[Elecraft] high end paddles

[David A. Belsley]

Unfortunately, a quick trial at Dayton is not adequate to determine  
how good a pair of paddles will be for you.  It takes living with  
them for a while -- indeed, it takes a bit of time (several days or  
even much more) simply to get new paddles decently adjusted.  The  
commonplace Bencher BY-1 paddles are really quite mediocre.  They are  
sloppy and inconsistent.  But if you can stand a wide gap and a bit  
of tension, they will work.  If you want very light tension and  
barely perceptible (or even imperceptible) motion, they are nothing  
but frustration.  The Kent are nice, and the Begali are sweet, but  
expensive.  The Hex are a good compromise.  They can be adjusted  
quite finely (although the pitch on the adjustment screws makes this  
more difficult than it need be.)  If you want good stiff paddles,  
little beats the WBLs, but Stan doesn't make them anymore.  Maybe you  
can find a pair on e-Bay.  If you do find a pair, grab them; they are  
nothing short of fantastic.

best wishes,

dave belsley, w1euy


On Jun 7, 2006, at 4:28 PM, michael taylor wrote:

> On 6/7/06, james1787 at aol.com <james1787 at aol.com> wrote:
> ...
>> chrome benchers which have worked great for years. I've thinking of
>> stuff like Begali and the like. I'm a 'try before you buy' type of
>> person. There's no way I would order an expensive key like that  
>> without
>> trying a few qso's out to see how I like it. What's the best way  
>> to do
> ...
>
> I don't know if any dealers of these high-end keys and paddles offer a
> money-back trial or not.  Otherwise I suppose you might have to travel
> to Dayton next year and visit all the vendors' displays.
>
> I suppose a local club could organize a "key night" to let hams have a
> quick try of various straight keys and paddles from their membership's
> own shacks.
>
> -Michael Taylor, VE3TIX
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-------------------------------------
david a. belsley
professor of economics