[Elecraft] Need advice on the Iambic key

[Tom Hammond]

Hi Bill:

>So, before I condescend to selling my Bencher BY-2, retiring the J-38 for
>life and start building the K2 SSB board, the 100 watt amp and permanently
>retiring up-band, can someone give me some advice on possibly mastering the
>Iambic key.

NEVER GIVE UP...!

>  Questions include:
>
>1.  Iambic A or Iambic B?

Generally, most ops seem to prefer Mode B as it is a bit more 'forgiving'.

>2.  Proper contact spacing on the paddles?

Personal preference dominates here, but for starters, try using a QSL 
card as a feeler gauge. This is generally a pretty good starting point.

NOTE: You'll probably get a LOT of 'opinions' here, so read ALL of 
them and then try to choose what feels best to you.

Some folks who consider themselves 'speed merchants' like to set 
their contacts to the point that I'd swear you could BLOW on the 
paddles and have them close. This drives me NUTZ!!! And it is 
certainly NOT RECOMMENDED for a newbie... you can do that later, once 
you are an expert!

2a. You forgot to ask about spring tension. The BY-1 is (supposedly) 
independently adjustable for tension, however given that the spring 
can (eventually) 'roll' around the cylindrical post, you usually wind 
up with both paddles adjusted to nearly the same tension... which is 
not all that bad an idea anyway.

Again, 'personal' taste dominated here, but I like to set my paddles 
(and I am a 25-40 WPM CW op, so these settings work well for me from 
5 WPM to 40 WPM), such that I must exert a small amount of pressure 
on the paddles to close them solidly, but NOT nearly so much pressure 
that there's any chance of my moving the paddle base. I want to be 
able to 1) HEAR a slight 'click' as the contact closes, to 2) FEEL a 
bit of movement when that closure occurs, and finally 3) to feel a 
small amount of resistance as I close the contacts.

>3.  Paddles n or Paddles r? I am right handed.

Paddle (N)ormal  E.g. DAH on the right, DIT on the left

>4.  How to best learn the art of Iambic keying. For instance start at 20 wpm
>and work down or 10 wpm and work up?

Did you ever put in any time on a bug? We'er of the same vintage 
(licensed in '57-'58) it sound like, so you may have had some 
familiarity with a bug.

IF you HAVE used a bug, you may find that you do not need (or want) 
to use iambic keying... the keyer's still completely useful if you 
never use any of the iambic features! NOT using iambic just means 
that you don't try to learn 'squeeze keying'... how to keep one 
paddle closed while flicking your other finger to 'insert' a DIT or 
DAH in between the other element being generated. You'd basically use 
the paddle as if it were a BUG, hitting one side for DITs and the 
other side for DAHs, and merely alternating between the two paddles 
to form characters. Generally easier than learning iambic.

Regardless of which mode you choose, start sending at a speed at or 
just slightly above that at which you can copy. If you learn to send 
at 20 WPM while only copying 10 WPM, you'll find yourself CQing at a 
speed much above what you can copy and having responses at that same 
speed... and having to ask for many QRS'.  One can always (almost) 
always send faster than he can copy, so there's little problem in 
cranking up the speed once you have the 'feel' for the paddles and the keyer.

>5.  Slap or caress the paddles?

NEVER SLAP!!!

Caress is probably not a bad description.

When one is sending CW with a paddle, there is a finite amount of 
time required to make the DIT-to-DAH (or vice versa) transition. If 
you 'slap' at the paddles, you fingers will be MUCH too widely spaced 
(from the paddles) and you'll find that you'll have difficulty 
getting your fingers TO the alternate paddle in time to properly 
complete some characters. So, reduce the finger-to-paddle space as 
much as possible.

You don't have to touch both paddles all the time, but your fingers 
should be very close to them so only a small amount of movement is 
required to make alternating closures of the paddles in order to make 
timely contact closures of the contacts. If you don't make timely 
closures, your individual characters will be 'broken' into two 
separate characters, rather than being one complete character.

Also, many ops prefer to use the sides of their fingers to press 
against the paddles. I've always found that the tips of my fingers 
have more verve endings and that I have a finer paddle control if I 
use the tips of my fingers (thumb and index finger) to key.

>6.  Is it just a matter of practice, practice and more practice? Kind of
>like soldering

Even more demanding than soldering! But equally more fun as well. 
Even after 48 years of hamming I still find myself (esp. when the 
bands are dead) sitting in front of the K2 (in CW TEST mode), sending 
text out of QST into the air of the shack, just purely for fun and practice.

>7.  A reality check, maybe I am just too far gone to learn this skill. But,
>at one time,  I did have a pretty good fist     on  the J-38.

If you EVER were able to send good CW with a straight key, you CAN 
learn to use a keyer and paddle... because you already know what good 
CW should sound like!!

>So, I have returned to W1AW code practice sessions. I will take the K2 out
>of tESt (except on SKN New Years Eve), when I can once again copy up to
>15-20 wpm and hopefully transmitting with some vestige of skill using Iambic
>keying.

NO...!  TAKE IT OUT OF TEST MODE NOW!!!

NOW is the time to be OPERATING! GET ON THE AIR and USE your 
abilities... use the J-38 as a starting point... you can probably get 
up to 18-20 WPM with it yet, all the while improving your abilities 
to copy.  You can be practicing with the keyer in TEST mode when not 
on the air... but put in a LOT of on-the-air time right now. It's a 
heck of a lot more enjoyable to improve your copying abilities by 
having QSOs than the be sitting listening to W1AW... and, it's too 
easy to hit the OFF button when copying W1AW... a bit more difficult 
to do that during a QSO, which will force you to work a bit harder as 
well. Find folks sending just a bit faster than you can copy 100%... 
they'll press you to improve.

Also, try to participate in as many stateside small contests as 
possible. Even if you are only on the air for an hour or two, such 
activities will force you to copy at speeds higher than you can 
handle comfortably.

If you can, find someone (possibly in FISTS) with whom you can 
practice on a semi-regular basis and who HAS a good fist and can 
'push' you to copy just a bit over your head.

Good luck...! STICK WITH YOUR CW!!!  NEVER GIVE UP!  It'll be too 
much fun in the end.

73,

Tom Hammond    N0SS