minute at whatever speed you were going for. Believe me, that was much easier. 

I used to love giving code tests to students, such as Scouts. I taught, my sending by hand, and just having them copy what I sent. After they got pretty good copy, I started them over and sent for about 5 minutes, and then took their "practice" papers, and usually found at least one minute perfect copy in there. I then told them they had just taken the test, and passed. Much less pressure that way. Did the same thing a couple years ago, when Scouting came back out with the Signaling Merit Badge, for a one year period, celebrating our 10tth anniversary. That one, and 4 more badge had been dropped 3 decades ago. Oh, and just saw the requirements for a brand new Merit Badge " Signs, Signa n Take a look at this blog, which tells us all the new changes and additions to the Merit Badge list. It aint your grandpapas list (nor mine) http://blog.scoutingmagazine.org/merit-badge-calendar/ 

D.J.J. Ring, Jr. 

Wednesday, May 22, 2013 2:43 PM 

Joe, 

I don't think he was messing with you. I think you got just 50 to 64 characters in a row followed by another equal patch of good copy - it happened ALL the time. Remember you needed 13 wpm x5 letters per word =65 characters in a row to pass. 

When doing code tests as VEC, I'd correct a paper and let's say for 20 wpm where you needed 100 characters in a row, I'd see 80 in a row, then another 80 then another 80 etc. You'd sometimes see five errors in five minutes or 500 characters - which is a score of 99% correct but still because the error came at character #100, the applicant did not get 100 characters in a row. 

I think your messy handwriting happened right where "passing" was or the "bridge" between to really long perfect copy portions - I've seen that hundreds of times. 

The FCC guys were generally decent, there were exceptions but usually the EIC got rid of the jerks. 

v73 

David J. Ring, Jr., N1EA Radio-Officers Group -- Join CW email list -- Historic Morse Recordings 

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Chat Skype : djringjr MSN : djringjr (@) msn.com AIM : N1EA icq : 27380609 

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D.J.J. Ring, Jr. 

Wednesday, May 22, 2013 2:42 AM 

They also test English at 20 wpm and code groups at 16 wpm, one full minute without error out of five minutes sent. 

I had FCC Engineer-in-Charge make me send 25 wpm on the hand key as required but he kept me sending for nearly the full five minutes. Years later I found out he did not know Morse. Boy did he make me sweat. 

73 

David N1EA 

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-- 
Danny Douglas 
N7DC 
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