Morse Code / CW

So, you want to learn Morse code?  Or maybe you want to know WHY you should want to learn Morse code.  Either way, this is the right place.  At the Gallatin Ham Radio Club, there are many members who love to operate using Morse code, otherwise known as CW. 

There are many ways to get started.  You can learn from a computer program, the web, cassette tapes, CDs or with a tutor (an Elmer).   If you are interested in talking with someone in the club who uses CW to help you, join our Yahoo group - just for SW Montana hams interested in CW!

If you have no idea where to start, join our Yahoo group FIRST - before you try to learn on your own.  If you do it right from the start, CW can be easy and fun.  But if you memorize a chart of the dits and dahs or another bad method, you'll find you can never really send or receive CW at good speeds.  Some of us learned it the wrong way and are constantly re-learning it to break bad habits!  Don't do this to yourself!!  Get one of the club mentors to get you headed in the right direction!

N7GS gave an AWESOME presentation on CW at the November 2006 GHRC meeting - here are some links from that presentation:

CW: Past, Present, and Future Resources

By:  N7GS, Mal Goosey

• William G. Pierpont, N0HFF. 2003. The Art and Skill of Radio-Telegraphy. (Available for download or purchase from http://www.fists.org).

• A Brief History of the Morse Telegraph

  • http://www.faradic.net/~gsraven/history.html

• Hear The Telegraph

• http://www.du.edu/~jcalvert/tel/heartele.htm

• Japanese Morse code

  • http://homepages.cwi.nl/~dik/english/codes/morse.html

• Rufz

  • http://www.rufzxp.net

• PED

  • http://www.sk3bg.se/Contest/softped.htm

• The Adventure Radio Society (ARS)

  • http://www.arsqrp.com

• The trail friendly radio

  • Rockmite: http://smallwonderlabs.com/Rockmite.htm

  • AT Sprint 3A: http://kd1jv.qrpradio.com/ats3a/ATS3A.HTM

So contact us today and you'll be on your way to enjoying the fun of operating CW mode tomorrow!!