Best CW Transceiver

[KW4KM]

I am returning to Amateur Radio after a long absence driven by life events. I would like to know what many of you think might be the best radio for casual brass pounding. I am not a contester and I operate at slower speeds. I would like a radio with at least 100 watts transmit power. Older rigs are fine with me. Anything else is gravy. That should give you some idea of what I am looking for. Ok guys ( and you xyl's too ) What is your favorite ?

 

[n4yek]

Ten Tec Omni V or later and Ten Tec Paragon I or II are good rigs. Can be found on ebay for around $500.

 

[K7MEM]

What is your favorite ?

My personal favorite is from Heathkit. In the early 80, while I was living in Germany, I built the Heathkit HR-1680/HX-1681 RX/TX pair. The HX-1681 transmitter is CW Only and runs about 100 Watts output on 80, 40, 20, 15, and 10 Meters. Coupled with the HR-1680 receiver, the pair runs full QSK. It was the only rig I had while I was in Germany and ran there as DA2EU. I mostly ran on 15 Meters and the combination worked great. The HR-1680 only has standard SSB filters followed by an audio filter, but it still works great on crowded bands. I still have it and still use it.

But my favorite may not be the best for you. You would probably be better off with a nice new all mode/all band transceiver. Almost all of them are in the 100 Watt range. But a lot depends on your price range. For example, I was looking recently with a $1,000 price limit. That $1,000 would have to include the transceiver, power supply, and any accessories. In that range there are some very nice radios, like the ICOM IC-718 or the Alinco DX-SR9T.

Either of the two rigs will provide you with all band coverage (160-6 Meters) and all mode operation. You may only want CW operation initially, but there are dozens of digital modes to explore and these rigs are ready to go.

 

[wb6uqa]

best cw rig

I have the Ten Tec Eagle. Great Qsk. Comes with a tuner, cw roofing filter, down conversion recieve and a good noise blanker.

 

[Kennrth]

I don't know any modern manufacturers that make dedicated CW radios. There are many cheap qrp kits none capable of 100 Watts. Would not recommend old tube type radios. Requires Tube testers as well as special test equipment and skill to maintain. Many are frequency drifters. Solid State phase lock loop synthesizer class are the best but are not cheap. Without knowing your price range, the bands you want to operate on cannot really make recommendations specifically. And do you have access to someone who can test your radio if you buy it used. A lot to think about.
Since you have been out of the loop so long maybe you should look into DTAR Radio - Talk worldwide with very clear digital voice. Day or night. Dstar uhf vhf radios as well as Dstar HF.
Once you have experienced it most will never go back. Cost is very reasonable. Look into an Icom ID 880H. If a Dstar repeater is not available in your area you can create your own with a Dvab and your home WI FI

 

[teufler]

TenTec, any radio that is a Tentec. Full Breakin, great filters, my Paragon goes down to 20 hz . You get some ringing at 20 hz but you can separate cw signalks in a pile up pretty easy. Even a 540 or 544, work good.