What To Buy For Morse Code Beginners

Metatube

Radios: Xiegu G90 (affiliate link) https://amzn.to/4ifexUj Yaesu 891 https://www.hamradio.com/detail.cfm?pid=71-002216&srsltid=AfmBOooDyRwF-aIZvf1ASnpuyJfoSchrYQoNyuo0qYieNwY-5dphsqrA  Power Supply I use for my Xiegu G90: https://www.gigaparts.com/intellitron-ps-2230mab-30amp-switching-power-supply-with-power-poles.html?srsltid=AfmBOooZ5nJAObx6t4sWNt0z11FUd-TibaA5Yevz5BnRWHRxEFDwkGwB  Antennas: Attic dipole (Or put in a tree!) https://www.etsy.com/listing/1306951071/rugged-ultralight-40-6m-multi-band?ref=share_ios_native_control(video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEDa8LyTg64)  a HOA Buster Rain Gutter Antenna: https://www.alphaantenna.com/product/hf-emcomm-hoa-buster-uhf-hf-antenna-gutter/  Vertical Antenna for ground or roof mount: https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/dmn-cp5h?srsltid=AfmBOop6f46i5skNCn36cD_B_pdcgRCxFJqZBQUzyypy9pehQvRjNX0B  Coax Cable (Connect your radio to your antenna):  Different length Coax (affiliate link) https://amzn.to/4ireHrK BNC Cable (Coax cable type for connecting to the "dipole attic" antenna I linked: (Affiliate link) https://amzn.to/43DP6au Window Pass Through (affiliate link) https://amzn.to/43w1nOg  My CW BUDGET field kit video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EC-LRdOy6Pc&t=613s   Please Check out my FULL morse code key tour: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3hAm4dCsqqw&t=1175s  Key Manufacturers: Begali Keys https://www.i2rtf.com/keys---paddles.html UR5CDX https://www.ur5cdx.com N3ZN https://www.n3znkeys.com/c/10/keys-paddles-in-stock HA8KF https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/hkf-key-lr March Magnetic https://sites.google.com/view/march-magnetic-paddles/home 9A5N https://www.9a5n.eu/models.html KBX 380 Finnish key (Email Tapio): senioripalvelu@gmail.com Kent Keys: https://www.dxengineering.com/parts/kmk-tp1-b  #hamradio #morsecode #cw

Transcript

00:00All right, here's the video you guys actually wanted.

00:03Sharpen your pencils, get out your checkbooks,

00:06we're gonna talk money,

00:07and I'm gonna show you some of the Morse Code equipment

00:08you can buy today to get started in the hobby.

00:11Now, I am not gonna apologize for my last video.

00:14The first step, I really do recommend,

00:16get your amateur radio license

00:17so that we can actually talk in Morse Code eventually.

00:21When I'm twice my age, late 60s, hopefully retired,

00:24I really wanna be able to look back and think,

00:25man, I inspired some millennials, some Gen Z,

00:28some younger generation people to get into the hobby.

00:31So many, many moons from now,

00:33I'm talking to people in Morse Code still.

00:35Now, I'm not too worried about that.

00:36I do think amateur radio is in a great place

00:38and it is growing, but I want you to really get involved

00:41and that's gonna start with an amateur radio license.

00:43Now with that, I do admit I am a hypocrite

00:46because the first thing I did when I discovered Morse Code,

00:48like literally day one was I bought a paddle

00:51and a practice oscillator.

00:53So I do think it's completely legitimate.

00:55And so many of you guys have said

00:56that you've gone out and bought a paddle.

00:58Somebody said he made one.

00:59Man, that makes me so excited.

01:01And I'm gonna give you guys some resource today

01:03to do exactly that and get involved.

01:05So let's check out my Radio Shack.

01:09Fun fact, when I was in high school, I worked at Radio Shack.

01:13RIP, really sad that many of them have gone out of business.

01:18This is actually my QRP shelf.

01:19So I'm gonna link a video that shows the budget build out

01:22for kind of like the field operations

01:24that I really do on my channel.

01:26If you go to my channel and you see me outside

01:28with a small radio, that is QRP.

01:31Now you guys are gonna have to learn some of the language.

01:33So QRP just means five watts or less.

01:36So it's probably not hard to understand,

01:38but like this radio has less power out than this one.

01:41This is 100 watts, this is five watts.

01:43And what QRP really means is it just like

01:45the direct translation stands for cool.

01:49So if I ever see a guy and he's like big into QRP,

01:51I'm like, oh my gosh, that guy's cool.

01:55CW, this is critical.

01:57So this stands for continuous wave.

01:58That's how you say Morse code guys.

02:00I actually, when I learned Morse code, I didn't know that.

02:03I had my ham license, but I did not know

02:05that CW stood for continuous wave or Morse code.

02:08So we're gonna go on a walk.

02:10I'm gonna show you guys a few radios

02:12that I would recommend to get started with.

02:14Again, this type of field stuff is,

02:17I already have a video for that.

02:18It's linked in the description.

02:19It's a full build out for a field operation QRP setup

02:23under $350.

02:25The video today is gonna be a little bit

02:26more expensive than that.

02:27I'm gonna show you some kind of pricey paddles,

02:30some good budget entry level paddles.

02:32I'm gonna show you some good radios to get started.

02:35And I'm gonna show you some killer antennas

02:37because that's kind of the recipe.

02:38You're gonna need a rig.

02:39Sorry, that's an amp.

02:40You're gonna need an amp.

02:42You need a rig, a paddle and an antenna

02:45and a power supply, possibly a tuner.

02:47We'll get into some of that.

02:48So stick around.

02:49Let's go out to my garage first.

02:51I lied, not my garage.

02:52I am actually gonna show you really quick

02:54that I do have a little station in my,

02:56this is just kind of like a cold storage area.

02:59And prior to last year,

03:00I had never built anything in my life with my hands,

03:03like as far as like soldering, electronics.

03:07I have built radios.

03:08I'm actually, this is a new antenna I just got.

03:10I'm gonna build a new antenna.

03:12I love building.

03:13And I just taught myself how to use a soldering iron

03:15and you can save so much money in this hobby

03:17if you're willing to do some DIY.

03:20So just wanted to show that briefly.

03:22And yeah, you should totally get a soldering iron

03:26and start building stuff.

03:27It's kind of.

03:28And when I say build stuff,

03:29I mean literally follow instructions

03:31like you're building Legos.

03:32And I'm being dead serious.

03:33I don't understand any of the schematics,

03:35the electrical engineering.

03:37I don't know any of it.

03:38I just get a little kit.

03:40If it has good instructions,

03:41I can typically build it successfully.

03:43It's not that hard.

03:44My friends are always like,

03:45dude, how can you afford all those nice paddles

03:47and drive a G-Wagon?

03:49It's hard work guys.

03:50Just put in the work.

03:52So this is probably the most unnecessary thing in the world,

03:55but it is a garage base station.

03:57And I did that because I live in a free country.

04:02This is the G90.

04:04And this is the radio I'm gonna recommend

04:06to like 90% of people.

04:09And the reason being is it's a step up from QRP,

04:12but it is still very portable and it's 20 Watts.

04:16But here's the thing.

04:17It has an incredible feature set.

04:19Most of those small radios I showed you,

04:21in fact, all of them except for one, are not all band.

04:24This is all band.

04:25I think it's 80 through six meters,

04:29which is, that may mean nothing to you,

04:31but this is just a very good radio

04:35for covering all the scopes

04:36that Morse code is gonna be sent on.

04:38And it's really, really affordable in the world of radio.

04:42It does have some features that are really, really nice,

04:45like the built-in antenna tuner.

04:47And while I could do a separate video on this,

04:50I do not recommend becoming reliant on a decoder,

04:53but this does have a decoder where it'll read to you

04:55the Morse code that's being sent.

04:57So if you want it to monitor like rag chews

04:59or people having conversations,

05:01if it's a good signal and it's a good fist

05:03from the person sending code,

05:05you'll actually be able to see it on this radio.

05:07So I have some really good friends that love this radio

05:10and use this radio often.

05:11My buddy, Tim K5YHY just did a few videos on this,

05:15but this is an awesome radio.

05:16An honorable mention for a few hundred dollars more

05:20is the Yaesu 891.

05:22This is like my number one radio that I use.

05:25I actually have it mounted in my truck.

05:26And then this is my second one.

05:28This is the only radio I've ever bought two of.

05:30And this little face detaches.

05:32The only issue with this radio,

05:34one, it's not gonna have a decoder like that

05:35if you care a lot about that, and a lot of new CW ops do.

05:38But again, I don't recommend a decoder.

05:40It doesn't have a tuner either.

05:42So this having a tuner is important

05:44because if you do want to transmit on frequencies

05:46or frankly hear frequencies better,

05:48having a good match will impact

05:50your receive and your transmit.

05:52Somebody in the comments could contest that,

05:53but that's my understanding.

05:55So these are the two radios I'm gonna recommend.

05:57Both are linked in the description.

05:59This is 100 watts, so a big difference.

06:01This is a much more powerful radio,

06:02but 20 watts you'll do just fine with the right antenna.

06:05All right, so I just covered the two radios

06:07I would recommend.

06:08I'm now gonna show you guys

06:09two to three different antenna types.

06:11And with that, we're actually gonna climb a ladder.

06:14So the things I do for my channel.

06:19Let's not fall to our death.

06:21But guys, really fast actually, before I get in my attic.

06:24The reason I'm gonna show you these next two antennas

06:26is I understand a lot of you may be limited.

06:29Many of my friends are in apartments

06:30or they live in a home,

06:32but they're in a very restrictive HOA.

06:34A lot of times antennas is the biggest challenge

06:36for a ham radio operator to do right.

06:39And it's probably the single most critical part

06:41of the recipe.

06:42In fact, it is.

06:43This is very, very important.

06:44And I'm gonna include two reasonably priced antennas

06:48that in my opinion, perform well enough.

06:50They do a good job.

06:52And they're very friendly for like sticking in an attic,

06:56which is what I'm about to show you guys.

06:58So I'll link a video,

06:59but I have a video of myself

07:01briefly putting this in my attic.

07:03So I just run a coax cable.

07:05You can see it's actually really bent up

07:06because I have to put a board here,

07:07but this works great.

07:08And I just run a coax BNC down to my radio jack.

07:14Let's see down there.

07:17Okay.

07:18I don't know if you'll be able to see it.

07:19There it is right there.

07:20Can you guys see that little wire?

07:22So I have, I can't remember how long it is,

07:23but it starts in the middle

07:25and wraps all the way to the front

07:27and then wraps around and I place it down in that corner.

07:30So I do not care how tight your space is.

07:32If you have an attic,

07:34you can do an attic dipole,

07:36which is kind of a gangster antenna setup.

07:40And guys,

07:41hold on, let me not die.

07:45I've talked to,

07:46I'll see.

07:47I've talked to Hungary.

07:50I've done tons of DX.

07:51DX means long distance.

07:52That's another language.

07:53So far you've learned QRP, DX, and CW.

07:56Drop it in the comments if you learned all three.

07:58I've done DX.

07:59I've talked to Hungary on that antenna.

08:02Now I'm bouncing my signal off the ionosphere, guys.

08:03We're not using cell towers.

08:04We're not using the internet.

08:06Off the ionosphere,

08:07that attic dipole linked in the description,

08:10I've done tons of DX.

08:11So dope.

08:15First off, RIP to our snowman.

08:19He was a good man.

08:24So this is kind of extreme,

08:25but I have some vertical antennas on my roof

08:27because I don't live in an HOA.

08:29So that's usually what I use.

08:30I'll link some of those in the description,

08:32but right now what I want to show you

08:34that I think may be more relevant

08:37is you can do a vertical in your yard.

08:41Like you could do a DX commander,

08:42which is like a really big...

08:44In fact, they make them where they don't even need guy lines.

08:46You just dig a hole and you stick this vertical up.

08:48So you can do that.

08:50But what I want to show you guys is this.

08:54So this is called the HOA Buster by Alpha Antennas.

08:58You connect it to your downspout

09:00and then your rain gutter becomes an antenna,

09:03which is kind of insane.

09:05But I've done DX on that too.

09:06I've talked to other countries off of my rain gutter.

09:10So if you, again, this isn't...

09:11I definitely wouldn't recommend this as like

09:13the best antenna, but if you're restricted by an HOA,

09:17this will do the job.

09:19Okay, so connecting your antenna to your radio

09:22will just be like a BNC or like a coax cable.

09:25I'll drop some of this in the description.

09:27And if you have like the outdoor one,

09:29the rain gutter antenna,

09:30you can easily run an outdoor antenna via a window.

09:33So check out this little cable that's flush.

09:36You can close your window on this

09:38and then run your coax inside.

09:40You don't have to like drill through your...

09:41Okay, so both of the radios and the antennas

09:43are in the description.

09:44And I mentioned this a few times,

09:46but all of those, the antennas and the radios

09:48that I showed you, the rain gutter antenna,

09:50the wire antenna in my attic and the rigs,

09:52the radios are all band.

09:54And if you don't know this,

09:55the way the sun works or space weather

09:58and the way the ionosphere works is different bands.

10:01So think of it as like different frequency ranges.

10:04So there's like 80 meter, 40 meter, 20 meter,

10:0630 meter, et cetera.

10:08They work differently during different times.

10:11And sometimes they don't work at all.

10:13So it's nice to have a wide spectrum

10:15of bands available to you

10:17if you're wanting to get involved in the hobby,

10:18because maybe you're listening

10:20and during the day a certain band's not working,

10:23but you can just tune up to a different band

10:24and hear people operating Morse code.

10:26Okay, let's jump into the,

10:29probably the coolest part of the video.

10:30Paddles, baby.

10:31Well, these are bugs.

10:33And if you really love Morse code,

10:37inevitably you will end up on one of these

10:39because bug life, baby.

10:41By the way, if you ever do get a bug,

10:43these stickers, free of charge,

10:45shoot me an email.

10:47Literally, they're free.

10:48Just hit me up.

10:48You just have to get a bug,

10:49but probably don't start on one.

10:51I mean, maybe, maybe do.

10:53These are Morse code paddles.

10:54So you have dual levers.

10:57You have single levers.

10:59You have bugs like I showed you.

11:03You have straight keys.

11:05I'm not very good at this.

11:07And I've got a big collection.

11:08So I'm gonna show you what Morse code paddle

11:12to probably start out with.

11:13And remember that small paddles

11:15kind of go with like our field kits,

11:17but you can get one that small.

11:18You don't need to go hard like this.

11:19You can get a small rig, a small paddle.

11:22Go watch my budget video linked in the description,

11:25but I'm gonna show you guys

11:27the perfect paddles

11:29to pair with the radio and antenna I just showed you.

11:33All right, guys,

11:34welcome to the paddle part of the video.

11:35This is the part I'm most excited about.

11:37This is my favorite part of the hobby.

11:39I love collecting them.

11:40Some people have asked like,

11:41why do you have so many?

11:42Why, you know, I'll have videos with paddles

11:43where I have two or three,

11:44and they're like, why do you have those?

11:47So a lot of people ask me that.

11:48Either a lot of people or my wife

11:50with some burner accounts,

11:52that could be possible.

11:54But the answer to that is because I can,

11:57and they're fun and they're cool.

11:58And there's a lot of different types of manufacturers,

12:00and there's a lot of origins.

12:01I have paddles from a bunch of different countries,

12:04but you don't need to do that.

12:06You can just buy one really good paddle

12:08and enjoy Morse code,

12:10or you can collect as many as you can.

12:12You should totally do that.

12:14With that, I'm gonna introduce you guys to a few resources.

12:17The first resource I am gonna show you guys

12:19was actually a video that was really helpful to me.

12:22It was influential in my CW journey,

12:25and he's gonna share a few points

12:28that I really want you to just kind of hit home

12:30with you guys.

12:31And I also just really like the sound of his voice.

12:33So we're gonna listen to him talk together.

12:37And let me make sure I'm sharing my sound.

12:42Sorry, just getting my sound up and running.

12:46Boom, let's go.

12:47But learning how to send CW accurately is just as critical.

12:51And for that, you'll need a good key.

12:54A straight key isn't gonna work for this class.

12:56You can get 10, maybe 15 words per minute

12:59out of those things.

13:00But as you move up much past that

13:02to 20 and 30 words a minute,

13:04they'll just hold you back.

13:05You'll have to have an iambic key or a semi-automatic.

13:11Okay, so he just said a straight key will hold you back.

13:13You need an iambic paddle.

13:14That is a savage thing to say in the world of CW.

13:18And I love the confidence with which he says it.

13:21And I 100% agree with him.

13:24This was so impactful for me.

13:25I was trying to learn on a straight key,

13:26getting my butt kicked.

13:28I switched to a paddle and I said out loud,

13:30you've gotta be kidding me.

13:32And I was dead serious.

13:33Alone in my room, I said, you've gotta be kidding me.

13:36Because I was using a paddle

13:37and it was just so much easier.

13:38So guys, look, there's nothing wrong

13:40with starting on a straight key.

13:42If you wanna do that, I really respect that.

13:45Some of my really good friends only use straight keys

13:47and they slay them.

13:48That's super cool.

13:49A lot of people in my comments have said

13:50they like the straight key.

13:51If you don't know what a straight key is,

13:53so let's go like Morse code,

13:56straight key, pull it up, boom baby.

13:59This is a straight key.

14:00Up and down, that simple.

14:03If you wanna start with that, go for it.

14:05But I am so glad I went to a paddle very quickly.

14:08Now I'm going back to straight keys.

14:09So now that I can use a paddle really proficiently,

14:11I'm going to bugs and straight keys and I love it so much.

14:13But if you're learning, man, get on a paddle.

14:17Manic key like a bug.

14:20There's a lot of different iambic paddles out there.

14:23So how do you choose?

14:24How does a hand choose?

14:26I will reassure you that any of the high quality keys

14:29that are available out there,

14:31they'll all work just fine for you.

14:33But there are some must have properties.

14:36Number one, weight.

14:38They need to be heavy.

14:39They need to be heavy enough

14:40so that they don't slide around the table.

14:42Three pounds is a good target.

14:4510 pounds would be better actually.

14:47They need to stay put.

14:48Boom, bingo.

14:51The paddles need to be as heavy as possible.

14:53Three pounds is a great benchmark.

14:54I love that he says 10 pounds.

14:56That's obviously a joke,

14:57but the point is if it's in my shack under no circumstances

15:01whatsoever should it move.

15:02If I'm sending on it, I do not want it to move.

15:04I have some paddles that look really, really cool,

15:06but they're just kind of light and they suck to send on.

15:08I want my paddle to be so heavy

15:11that a crane has to arrive at my house

15:12and drop the paddle into my basement

15:15and then cause foundation damage to my house

15:17because it's that heavy.

15:19Narrow spacing is also important,

15:21particularly for operators that want to send quickly.

15:25So we're talking about 516s to up to maybe a half an inch,

15:29but anything above that makes

15:32operating at high speed more challenging.

15:35Spring versus magnetic return.

15:38Not a deal breaker for me.

15:40I've used both types.

15:42I think magnetic return's a little smoother,

15:44but I've had good experience

15:46with some spring return devices as well.

15:49Okay, so really fast, I'm pulling up a paddle

15:51to demonstrate what he's saying.

15:52So when he says narrow spacing,

15:53he's actually talking about the spacing

15:55between the movement,

15:56how far you have to move the paddle to make contact.

16:01So this is the dock contact on the right side.

16:03This is the DIT contact on the left side.

16:05Some of them are really sloppy and they have a lot of play.

16:08Most really good operators like a pretty tight spacing.

16:12In my experience, pretty much any paddle you buy

16:14is going to have the ability to go pretty tight.

16:17That's actually just an adjustment you'll make.

16:19Now the magnetic versus spring,

16:21this is a spring tension paddle.

16:23And what that means is when I move the DAW or DIT side,

16:27what keeps it from sticking on the DAW?

16:30That would be the worst thing in Morse code

16:31is if your paddle gets stuck.

16:33So the thing that returns it

16:35to its original resting position

16:37is either a spring or a magnetic return.

16:39So in this case, I actually own this paddle.

16:42This is my exact paddle.

16:43You can see my call sign here at the bottom.

16:45This is a spring return.

16:46And then if you come up to like a March Magnetic,

16:48I'll show you these in a second.

16:50This is like a big magnet and it returns.

16:52So a lot of paddles are magnetic or springs.

16:55Magnetics are typically more expensive,

16:57but I agree with Christian

16:58that they don't necessarily mean they're better.

17:00I have some spring tension paddles

17:02that are just as good as my magnetics.

17:04But yeah, just as a differentiation for you guys.

17:08Some of these, by the way, can be big.

17:10These devices can take a lot of space.

17:13So make sure you have enough on your table.

17:15All right, semi-automatic versus an iAmbic.

17:19So we'll actually skip ahead and we'll wrap up here.

17:24Be either way.

17:26Okay, so put your seatbelt on.

17:27These things are not cheap.

17:29We're talking about 150 bucks probably

17:31for the lowest entry key.

17:35Average probably closer to $250.

17:40Again, there's just like in life,

17:42lots of cheaper options.

17:43But buyer beware on those.

17:46The less expensive keys have a lot of plastic

17:49and you'll hate them and you'll drop out of my course.

17:52All right, so this is...

17:54Boom, that's it.

17:55That's the video on paddles

17:57that really changed a lot of things for me.

17:59He said two or three critical things.

18:01One, he said, ditch the straight key,

18:04get a paddle, make sure it's heavy.

18:06And then he's like, Forrest,

18:07I'm giving you financial permission

18:08to go as hard as you possibly can.

18:11That's what I heard at that moment.

18:13And I hope that resonates.

18:14So the principle there with Morse code,

18:20really with anything is buy it nice or buy it twice.

18:23Now that doesn't mean

18:24that there aren't good affordable options.

18:25I'm about to show you a ton of affordable options.

18:27But if I show you something that's on the $150 side,

18:31that's very entry level for Morse code paddle.

18:34Now, if you want something a lot cheaper,

18:35I've shown you guys this already on my channel.

18:37They make $30 3D printed keys.

18:40And this is a great key.

18:41It's just kind of more for field use.

18:43It's not really for like in a base station.

18:45Of course I could, I could mount it in my base station.

18:47And there are guys that do that.

18:48But if you like the higher end kind of designer

18:51will last you literally your lifetime paddles,

18:53that's what I'm about to show you.

18:55So let's jump back into the screen share.

18:59And I'll show you,

19:00these are the most notable manufacturers in the world.

19:02And I'll show you a few kind of lesser known,

19:05and I'm probably gonna leave out some.

19:06So if you have a paddle type

19:07and you want to drop it in the comments

19:08that you really recommend, please do.

19:10This is supposed to be just a

19:12all encompassing resource of options.

19:15The first option is Begali.

19:17And Begali is like the premier designer.

19:21I want you to think of Begali

19:22as kind of like the Gucci of Morse code paddles.

19:24And they definitely charge that way too.

19:27So I have two paddles right in front of me right here.

19:30It's one of them's like that big silver bug

19:32that I have next to another paddle.

19:34They are extremely, extremely expensive.

19:36I'm not gonna recommend those

19:39unless you want to go extremely hard.

19:41Like one of my favorites,

19:42I actually don't own this as a Sculpture Janus,

19:44528 euros is extremely expensive for a paddle,

19:48but it's worth it.

19:50It's that nice, I promise.

19:52So what I'm gonna recommend on the Begali front

19:54is literally the first paddle I ever bought from them,

19:56which was the Simplex Professional.

19:59You can spend, I believe, yeah,

20:01it says it right here, 179 euros.

20:04And they have some cool color designs.

20:05I really love this turtle.

20:07I think my buddy Jason just got this color

20:09or he got one of these.

20:11His wife actually got it for him, which was cool.

20:14Shout out Jason, Kentucky Fried Ham on YouTube.

20:16Go check him out.

20:18The Simplex is,

20:21I don't know the difference between the Pro and the Simplex.

20:22I got the Pro because it said Pro,

20:24but this is 20 euros cheaper.

20:26This will do just fine.

20:27So you can go get one of these.

20:29This is actually a mono.

20:30So the difference between a dual and a mono

20:32is a lot of things.

20:35I'm actually not gonna cover it in this video.

20:36So you'll have to go look at that on your own.

20:40But yeah, if you wanna spend like a hundred more euros,

20:43like the Contour Expeditions,

20:44I think Evan K2 EJT, his YouTube channel, he has this.

20:48There's a lot of guys on YouTube.

20:49All of these videos,

20:50all of these paddles have respective videos on YouTube

20:52if you look them up.

20:53A few guys do full videos,

20:54but Begali's like very high end.

20:56Just reach out to him, email him.

20:59Yeah, it says here,

21:00that says check if it's available.

21:01I would email him as well

21:02and check if the key is available

21:04because I've ordered paddles from them

21:06and they're not available.

21:07So just double check what they have.

21:09They might have a paddle available

21:10in a different color than you want.

21:12UR5CDX, these paddles are great

21:14and they're highly underrated

21:15and they're extremely cheap.

21:17They do update the website every single month.

21:18So these are new products for March.

21:20He's already sold out a few.

21:22So like the one I would recommend,

21:23I really like, I own myself is the CT599MX.

21:28It's 188 bucks.

21:29This is USD.

21:30There might be some additional dollars.

21:32So like on the Begali,

21:33which is 179 euros or this, that's 188.

21:37You'll pay 20, 25, 30 bucks for shipping.

21:39So keep that in mind.

21:40You'll be out the door a little over 200 bucks.

21:43But again, these are nice paddles

21:44that'll literally last you a lifetime.

21:46It looks like the ones he has in stock right now.

21:48He does have the same one I was just showing.

21:51I don't know if it's the same size or weight,

21:56but this is like the brass version,

21:58which is really cool.

21:59If you get your call sign,

22:00you can actually have it engraved right here.

22:02That actually looks smaller than the one I have.

22:03So 0.8 kilograms.

22:05It says 0.8 kilograms.

22:07What's the weight on this?

22:091.6.

22:10Ooh, I wouldn't buy that lightweight one.

22:11So let's see if he has one in stock right now

22:14that you could go get.

22:17Some of these higher ones,

22:18I have like a single lever that's higher.

22:20This might be fine.

22:20So that's a good weight.

22:21So this might be fine.

22:23I like my UR5CDX with the low center of gravity like this.

22:29I actually kind of like how small this is,

22:31but I would rather have it be heavier.

22:33So check this maybe beginning of April.

22:35If he has this guy, the CT599MX,

22:39this low center of gravity at 1.6 kilograms,

22:42buy this puppy.

22:43Even though it's actually lighter

22:45than the Simplex Professional,

22:46but because of its low center of gravity

22:48and the fact that these little paddles

22:50almost touch the desk, it doesn't move at all.

22:53Such a good key.

22:54N3ZN, this guy rocks.

22:56Now his paddles are kind of,

22:57they're a lot more money,

22:59but again, buy it nice or buy it twice.

23:00Phenomenal value.

23:01And I love kind of the custom color schemes he does.

23:04You can do different things.

23:05Like this is actually ZN9X.

23:07I have this, extremely heavy.

23:08It's like 3.7 pounds and you can do different colors.

23:12These little round ones are pretty heavy too,

23:13but N3ZN rocks, they're just a lot of money.

23:16American manufacturing, American made.

23:19One of the more underrated on the market,

23:21I see very few guys with this paddle.

23:23I actually own this paddle.

23:24I have the square base.

23:25I kind of dig this round base though.

23:27They are in stock 279.

23:29You should get free shipping, I hope, with these guys.

23:31If not, it might be some shipping there.

23:33But this is from Hungary.

23:35And dude, if a paddle's from like an obscure,

23:37like not obscure, but like an Eastern European country

23:40or like Japan or somewhere just kind of crazy,

23:43I'm like, like my favorite paddles,

23:45two of them are from Croatia.

23:47I'll show you right now.

23:48I think it's sick.

23:50But this is magnetic return.

23:51By the way, magnetic return on N3ZN,

23:54magnetic return on this.

23:56The Begali is spring tension, the simplest professional,

23:59but some of the higher end ones,

24:01they'll actually say right here,

24:02you can see if they're magnetic return or not.

24:04It doesn't really matter.

24:05Okay, people don't like the looks of these paddles.

24:09And it's really funny.

24:10I've got to stop sharing my screen

24:11because I got to show you guys this.

24:13I've done videos on this,

24:14but these are the sickest paddles on planet Earth.

24:18If you watch my videos and you watch me key these,

24:20these are the only paddles I own that don't make noise.

24:24They don't have any mechanical sound.

24:26Now, some people really like the mechanical sound.

24:28I love bugs.

24:29So I love an extremely obnoxious clickety-clack,

24:33but this is my pink sock paddle

24:35because sometimes I wear pink socks

24:37and people point that out in my videos.

24:38So I got a pink sock paddle in retaliation.

24:41Just kidding, in support.

24:42Most people were very supportive of the pink socks,

24:45but you can do custom.

24:47So again, like this is a wood.

24:48So if you come to his website and you want to get,

24:50you can ask him for like the silver top.

24:53And then if, check this out,

24:55guys, this is the thing that's so sick.

24:56His low, so this is the custom paddle.

24:58So you pay a little bit more for these custom paddles.

25:00I like that it drops down low.

25:02And then I got this in pink.

25:05This is the plum wood.

25:06Tell me that that picture doesn't do it justice.

25:09Look how thick that piece of wood is.

25:12Oh, and it feels so nice.

25:13It's so soft.

25:15It's like, imagine you just,

25:16you're taking a shower and you just applied

25:18Garnier Fructis conditioner to your hair.

25:21And then you got out and you're like,

25:22honey, feel this.

25:24She's like, no, I don't want to.

25:27The, oh my gosh, I love these paddles so, so much.

25:30Don't let the writing on top kind of turn you off.

25:32Nobody cares.

25:33Get your call sign engraved.

25:34Solid State CW Paddle Life, freaking rocks.

25:36Okay, KBX 380.

25:38This is a phenomenal value.

25:39This might be one of the cheapest options

25:41I've shown you guys.

25:42Oh crap, I'm not sharing my screen.

25:43What the heck am I doing?

25:44Oh, I just wasn't even sharing my screen

25:46during the wood portion of the conversation.

25:49Okay, this is what I've shown you guys.

25:51Finger pieces.

25:53Right here.

25:53So that's what the picture is

25:55compared to what I just showed you.

25:58And then this is the custom finger pieces.

26:00But this is NA5N.

26:01Was I showing you guys any of this?

26:02These are his paddles.

26:04What just happened?

26:05Go back.

26:07And yes, people don't like this writing.

26:09There's a single lever and a dual lever.

26:11I probably should talk about the difference there,

26:12but I'm not going to for now.

26:15I don't have time.

26:17You can find out.

26:18But KBX 380.

26:19So this is what I was going to show you guys.

26:21You can't see my camera.

26:23It's like too small now,

26:23but this KBX 380 is just so cool.

26:26It's from Finland.

26:27Did I not tell you guys

26:28that I like paddles from random countries?

26:31Really affordable, like 144 euros spring tension.

26:34Good, good paddle.

26:35And the cool thing about his stuff.

26:36So let me see if I can show you a few examples.

26:37He has like a ton of custom.

26:39You can choose like any color base

26:40and he has funky colors on keys and the little pieces.

26:45I love KBX 380.

26:46Really good price.

26:49A few that aren't in stock

26:50that I would keep your eyes out for.

26:52I have videos on these.

26:53Kent, kind of hard to find.

26:55It says it would ship in June.

26:57This is a really good price key.

27:00Spring tension, but just a solid key

27:02with a long track record of being solid.

27:05Another website.

27:06Again, these will all be in the description.

27:08I would just bookmark and maybe check occasionally.

27:10You could also email him.

27:11I think he'll make you a key if you just email him.

27:14A little bit pricier between 300 and 400 bucks.

27:17This one is actually mine right here.

27:18You can barely see the KI there.

27:20He made this for me.

27:22I really, really love March Magnetic,

27:25magnetic return keys.

27:27I think that's pretty much it.

27:30Am I missing anything?

27:31There's some other really cool manufacturers

27:33I've mentioned on my channel, like RE1 AOM,

27:36but you're gonna be handmade in Russia

27:38and it's gonna take four or five months.

27:41But if you can get him to make you a key, definitely do.

27:45Okay, guys, thanks for joining me

27:46on the how to get started with Morse code

27:49by spending a lot of money video.

27:51I hope this was helpful

27:52and go get your amateur radio license,

27:54but if you wanna go spend some money too

27:55and get some cool gear,

27:56by all means, knock yourself out.

27:58It's a ton of fun and I totally get it.

28:00To get your hands on the equipment,

28:02it'll provide some really good fulfillment

28:05with continuing to gain proficiency in Morse code

28:08and just having fun in the hobby.

28:1073 and I'll see you guys soon.

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