I've been a little busy but wanted to document my new bug, a 1960 Vibroplex Blue Racer, serial no. 214,483.
This is a very, very nice original condition key. It has the grey crackle finish, and the chrome and the contacts are just outstanding. I haven't cleaned the dust off the key yet, or cleaned the contacts, but it seems to do OK. It looks pretty good too for not having it cleaned up yet. Not bad for a 45-year-old key!
I got this key worth the money too — it was listed as a Vibroplex Original in the header. The seller corrected this in the text of the listing but not the header.
Post-war Blue Racers aren't exactly rare, but they seem to attract a lot of attention from collectors. I've chased several and came up short every time. The De Luxe model is really the high dollar version.
I got this one for $80 — a real steal considering the condition. The base has a couple of small chips, but nothing serious. The best part of the key is it is complete — no missing parts. The model stamp on the bottom of the base is complete too.
The funny thing is that I paid nearly the same price for my 1920 Vibroplex Blue Racer — both of these keys bought worth the money.
The 1960 Blue Racer is a smooth operating key. I added my extra lead weight “bug tamer” and it still is pretty fast. I hooked the key up but didn't make a contact this evening with it. I want to get the feel of it, it's a fast action still. The 1925 Vibroplex Original is still my main bug, but I want to try out the new Blue Racer soon.
That's all for now … 73 de KY4Z … sk … dit dit