McElroy P-500 emerges from the bowels of my office desk …

p500_leftside — My McElroy P-500 reassembled and clean. I decided to use the thumb piece that came with it, though usually I fabricate a black one that more closely matches the original. Click to enlarge.

Wednesday, Dec. 18, 2013 — I suppose my enthusiasm for hands-on work with CW keys is “on a roll.” Tonight while waiting for the Kentucky Digital Net I cleaned up a really nice McElroy P-500 bug that I received months ago but has been languishing on a shelf next to my office desk.

labelgone — What kind of key is this? It’s a . ……. . What’s that again?? All of the silkscreening is missing from the label. I have never removed one of these labels, but I don’t want to damage the key or destroy the plate to remove it. Click to enlarge.

I remember picking the key up for a good price, for a reason. The key’s McElroy name plate was basically missing its silkscreening. The rest of the key was in beautiful condition, though the original thumb piece had been replaced with a clear plexiglass one.

Tonight I partly disassembled the key, removed the key lever and adjustment screws, and cleaned them all up with non-abrasive cleaner, with a focus on the contact points, which all cleaned up very nicely. The work paid off, because the key played beautifully when I reassembled it. A lot of times the keys I get that have not been used for a while, and cleaning the contact points is usually a must.

One of the two main reasons I have had time to enjoy my keys is that my mother-in-law is in end-stage liver cancer, and my wife has spent most of the last week at her mother’s house helping care for her. I visited my mother-in-law yesterday, and things are going as well as they can. This is my mother-in-law’s third bout with cancer, and she’s at peace and ready to transition. It probably won’t be long, and that’s fine, we are all ready for her to find some peace she deserves. It really has been quite a gift for my wife to be able to be with her at this time, and it has helped both my mother-in-law and my wife prepare. My mother-in-law is quite a woman, too — when I was going to leave, she told me to help her sit up in bed so she could give me a hug. I didn’t want to make her fuss and move if she was uncomfortable already, but she insisted and joked “Don’t you know this is a once-in-a-lifetime offer??” How could I say no?

The second reason I’ve been more active in my blog is the end of my classes last week for this semester in my pursuit of a master’s degree. My study of CW keys will pick up that slack, hi.

I have a couple of additional keys on my “to-do” list in the next few days, so check back for more updates.

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