CW on 2 meter - CW Forum at eHam.net

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eHam.net Forum : CW : CW on 2 meter

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CW on 2 meter	Reply
by W2DAB on February 19, 2008	Mail this to a friend!
Hello all: First of all, I am a newbie to CW... I am wondering if it is possible to listen to and learn CW on 2 meter, and is there much activity there? I don't have a full size rig currently, just a hand held radio. If possible I would like to get a small antenna outside. as usual thanks* 73

RE: CW on 2 meter	Reply
by AB8ZX on February 19, 2008	Mail this to a friend!
Hello, Well, the only times I ever hear CW on 2 meters are during contests or band openings down in the weak signal portion of the band OR during the I.D. on a FM repeater. From what you state, it sounds like you just have a FM handheld? you can't really do CW on that. I call CQ down around 144.2 at times, but haven't gotten a reply in quite a while. To really do any good down there, you do need a little bit of an antenna. Would be kind of neat to get a 2 meter cw ragchew net going, or something along those lines.

RE: CW on 2 meter	Reply
by KC9HOZ on February 19, 2008	Mail this to a friend!
I used to listen to a weekly CW practice session on one of our local repeaters. Once I passed my code test, I quit listening. And now that the code requirement has been dropped, they may have discontinued the practice sessions, I don't know (stopped listening!) I found the practice sessions helpful, so if you can find one, tune in. If you can't find one in your area, maybe you can talk some elmers into starting one up. (use a 'trying to keep the code alive' line of reasoning, that may do the trick!) ;) Scott kc9hoz

RE: CW on 2 meter	Reply
by AB8ZX on February 20, 2008	Mail this to a friend!
another thing... for me, the best way to practice is just to listen in on qso's. every morning, I find super fast stations ragchewing in the extra portion. I listen to these guys and it has helped my high speed/head copy considerably. also, the ARRL code practice transmissions are great, as they are not a qso, but text out of qst magazine. they do 5 wpm all the way up to 20 wpm I think.

RE: CW on 2 meter	Reply
by WB2WIK on February 20, 2008	Mail this to a friend!
Unless you make a schedule with a friend who also wants to learn code to get on the air and send code back and forth to each other using 2m FM (modulated CW, or MCW, is perfectly legal everywhere on 2m except the bottom 100 kHz, 144.000 to 144.100) and tone practice oscillators, this is a terrible way to "learn code." You cannot copy A1 CW transmissions on a hand held unless it also works SSB (like an FT-817 does), and even if you could, there's usually nobody to listen to. Most CW activity is serious "weak signal" stuff like moonbounce, and there just isn't much of it. But FM-MCW is fine, legal, and practical. Pick an unused simplex frequency, and go at it. Still, you'll need a friend to practice with, since nobody is just sending MCW on two meters. If you can't find a study-buddy to do this with, I think it's a waste of time. You'd be far better off getting a cheap HF transceiver, putting up some sort of wire antenna, and using the privileges you already have to work the Novice code bands (sections of 80-40-15-10 meters), making real contacts starting at nearly zero words per minute if necessary and working "up" from there. 40 meters is a terrific place to do that, and there is always activity, including a lot of slow-speed activity where people are just learning. WB2WIK/6

RE: CW on 2 meter	Reply
by W2DAB on February 20, 2008	Mail this to a friend!
Thanks for all the feedback. I pretty much expected that it wasn't a practical thing to do. I have the ARRL's CD series on learning CW and when I save up enough will invest in an HF rig. 73 David

RE: CW on 2 meter	Reply
by KC9AZL on February 20, 2008	Mail this to a friend!
go to http://www.arrl.org/w1aw/morse.html. You can listen to ARRL code practice files on the internet. They go from 40--5 wpm. Chris AI4AW

RE: CW on 2 meter	Reply
by W5ESE on February 20, 2008	Mail this to a friend!
It doesn't take much of an HF rig to do CW quite well. If you look around, you may be able to find a Ten-Tec Century 21 or 22, which were nice CW rigs. If you have an interest in building a simple kit radio, look at the SW+ QRP kits from Small Wonder Labs, which are very good and not expensive. Hope you have fun with it! 73 Scott W5ESE

RE: CW on 2 meter	Reply
by W2DAB on March 19, 2008	Mail this to a friend!
After doing some digging, I found this pdf on the net about CW on Handies. Thought I would share it: http://www.af2cw.com/cw/CW%20With%20Your%20HT.pdf Just took possession of a nice little J-38 today! 73 all

RE: CW on 2 meter	Reply
by W1ZI on October 16, 2009	Mail this to a friend!
I don't see much activity on this forum or on the band, but wanted to list myself in favor of CW on 2 meters. A good directional antenna and a bit of power is needed for successful operation, and if you are far enough north, don't forget about auroral scattering. I run about 100 watts to an 8-element quad, and have had auroral QSOs out to Michigan and that general area from time to time from my western MA QTH. As always, the key to success is listen, listen, listen. CW is probably a better choice than PSK because it is less sensitive to multi-path distortion.

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