Is the Begali Intrepid a real Bug?

[KE6EE]

Piero, the book I mentioned is no longer available in a pdf and it is not going to be published. Can you provide information and some history on this prototype.
73,   John

John and Piero--I ran across the still-available pdf of Keys IV here:

http://www.uft.net/articles/f9wt/pdf/k4twj.pdf

Unfortunately there's no text which refers to the Begali Intrepid prototype.

[REMOVED_ACCOUNT_2015-01-09]

Piero, the book I mentioned is no longer available in a pdf and it is not going to be published. Can you provide information and some history on this prototype.
73,   John

John and Piero--I ran across the still-available pdf of Keys IV here:

http://www.uft.net/articles/f9wt/pdf/k4twj.pdf

Unfortunately there's no text which refers to the Begali Intrepid prototype.

Most appreciative Mike. Perhaps Piero if he chooses to do so can provide details on the prototype.

73
john

[VA7CPC]

. . .  Is the Intrepid truly a bug?

Unless your definition of a "bug" includes the words:

. . . "Made by Vibroplex"

clearly the answer is "Yes, it is a real bug".

If anything, it proves that bugs _can_ be "elegant" by modern standards.

.            Charles

PS -- is there something here I don't understand?

[K7KBN]

CPC got it right.  The name "Bug" means (to most of us OTs) "a semi-automatic Morse code key made by Vibroplex.  I don't know if they registered the trade mark, but to me the Begali is not a true "Bug" even though it's definitely "a semi-automatic Morse code key".

[KI6LZ]

This is splitting double hairs. Vibroplex has no patent on name "bug". Many other companies made "bugs". If you want to argue who made the first semi auto key, that's another story.

[WA7PRC]

This is splitting double hairs. Vibroplex has no patent on name "bug". Many other companies made "bugs". If you want to argue who made the first semi auto key, that's another story.

Yes - over the past decades, there have been several manufacturers of semiautomatic "speed keys" (as my Navy Radioman dad called them). There used to be a pretty good (and inexpensive) Japanese-made bug.  My new WinKeyer box has a "VibroBug" mode that roughly approximates a bug.

As fine as it may be, at €455.00 ($621.06 US), I don't expect that I'll be ponying-up to buy a Begali Intrepid anytime soon.

vy 73,
Bryan WA7PRC

[WB2LQF]

In my opinion, the Begali INTREPID is an excellent "bug."  Vibroplex does not own the term "bug" anymore than IBM owns the term "PC".  In the hands of the unlearned, the INTREPID can screw up spacing just as effectively as a Vibroplex or any other manufacturer's "bug" type semiautomatic key.  With an experienced user on it, the INTREPID sounds just like a paddle.  But isn't that the ultimate goal of any CW OP -- to send with textbook perfection, avoiding the Lake Erie Swing and other similar abberations?

It's absolutely true - a good op can send good code with just about any key.  And a Timex can tell time as well as a Rolex.  Whether one buys a Timex or a Rolex, a Begali INTREPID or a used Vibroplex Champion, it is a personal decision.

I value aesthetics, quality engineering, and innovation as well as the practical and traditional.  I own Begali, Frattini and Vibroplex and they all provide me with a great deal of satisfaction.

[KH6AQ]

I owned a Begali Intrepid and it is a true bug. No external circuit is needed for it to operate as such.