Ok. First off I SUCK at CW. Now that, that is out there....

I have been using lcwo.net for this. Been at it since Saturday so it has only been 4 days. I have tried learning CW over the last year, put not with any consistency.

I know the sounds of C, Q, M, U and K at a character per minute speed of 30 and a wpm of 5 without any problems. But when R is added, my brain goes to mush.

If I slow the cpm to 25 or the wpm to 4 then all is good.


Question 1: What is considered normal cpm and wpm?

Question 2: If I keep at this 10-15 minutes a day, what would be an expected amount of time to have CW learned? A year? Let me add this I am not an auditory person.

I really want to get CW under my belt, because I considered it a need. Also I am using a straight key.

ETA Question 3: Those that are not auditory but learned CW, do you have any tricks or advice to what helped you?

I learned at 20wpm char speed and 5wpm spacing between characters. IIRC this is called the Farnsworth method.

I focused on easy letters only at first, then added numerals, then punctuation.

A, T, I, M, E, S, etc at first, then adding K, U, P, X  and the more complex letters mixing them in with the "simple" ones.

Back when I learned, I used a DOS program called "Super Morse". It would send the character and you typed it out on the computer.

If you were wrong on a character, it would repeat it until you got it. It could be set up to send random chars or a complete QSO.

It also helped my typing skillz!

ETA - It took me about a month of practicing every day for 30 minutes to pass the 5wpm test, then another two months to increase my speed enough to pass the 13wpm test.

I could never get above about 15wpm to pass the Advanced or Extra exam so I was a general class for many years.

Upgraded to Extra when the code requirement was dropped.

I am a non-auditory person, I'm not active on CW now, and it's confirmed I suck,
so take my answers with a grain of salt. But it's safe to say I was a "hard learner" when
it came to CW, and then some.

Q1: It's all a matter of opinion, but when I decided to learn back in the old code-required
days, I let the tests be my guide. General and advanced needed 13 WPM, and Extra was 20 WPM.

So when I learned code I went with Farnsworth type weighting, with characters sent at 20WPM
and a spacing of 13WPM. That gave me headroom if I thought I could get to 20.

Your character weights seem really fast to me, but maybe a CW old-timer will add in his opinion.

Q2: Honestly, if you put in 15 minutes a day, even if you're a slow learner you should have the
code down OK at one month, and be pretty solid at 2-3 months. It took me about two months
to get to the point I could confidently know I'd pass an exam with 80% or better accuracy.

Q3: Practice. Practice, practice. Eventually you'll beat your brain into submission. It's the same
as dry firing or anything else. 10-15 minutes a day is actually a lot of training for most things.

DO NOT try to use any shortcuts, mnemonics, or other tricks, just associate the sound
of the character with the character and keep at it. Stuff like "dit-dah-dit-dit, the heLL with it," etc
will mess you up at speed because you're thinking too much. Pick your style though, if you're
going to copy on paper, then just get into a listen-write loop, and if you're going to copy by
ear, work on that. Thankfully there's no exams to worry about any more.

I'd also suggest actually copying on-the-air (W1AW or similar) so you get used to it, and especially try
to listen into real CQ nets. When I started hearing actual prosigns in use, etc, it messed me up
because I was so used to copying plain english texts.

Your not alone Brother.. I have been listening to cw for 8 months.  I have made a few contacts but I also get lost at the time of contact.   I finally just said screw it and started keying at 9 wpm and if they don't slow down for me I move on.   I can hear the letter no problem as long as there is a pause between letters.  Its amazing how well cw works.   Don't be afraid to throw a qrs out to tell them to slow down..  If they don't key slower start calling cw again.   I find that if it is not fun its harder...    I just got off 30 meters and the people do slow down for new cw operators.    Keep at it, maybe we will meet on the bands..

prosise

Thanks very much for the info. sounds like 25 or even 20 will be fine. the hole 30 came from the paddle users I know. They have been telling me character speed of 30 minimum average of 42. At the 42 I cannot tell what is what and get completely flustered. They said that if I cannot do 30 forget trying to do cw. Sounds like I put to much faith in what they said.

Let me answer your question with a question, are you looking to ragchew or just make QSOs?

Both but mainly qso. Mostly if something happens (shtf emcom) I have understanding and ability to rx and tx using cw.

Ok. The reason I was asking was that, what I found worked for me at least, was learning my callsign and basic exchanges (copying and sending) and then I just jumped in and started making short QSOs and using a decoder as a backup. It didn't take long before I started being able to pick out my call sign, return exchanges, etc. I'm still working on getting better, but once I buckled down and started using it it's gotten much easier.

Just my $0.02 which, when combined with a Starbucks gift card, will get you a grande mocha

I've been operating CW for 62+ years and will occasionally have trouble with characters sent at 30 WPM if my tinnitus is acting up.

Go with the characters sent at 20 WPM and as your overall speed increases, so will you character speed.

You can find QRS OPs around the SKCC operating frequencies and just about all of us will gladly slow down if you ask.

20 wpm is the fastest "conversational" CW speed you're likely to encounter, maybe 25. Most CW ops are accommodating and will slow down or speed up to match your speed. QRS means "please slow down" QRSS means "FOR THE LOVE OF GOD SLOW DOWN" There are of course old CW guys who have done it their whole lives, who will do 40+ with bugs (always sounds weird because the dahs are so much longer than the machine gun dits). During contents I'll generally start out with my keyer at 30 and work up to 35 or 40 by the end, but when you know exactly what you're listening for it's much easier to copy fast. "my callsign, 3 numbers, 1-3 numbers" can be done at 40-45 after some practice.

Throwing in R is probably causing confusion because it's the opposite of K. I would set up a practice run at 30-35 WPM of just R and K in random order and keep playing it until you're able to copy it. One of the pairs that cause me grief for a long time was C and Y (-.-. vs -.--). At high speeds the final character is hard to pick out.

The amount of time it takes to become proficient at CW depends on a lot of factors. Being willing to stick with it is probably the most important. In the week or two leading up to a major contest, I will challenge myself to practice with a contest simulator for an hour or two each day. If you have access to an HF radio, spend some time tuning around the CW subbands after your LCWO practice. If you don't have one, use web sdr

You're bound to find everything from high speed back-and-forth conversations, to 5 wpm (which after practicing at a weighted 20 wpm sounds soooo sllooooowwww). Just write down as much as you can copy, don't worry about losing letters.

I had a strange issue of my brain connecting the sound of the letter to a key stroke on the keyboard only.  When I heard "A", my finger would type "A", but the letter would not pop into my conscious thought.  I ended up scrapping that, and started relearning the way I would normally operate - with pen and paper.  Now my brain is associating the sound with a letter in my conscious thought rather than automatically making my finger do something on the keyboard.  The brain is a strange thing.

You can access the ARRL code practice files here: http://www.arrl.org/code-practice-files

For real-world practice, use the W1AW practice transmissions listed here: http://www.arrl.org/w1aw-operating-schedule. As your skill increases, shift to bands where the signal is weak to further enhance your abilities.

And don't forget to practice your sending! If possible, record it and compare it to machine-generated code. (Surely you have an old cassette recorder stashed away among those Atari games, don't you?)

Unless you're handling traffic where accuracy is important, writing everything down becomes a burden. Most OPs "head copy", IOW, they treat CW as another language, and only jot down pertinent information the way they would with a voice QSO.

The secret is regular practice using frequent short sessions of 15 - 30 minutes several times each week. IOW, don't wear yourself out. Once you start contacting stations, your speed will really take off.

10-15 min sessions in the morning and evening work for me with g4fon. But I'm in the problem cycle of being able to do it. Not doing it for a few weeks, not being able to do it, forgetting it, starting over. I can usually do 5-7wpm these days which is pathetic, but it's better than nothing.

Just listening to CW helps. When my wife was studying for her Novice, I recorded the W1AW 5 and 7-1/2 WPM transmissions to tape and she played them back in the car on her way to work or on her Walkman during breaks.

OP, I have a similar problem. I get "R" and "K" confused and it is seriously discouraging.

This stuff happens to everyone.

Are you practicing your sending also?  Sending practice really helps your brain get the letters correct.  

I'd say get on the air and rag chew once you know all the characters, numbers and a few pro-signs. Relax and the speed will come. 73, Rob

 

I haven't. I need to get a practice oscillator. I have a few different straight keys, just need a buzzer and a battery.

Got an HF rig? Run low power into a dummy load. IIRC some rigs will allow you to run in CW mode, just turn off the VOX or whatever it uses for keying the transmitter. Side tone can still be heard for practice.

 
I will have to take a look at my instruction manual. I have an FT-450D and I know it has some kind of CW trainer function but I am not sure if it is just random characters or if it allows you to practice sending (off air).

On my IC 7200 if you turn off break-in, it functions as a practice oscillator. Also if you're having an issue with an IC 7200 not sending CW, check that your break-in is either semi or full.

CPOs are easy to build. This is probably the simplest, made from a flasher IC that runs at an audio rate. Parts are available from Mouser or Digikey

I bet most of y'all didn't know there is a CPO museum.

How's that for trivia?

Update on progress. Doing well now with R, K, U, and M. Only missing 5 to 7 out of strings of 50, at 15 wpm. Started throwing in a D on my cell phone app. Everyone, thanks for the advice and hope to do some CW with you in the future (future = months... probably )

Try this: Once you get a few more letters under your belt, kick back in your recliner (or otherwise get comfortable), access the ARRL practice files, close your eyes, and just listen for the letters you know. Don't try to write them down, just listen. Interleave this with your other practice routines. This serves two purposes, to keep you from "locking up" when you miss a letter, and to enhancing your "head copy" skill.

You will find that unless you are handling traffic, almost all of your CW receiving will be done in your head the same way you process speech. You will only jot down pertinent data such as name, QTH, other OP's equipment, etc. If fact, CW will become a second language for you.