I got as far as 50wpm and used to do high speed operating from time to time.


Barb K1EIR
-----Original Message-----
From: For blind ham radio operators [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
On Behalf Of Scott Howell
Sent: Monday, June 10, 2013 4:20 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: High speed CW

Phil,

You sure remind me why I love cw so much and still can't copy crap. I =
really need to fire-up Morse-it and really practice. Oh and get on the =
air. :) Then I need more hours in a day or start dumping all my =
projects. grin
Well I'm sure I'll get there yet. grin

73

On Jun 10, 2013, at 2:41 PM, Phil Scovell <[log in to unmask]> =
wrote:

> Howard,
>=20
> You may be right; I just don't remember.  I got my General in November =
of 66=20
> and after a few weeks of learning how to operate the Drake TR4 my mom =
bought=20
> me for a Christmas present, and because I had passed my general, I =
joined=20
> every CW net on 80 meters I could find.  I soon learned, after the fun =
of=20
> sideband wore off, that CW was still my all time favorite mode.  I =
could=20
> already copy 10 WPM when I took my 5 WPM novice test because I =
listened to=20
> nothing but CW on my old BC348 receiver that was my novice RX.  Then =
when I=20
> took the 13 WPM general, I was copying 20 WPM as a novice.  When I =
took the=20
> Extra class at 20 WPM, I could copy, and rag chew, at 40 WPM.  In 1980 =
I=20
> bought my first CW keyboard and never went back.  I join the CFO, =
Chicken=20
> Fat Operators, group on 40 and 20 and some days worked as many as a =
dozen=20
> high speed operators all in a single round table.  We all worked QSK, =
break=20
> in CW, so it was like working vox on sideband contacts.  I got so 60 =
WPM was=20
> my rag chew speed and on good days, I could run at 70.  The guys I =
worked, a=20
> few of them, could copy 80 to 90 WPM.  I proved it one day, not really=20=

> believing what I was hearing, by putting Sandy, my wife, on the Curtis=20=

> keyboard and setting it to 80 WPM.  These guys, W1OBJ, W6Wu, VE7NH, =
and=20
> several others were on frequency.  I told them Sandy would type and =
ask them=20
> questions.  They kept answering her at 80 WPM and I finally told them =
to=20
> slow down to at least 50 so I could copy their replies and questions =
to her.=20
> They all rang chewed at 80 and some, as I said, could do 90.  All the =
ones=20
> there that day, had men preset the Curtis keyboard to 95.  Sometimes =
they=20
> got it and sometimes they didn't.  W6PY was reported to be verified at =
100.=20
> Sandy could type 120 WPM on the straight due to her job.  I practice =
every=20
> day using the Morris Runner contest practice software and I start at =
40 WPM=20
> and play contest for several minutes.  I do it for brain stimulation.  =
I=20
> make at least 33 contacts in the pile ups each day and sometime run it =
up=20
> all the way for 30 minutes.  I'm about two WPM below 200 contacts per =
hour=20
> on good days and about 180 per hour on any given day.  I find it as =
fun as=20
> actually being on the air sometimes.  The CFO members, my number was =
168,=20
> had to copy at least 30 to 40 to keep up with the group but we all =
ended our=20
> contacts with the chick cluck CW notes which saided like, dit dit dit =
dit=20
> dit daw or a long dash at the end sounding like a prolonged letter A.  =
At 50=20
> to 80 WPM, it immediately reminds you of a chicken clucking.  I can't =
do 50=20
> WPM any more without really focusing and I get tired of trying to copy =
it so=20
> don't practice that as much.  I sit and copies some 40 meter guys who =
run at=20
> 60 WPM just for practice but I get more letters, and an occasional =
word, at=20
> that speed.  All these guys I'm referring to were over 60 years of age =
so=20
> what am I doing at 61, haha.  All I know is, even at 5 and 10 WPM, I =
still=20
> like CW the most.  However, in 1981, when the bands were hot, I worked =
295=20
> countries in that year alone and almost all were on sideband on 20 =
meters=20
> with my 4 element yagi at just 40 feet and running 700 watts output.  =
I=20
> still worked a load of CW and probably worked well over 200 countries =
on CW=20
> alone that year.  I have 316 countries now but I don't go after new DX =
much=20
> these days.  I still like working DX but mostly on CW.  If anybody =
thinks CW=20
> is a lost art, tune around in the DX CW contest.  You will find guys =
still=20
> running 50 WPM and working guys one right after another.  They take up =
the=20
> first 75 KHz on each CW band; wall to wall CW signals.
>=20
> Phil.
> K0NX
>=20
>=20
>=20
>=20
> ----- Original Message -----=20
> From: "Howard Kaufman" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Monday, June 10, 2013 11:47 AM
> Subject: Re: Old Rag Chewers Certificate
>=20
>=20
>> I am not sure, but I think you got it by having a qso at 30 WPM or =
more.
>> I had it to.  November of 1967 was a long time ago.
>> ----- Original Message -----=20
>> From: "Phil Scovell" <[log in to unmask]>
>> To: <[log in to unmask]>
>> Sent: Monday, June 10, 2013 12:12 PM
>> Subject: Re: Old Rag Chewers Certificate
>>=20
>>=20
>>> Gerry,
>>>=20
>>> I sure wish I would have kept my Braille novice log book and a =
couple of
>>> those old certificates.  I had the brass pounders certificate, too, =
but I
>>> can't remember how you obtained that one.
>>>=20
>>> Phil.
>>> K0NX
>>>=20
>>>=20
>>>=20
>>>=20
>>> ----- Original Message -----=20
>>> From: "Gerry Learry" <[log in to unmask]>
>>> To: <[log in to unmask]>
>>> Sent: Monday, June 10, 2013 4:13 AM
>>> Subject: Re: Old Rag Chewers Certificate
>>>=20
>>>=20
>>>> I also got the real rag chewers certificate.
>>>> ----- Original Message -----=20
>>>> From: "Phil Scovell" <[log in to unmask]>
>>>> To: <[log in to unmask]>
>>>> Sent: Thursday, May 30, 2013 7:47 PM
>>>> Subject: Old Rag Chewers Certificate
>>>>=20
>>>>=20
>>>>> There use to be a ham thing called the Rag Chewers Club.  You got =
a =3D
>>>>> certificate by talking to one ham for 30 minutes; phone or cw, it=20=

>>>>> didn't
>>>>> =3D
>>>>> matter.  Then there was the 6 hour QSO which you could only talk =
to one
>>>>> =3D
>>>>> person for 6 straight hours and there was another=3D20
>>>>> certificate for that.  A blind friend of mine that got his license=20=

>>>>> three
>>>>> =3D
>>>>> months before I did, and I, did both.  So, there is lots to talk =
about=20
>>>>> =3D
>>>>> on the ham bands.
>>>>>=20
>>>>> Phil.
>>>>> K0NX
>>>>=20
>>=20