The CW Slow Lane

[ricko54]

As one who has never powered up a transceiver, I've decided to look into this hobby for retirement enjoyment. I'd like to try my hand at learning CW and my question is directed to those that enjoy this art of communication. Like anyone that is learning something new for the first time, we all start out slow. With that said, I'd like to query those of you who have been at this hobby of CW as to what frequencies you have enjoyed listening to or perhaps trying out your skills on? Is there any one frequency that stands out as a "slow lane" for CW traffic that helps you build your skills?

 

[mikewazowski]

I would suggest you tune into the ARRL's code practice sessions if you want to build your speed up.

The frequencies and schedules are on their webpage.

 

[ladn]

There are also a number of online sources for code practice.
Years ago, when I learned Code, I found Gordon West's tapes (it was a long time ago) to be better than the ARRL materials. Your mileage will vary.

As I learned the Morse alphabet, I would practice encoding (sending) as I drove by encoding street and traffic signs into Morse. The ARRL and other practice sessions over the air were helpful, as was monitoring actual QSO's.

Good luck!

 

[WA0CBW]

Try the straight key century club skccgroup.com.
Bb

 

[bill4long]

If you have a Windows based computer, I recommended the G4FON Koch Trainer program for practice. Its free.

 

[majoco]

Whatever you do - don't go hammering away on a key until to can read machine generated morse at a good speed. All you end up doing is having it imprinted on your brain that your own morse is good - in fact it's usually terrible. Download some good morse, write it down and then send along with it, not listening to your own sidetone but replaying the good stuff on a straight key. Some of the training programmes allow you to have reasonably fast characters but with long spaces giving you time to think which works well. Gary Bold has written a great programme - you can download it here.... Morse.... As he says, it's like riding a pushbike - once you can do it, it's never forgotten. I had to do 25wpm in the 60's for a marine op licence and it's still a second language!

 

[ko6jw_2]

I recommend you check out the Koch method as suggested above. The idea is to start with only a couple of characters, but have them sent at 20 WPM. Starting slow will mean you have to relearn every time you want to increase speed. The Koch method has you start fast and stay fast. It works. Many morse trainer apps have this option.

Typically if you start with slow speeds your will send faster than you can copy and this is a disaster.

I knew a ham (now SK) who was an old military operator. He copied in his head and heard whole words. Worked with him on Field Day once. By the way, he was a Novice. Never could get the theory down to upgrade.

 

[N4DJC]

I used the old ARRL cassette tapes (this was in1979). The actual letters were sent at 13 wpm but spaced at 5 wpm intervals. Made it much easier for me to breeze through the General code a few months later.

 

[mikewazowski]

I used the old ARRL cassette tapes (this was in1979). The actual letters were sent at 13 wpm but spaced at 5 wpm intervals. Made it much easier for me to breeze through the General code a few months later.

I think I used the tape that came with the ARRL Tune Into Ham Radio book as well as the practice code broadcasts. Still tune into the broadcasts regularly to try and keep my speed up.

 

[N4DJC]

I think I used the tape that came with the ARRL Tune Into Ham Radio book as well as the practice code broadcasts. Still tune into the broadcasts regularly to try and keep my speed up.

Yessir that was the one I had. In late 1978 I changed jobs and worked a split shift from 8 pm to 4 am as an operator training manager. One of my friends was a ham and rekindled my interest in Amateur Radio. I listened to those tapes on a Radio Shack cassette player/recorder during the lulls between the shifts. It took me a few weeks to master the "sound" of each letter. Really helped me.

 

[ko6jw_2]

I used the old ARRL cassette tapes (this was in1979). The actual letters were sent at 13 wpm but spaced at 5 wpm intervals. Made it much easier for me to breeze through the General code a few months later.

This was known as the Farnsworth Method. I used it and even wrote some software to send it on an early PC. Not as effective as Koch, but it got me to 13 WPM for General and Advanced. Never could quite get to 20.

Other old time methods used random 5 letter cypher groups. Great for learning letters and numbers because you can't anticipate the next character. The downside is that you get conditioned to a word break every 5 characters which is not a real world situation.

In short, I've tried everything and I like Koch best.

 

[mikewazowski]

 

[Joe_Blough]

Is there any one frequency that stands out as a "slow lane" for CW traffic that helps you build your skills?

Although not as important today since there is no longer a CW requirementfor n Amateur radio license, much less a 20 wpm for Extra class, I will give you a couple tips that proved invaluable when I started to study for my ham license.

1. From the very beginning use handwriting (the way you sign your name) to write down the CW you hear. When you start becoming proficient at CW it will be much quicker to write things down using handwritinstead of printing the individual letters. Don't start printing and then try to switch to handwriting later. Do handwriting from the start of your learning.

2. If you can find it, listen to the CW at a faster speed but with spacing that takes it down to the speed you are trying to master. That way you have already learned the sounds of the higher speed so instead of having to relearn how the CW sounds at a faster speed you are just shortening the spaces between the letters and you will progress fast.

When you get up to 20 wpm your brain starts hearing the CW as words instead of individual letters. Just like each letter has it's own distinct sound you will start recognizing entire words by the sound the group of letters make and will be writing words and not letters to make up a word. This is where having learned to write down CW with handwriting instead of printing helps a lot. I was able to do 25 wpm this way.

 

[Joe_Blough]

View attachment 76386

So what was the point of this?