| AB2T |
Rating:   |
2003-12-01 | |
| saving my pennies for new paddles |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Never again ... I bought these for my first set of paddles. It's OK to learn on but has a nasty tendency to be imprecise and "lock up" during a QSO (I recently found this out during a nice ragchew.) The only way around this is to loosen up the paddles to the point of "floppiness".
I don't have the greatest fist but the Bencher isn't helping any. Looking at a Kent for next time.
73
Jordan AB2T |
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| K4CMD |
Rating:      |
2003-11-19 | |
| A paddle for life |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Just a quick review (how can a review on a key be LONG???) to say that I've owned my black-base Bencher paddle since 1984 -- 19 years now -- and other than cleaning the contacts every couple of years, I've never had to do anything with it (and cleaning the contacts was just by choice -- it's never missed a beat). Rigs may come and rigs may go -- it's been used and rewired for a TS530SP, TS-440S, IC-735, TS-850S, IC-746 and TS-570D and S -- and toted along to college and back, and used in several Field Days. The more things change in my shack over the years, the more I notice that my good ol' Bencher's there to experience it all with me. Looking forward to many more years and many other rigs for the two of us to try out!
P.S. Paid $49 for it in 1984, heh heh ... :D |
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| K8NY |
Rating:   |
2003-11-13 | |
| Too poor a design to be a serious paddle |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I've had this paddle for 5 years and have not used it at all since I purchased a Schurr Profi and,later on, a March.
Two major criticisms: The design of the paddle with an elongated spring is next to impossible to adjust properly for close spacing. The paddle feel is extremely 'mushy', not crisp at all.
I suppose that if one is exposed only to the BY-1 they might think this is normal...it's not |
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| DK3QN |
Rating:    |
2003-07-02 | |
| may look good, but ... |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Sorry to all owners of Becher paddles (I know that there are quite a few of you out there), but this is my personal view.
I have collected quite a number of paddles over the 34 years of my ham activity. And I have hardly sold any. The bencher paddle I sold a couple of years ago, without regret until today.
It's nice to look at, especially if you have the 'gold' version. But it's a very special piece of paddle. Some of the competition copied the principle, i.e. the principle how to adjust the tension of the paddles (Spanish copies, Russian copies, etc.).
This is just crap. I dare to say that when I look at the mechanism how the tension of the paddles is adjusted. It's a rather log spring which goes from one paddle to the other paddle routed along a mid-point pole suspending the spring at the far mid-point. If you want to adjust the tension of each paddle, you run into a rather complex process of squeezing the spring onto that mid-point. Because this is the max point where the tension of the spring can act relative to the side of the paddle.
This process is unpredictable, based on trial-and-error and is hard to duplicate if you happen to have screwed-up the spring settings.
A 'must-not-have'.
73, Klaus, DK3QN |
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| W9HC |
Rating:      |
2003-06-09 | |
| I'm Happy with the BY-1 |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I have two Bencher BY-1's. I used one of them for about 20 years (heavy use), and got the latest one to get that "right" feel back. Hard to believe, but the BY-1 really CAN be worn out due to use. I bought the second one (in chrome - looks great) because I loved using the first one. This, for me, just isn't complicated. The Bencher combined with the Logikey K3 absolutely floats my boat. And yes, I have tried other paddles.
Best DX to all...
Steve, W9HC |
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| ZS1AN |
Rating:    |
2003-06-09 | |
| Nice enough but not the best |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I've used a Bencher for about a year and a half, ever since graduating from a straight key after passing my 12 wpm license test. I'm an almost exclusively CW operator, and enjoy DXing (at both ends of the pileup), ragchewing and contesting.
I've learned a lot using the Bencher, and enjoyed myself at the same time, including a number of contests and a couple of DX-peditions. However by comparison with other paddles, it is a bit flimsy, and one of the perspex paddles is a bit loose on the metal arm. Because it is rivetted on, there's not much I can do about this. I've also found that the Bencher has a tendency to wander around my desk sometimes, although I don't think I'm particularly heavy handed with it. (Admittedly a sheet of non-slip plastic would probably solve the problem). And adjusting it requires getting the Allen key out from under the paddle, making the adjustment and then returning the allen key - not really practical while operating.
When I finally decided that the Bencher should be returned to the club, I looked for an alternative as a replacement. After reading the reviews here I decided on the Kent paddle, and have been very happy with that choice.
The Bencher is a nice enough key, but it's not the best there is. |
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| W6TH |
Rating:      |
2003-03-19 | |
| No better paddle/keyer |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
| I use a Bencher BY-1 with the MFJ 422 keyer and the MFJ-564, both have the same feel. These are the best for those qrq boys. I have tried many others including Vibroplex, still think the Bencher is tops. Also used the W9TO keyer with two hand keys back to back, no comparison to todays market. Easily send 60 wpm with above mentioned keyer/paddle combination. No need for a keyboard with these units. No wonder cw is enjoyment and here forever. |
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| N4NOY |
Rating:      |
2003-02-24 | |
| All about feel |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I think the bottom line is that a key should be compared to a fine writing instrument. Almost everyone has their favorite pen becuase it just "feels" right. Those with a heavy hand should -not- consider a Bencher paddle because it just isn't designed for that kind of treatment. This key requires very little motion of the forearm/wrist, which can be good because it lessens the probability for repetitive motion injury. It becomes a waste of money when it breaks due to a strong fist, however.
I have used one for several years without one malfunction. The weighted base and rubber feet keep it from taking a ride around the desk. I am not a CW whiz, but the key feels great to me.
73,
Andy N4NOY |
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| K3NG |
Rating:   |
2002-11-28 | |
| OK With Caveats |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
This is a good entry level key. I adored the BY-1 when I first bought it. As I refined my CW skills, I continued to adjust the key for less spacing between the contacts. I found that the BY-1 becomes unreliable with close spacing, especially when you have a "heavy" fist or get rough with it. I became disenchanted with the key after several QSOs where the mechanism came out of the pivot, causing contacts to lock together and trigger the embarassing "dit dit dit dit" problem on the air. The only way I found to get around this was to increase the contact spacing well beyond the point that I liked, giving the key a cheap sloppy feeling. I've also found that this key seems to require frequent adjustment.
I switched to the Kent TP-1. The feeling of this key is superb and it's never required readjustment from the day I put it into service. The Kent TP-1 is a solid key that is "built like a brick outhouse" that your great grandchildren can use long after you're a silent key. I can't say the same for the Bencher BY-1.
So, you're going to see alot of 5/5 reviews, and for many people the BY-1 is indeed a solid 5. If you are a beginner or you prefer or don't mind wide contact spacing, you may enjoy this key for years or your entire ham career. Don't buy the BY-1 just because all your friends have it, or it was the first key you ever touched at Field Day. Do yourself a favor and shop around and actually feel other keys. |
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| G4HZV |
Rating:      |
2002-11-18 | |
| Nice |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I notice that the Bencher paddles seem to get a bit of a bad rap. I've been using them on and off for 20 years and I like them. The off periods have included a Kent, Vibroplex Iambic and most recently, for the past couple of years, a Schurr Profi. The Schurr is an excellent paddle, which also deserves a 5 rating. However, I always seem to drift back to the Bencher.
I find that the Bencher has a reasonably positive, light touch. If the gap is set too close or the spring tension too slack, this tends to cause trouble in my experience. The gold contacts are the best there is. |
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