Wednesday, June 10, 2020
I ran across this homebrew iambic paddle a week or so back while cleaning up the shack. It’s a nicely done clone of the FYO / Bencher BY-1 style key. The key is nearly all aluminum with the exception of the contact arms, which are made of copper.
I don’t know who made the key, it was an eBay purchase from some years ago, and the seller didn’t know its origins either. But the key’s maker did go to the trouble of stamping a serial number — 004 — on the bottom.
The key works well, but the base is also thin aluminum, and it has no heft. The key jumps around if you use more than the lightest touch. I came up with a solution, which I’m going to implement soon.
The original aluminum base is 4 inches square. I ordered a new base, a 4-inch square of 1/2-inch steel. It will arrive unfinished, and I expect to paint it some form of black krinkle paint or maybe hammertone — I’m open to suggestions. I considered doing the base up in the old pre-1940 black jappaned lacquer with gold carriage striping used by Vibroplex.
We’ll see what happens. The company selling the steal said the 4 inch squares are “plus or minus 1/8-inch.” I sent a message asking them to make sure the piece they send is as close to 4 inches square as possible. Once the base arrrives, I plan to create a pattern of the old one and transfer the hole locations to the new base.
STUDIO C UPDATE. In the past few days, I have set up a new 6-foot cafeteria style (i.e. heavy enough to support boat anchors) in place in our former master bedroom. I need to run a feedline out the window and down to the window behind me here at Studio B, and connect it to the knife switch that will allow me switch my antenna between Studio B and C.
One of the chores I had to do today was to get one of the windows open in the bedroom; it took a little persuasion, but I got one open, and I have the feedline snaked out under the storm window frame. The winds today were so high that I decided to wait until the next couple of days until I throw the feedline off the room and route it around to the Studio B window.
I’m not sure what station I’ll set up first, but I’m thinking of setting up my Icom IC-756PRO and PROII and putting them through the paces. I wouldn’t mind letting them go to help fund the purchase (maybe!) of a second Yaesu FT-2000.
I also have my Hallicrafters SX-117/HT-44 station I want to run, as well as my SR-150 and my Heathkit SB-102s. I may need a second cafeteria table!
73 es CUL … de KY4Z … SK SK …. (dit dit)