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Reviews For: Whiterook MK-44

Category: Keys & Paddles

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Review Summary For : Whiterook MK-44
Reviews: 23MSRP: 16.95
Description:
Pocket Mini-Paddle. Low cost & highly portable.
Product is in production
More Info: http://ElectronicsUSA.com/mk.html
# last 180 days Avg. Rating last 180 days Total reviews Avg. overall rating
00234.3
WA6MOW Rating: 2015-03-06
Cheap and it works. Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I use it for portable ops. Just for fun I decided to use it as my fixed station paddle. I use poster putty which is a simple way to prevent your keys from moving. I can get along with it just fine and probably could use it permanently if I did not have a fascination with ham gear. I'm always trying something new.

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Earlier 5-star review posted by WA6MOW on 2013-02-20

This little paddle is great for portable or fixed ops. I use poster putty to hold it secure. There are no adjustment but this little guy is perfectly usable the way it is. Why spend the money on a Palm Paddle when this paddle gets the job done for less than a third of the price.
WA7CS Rating: 2015-01-17
Backwards! Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I bought this paddle about ten years ago exclusively for a Rockmite. I can recall being pleasantly surprised that the dit and dah wires worked at my first guess. Now, today, I decided to try the Whiterook on a different rig. Lo and behold, the action was reversed! Turns out that when the Rockmite was wired-up I got the paddle lines reversed.. After all this time,
I never noticed that the Whiterook paddle was bass-avkwards as well. Other than that, it works fine and has served me well.
KC1CGR Rating: 2014-03-12
Small, light weight and easy to use Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
This key is excellent for at home or in the field. It is a very simple and very easy to use design and is responsive and quick to use. The key distance can easily be adjusted using non-conductive washers, if desired, but I found that the from factory configuration was just fine and more than responsive to 15wpm sending. A standard 3-pole 3.5mm jack allows for easy hookup to any keyer.
WA7DUY Rating: 2013-05-11
Needs improvement Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
I just recently acquired this MK44. It is extremely light weight but I find it impossible to adjust. You turn the plastic square taht the 2 levers are bolted to. So far I have been unable to adjust it so that one side is not shorted. If I should manage to get it adjusted it would be easy to knock it out of adjustment. The feel is also very soft and mushy.

While it is cheap and light weight I find the lack of adjustment to be extremely frustrating.
W8ZNX Rating: 2007-06-22
usefull cheap tool Time Owned: more than 12 months.
ive gotten
lots of use
out of this key

kick around
portable mobile ect
camping backpacking
dinghy camp cruising

places
would not take
an expensive key

for field work
its a sturdy
serviceable tool
no more no less

Mac dit dit
K0HPS Rating: 2006-12-15
Great backpacking paddles Time Owned: more than 12 months.
The best backpacking paddles I have yet to try; very light weight, reasonably rugged, easy to use and a very fair price. I use the leg strap when I'm sitting up and hold it with one hand while sending with the other when I'm in my sleeping bag. If you look me up on QRZ there's a picture of me using my MK-44 at 10,000 ft.
KU4QW Rating: 2004-11-13
Great Paddle Time Owned: more than 12 months.
This is the 3rd key I bought from whiterook, I use them all 3...But this one I use a lot. It's really light so you have to mount it some how, I took someone's idea and took the bottom off and cliped it in a small clip board, works great that way. This is such a great match for small qrp rigs with a keyer built into them, like the Norcal 40, or Sierra
VE3JXF Rating: 2003-12-23
Love it! Time Owned: 3 to 6 months.
Hi - Its not brass & chrome & I'm brand new to HAM & thought a paddle might be the best way to learn CW - So, bought this one - Cheap - nice. Easy to use, forgiving & before I got it I've never heard CW except in movies & I've mastered 12 wpm in 2 weeks. Ok the paddle is sloppy from the .003" spacing guys I've read about, but it seems to me at 12+ wpm that its timing and rhythm that is the important ingredient.. Its light, its red, its tiny - I use one of the YL's hair elastics to hold it to a DVD case to be in harmony with the design philosopy - works for me!

73
John
EA1BP Rating: 2002-09-23
Its so tiny...but Its great!!!! I LOVE IT Time Owned: 0 to 3 months.
The first impression when I got my MK-44 was...Wow! Because it was very very small. The stamp of the parcel was bigger than the paddle!! Hi I really like it!!
I didnt expect to find a Bencher, Vibroplex,...or any kind of those paddles...I look for a portable and easy to use paddle and thats what I find with this.
Its perfect to put in the box of my FT-817 and ready to go anywhere, anytime...I have my portable transceiver, portable antenna, and I think this is the best portable paddle you can find (Light, small and easy to use). What do you want for 16.50 $ ???? (Be honest)
This is the best meaning of simplicity and economy !!
Good product, better results!

73 from EA1BP/QRP
Miguel
Spain
KC8LTL Rating: 2002-09-09
You get what you pay for Time Owned: more than 12 months.
I am glad that I bought the MK-44, but have found that it leaves much to be desired as far as paddles go. On the plus side, it is cheap and basically works. There are quite a few minuses however.

1) It is very hard to adjust and comes out of adjustment somewhat easily. Take a look at the picture... The clear plastic block can turn just slightly, causing it to send continously on one side. Even if it isn't this bad, there are times where it somehow manages to add elements, just from rebound off the OTHER side. Since this is a PORTABLE paddle, it easy to just throw it in the pack, where something else can hit it and knock it out of wack.

2) The feel is very soft and mushy. The levers are simply thin pieces of plastic which you bend to touch the center - there is definitely nothing solid about the feel.

These two things definitely help me to have errors in my sending, and I need no help with that. However, I will use my MK-44 for every Spartan Sprint, since they are so light and will probably keep them in my car so that I can use them with my FT-100 when parked...