| G0EML |
Rating:      |
2014-04-12 | |
| Light wonderful operating feel a joy to use |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Unfortunately the wonderful N2DAN mercury is no longer produced, Due to the fact that the original N2DAN is now silent key,
But thanks to Richard KE2ED he has produced a excellent copy, some say that it even performs better that the original N2DAN,
well I can tell you, I have both and there is nothing between them! they are in fact both tremendous,
but what I can tell you is you cannot get a better feeling paddle today than the long Island Mercury,
if your looking for perfection in your operating ability, ask your self this, is it better to spend some money on yourself? on a wonderful crafted paddle, that will be doing your CW Justice?, go for it
73 Ray
G0EML |
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| W2ROB |
Rating:      |
2009-09-10 | |
| Time owned 2 years |
Time Owned: N.A. |
Attention was paid to detail on this key.
The key is excellent.
A must have in any ham shack at any price.
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|
| W9AC |
Rating:      |
2007-08-15 | |
| Outstanding Craftsmanship |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
I recently sent my Mercury key to Richey after it had become slightly damaged during an accident. Richey offered me the option to upgrade the paddle to his new design that uses slightly different levers to take advantage of a better leverage ratio. Also, the finger pieces are thinner and placed closer to the center of the pivot.
The result is that there is even less opportunity for the levers to flex. I thought the feel of the Mercury was excellent before, but it is truly remarkable now.
----------------------
Earlier 5-star review posted by W9AC on 2001-01-13
I ordered my Mercury key back in November and Richie, KG2ED indicated that the order lead time was running about six weeks. As promised, he shipped my key in early January and the key has been a wonderful addition to my key collection. I also own a Hensley Gold Presentation, WBL V22L, several Brown Brothers and an original Joe Hills FYO. Richie's Mercury joins the ranks with Hensley and WBL in performance, accuracy, and manufacturing precision. The Mercury and Hensley are definately more responsive than the WBL. For some reason, the WBL V22L has a bit of "recovery latency" that appears to be beyond the scope of any adjustment. As others have commented, the depth of the Mercury's chrome is so deep, you want to dive in head first! Adjustment is easy and stable, and I would rank it very high in terms of its price/performance ratio. Of all my keys, the Mercury weighs-in on top. I don't have a scale, but it sure feels like several pounds! You will not have to worry about this baby walking all over your desk top. |
|
| N3CW |
Rating:      |
2007-01-20 | |
| Awesome Paddle |
Time Owned: 6 to 12 months. |
| This paddle is amazingly well-built, and a joy to use. The attention to detail and the overall quality of construction (especially the plating) is top-notch. I cant say enough about experience of working with Rich when buying one of these paddles. I merely asked about some mother-of-pearl fingerpieces, and Rich went off and found the material and made me a beautiful pair. During the build process, Rich e-mailed me about a slight delay; seems he didnt like something on the base (that had come back from being chromed) and wanted to make a new one. After I received the paddles, Rich let me know he was tweaking the arm design to use a lighter-weight material. I thought the arms were fine! Rich volunteered to replace the arms and update my paddle at no cost. To me, the whole experience of working directly with the designer/builder on a mechanism like a custom paddle is part of what you are buying. And it does not get any better than this. I highly recommend not only the paddle, but the builder! BTW, the paddle is an awesome experience in actual use, and the focus of attention for anyone visiting my shack. I mentioned the mother-of-pearl fingerpieces, but I use the stock red ones most often. Just something about red and chrome that looks so artistic and functional at the same time, even nostalgic if you remember some autos from the 50s and the 60s that looked so good painted red with lots of chrome. Sorry Rich, I looked for a "6" to check in the ratings, but had to go with the "5." |
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| WA2SI |
Rating:      |
2005-02-17 | |
| Great Feel! |
Time Owned: more than 12 months. |
Not having had the benefit of owning/operating a genuine N2DAN Mercury, I cannot make a true comparison. However, my interest was piqued when I discovered that Rich, KG2ED, was crafting a reproduction that was faithful to the original. After reading the reviews here, I decided to take the plunge and upon receiving my "Long Island" Mercury, did not regret it one bit.
I have to admit that unlike some of the other reviewers here, I cannot say it is absolutely flawless. (That title belongs to my March R-3a) The workmanship is very good, however, there is a cosmetic imperfection or two here and there beneath the chrome. (Likely a function of the chroming service as opposed to Rich's machining.) I can say that the feel of this paddle is flawless though and, albeit different, matches the March R-3a in terms of quality of its mechanical action.
Would I recommend a KG2ED-built Mercury to another amateur...you betcha! |
|
| WA4FOM |
Rating:      |
2001-08-30 | |
| Gorgeous and well-built |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
As of this writing, the only other paddle I have
used that may at all be considered comparable to
the Long Island Mercury is the Schurr. Whereas
the Schurr has a warm brass finish, the Long
Island Mercury has a dazzling, flawless mirrored
surface. It looks like someone melted down all
the chrome trim on a 1958 Plymouth Fury and
carved out a set of iambic paddles. No photo I
have seen does it justice. I was scared to take
it out of the box for fear of getting my grubby
paw prints on it, but I got over that rather
quickly. As for the paw prints, an old (clean)
undershirt, the softest substance known to
mankind, took care of those.
Construction? This paddle is strictly handmade
by Rich, KG2ED, and shows that in the end human
craftsmanship is superior to that of the machine.
Rich builds these one at a time and does all the
polishing himself. Now, a chimp could get this
device properly adjusted in about one minute.
The adjustments hold up perfectly over time.
I noticed no fatigue whatsoever even after over
an hour of continuous use. It's smooth and
solid, and doesn't budge on the table even
when smacked much harder than needed to send
code.
Now, the Schurr is a great paddle, but I think
the Long Island Mercury wins out in two areas:
One, Rich leaves the base open in his paddles
so you can solder your own cable in place and
run it out the back of the base. The Schurr
already comes with a cable, but I don't see an
easy way to change it. Two, the paddle arms on
the Long Island Mercury are somewhat thicker
than those on the Schurr; this translates into a
more "solid" feel, especially if you're heavier-
handed on the paddle.
Room for improvement? Not with the paddle itself,
but it could use a dust cover. I hear that Rich
is working on having one designed for his paddle.
Something this beautiful deserves to be protected
from dust and grime. Right now, that same clean
old undershirt serves as my dust cover. The only
problem is, it hides the paddle from view, and a
piece like this deserves to be seen! If Rich
comes out with one, I'll be in line to get one.
If you're looking for the last paddle you will
ever need to buy, then get this one. It will
stand up to just about anything short of King
Kong or a box of hand grenades.
Buy it and use your Vibroplex for a paperweight.
|
|
| W5EJ |
Rating:      |
2001-06-12 | |
| As good as it gets |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
Rich's workmanship, as others have said, is as good as you'll find anywhere. The adjustments are few and simple to make.
The thing that impressed me most is the buttery-smooth feel of sending with the Mercury. It's like nothing else I have experienced. My Shurr is great but the difference in the Mercury is immediately apparent.
The difference, I'm guessing, is a combination of the absolutely free yet "no-slop" pivot points for the dit and dah paddles coupled with fully-adjustable magnetic, rather than spring, tensioners.
The dit & dah paddles are set wider apart than any paddle sets I've used before but adapting to it took all of 30 seconds.
Many thanks to Rich for such a great product.
Ed, W5EJ |
|
| K4KJV |
Rating:      |
2001-04-15 | |
| Fine piece of precision equipment |
Time Owned: 0 to 3 months. |
One of the many things I learned about ham radio after returning to the hobby after a long abscence was that the Mercury paddle by N2DAN was legendary among cw operators for its quality and craftsmanship. Sadly, by this time N2DAN had passed away, and I could not obtain one of his paddles. Of course, there is always the used market, but I wanted one made for me, with my call letters engraved. Through these reviews and other sources I learned Richie Stamile, KG2ED, was making a faithful successor to the N2DAN.
I wanted one for several reasons. I love cw and wanted a piece of equipment that reflected this. I prize fine quality and craftsmanship in precision instruments, and although I can't afford the "best of everything", I can sometimes treat myself to the "best of something". The price of $500 will give anyone pause, but when you consider it is a piece of equipment you will have for a lifetime, and maybe pass on as an heirloom, or to a ham friend, the cost does not seem so great.
Richie, KG2ED, makes these as a sideline, and he is obsessive about quality. For these reasons, it will take 5 to 6 weeks for him to make you one. You need to be into delayed gratification here, because they are worth the wait! The quality and craftsmanship are obvious, but the real pay off is getting the paddle adjusted to your fist and getting on the air. My standard is a Bencher BY1, and although I expected some difference, I was blown away by the LI Mercury. This paddle does make you a better cw operator. It is smooth, with a solid feel that makes sending cw effortless. I have not yet used it in a contest, but it should be great for reducing fatigue.
As another reviewer said, I have no financial interest with Richie. For the time that it takes him to turn one of these out and the work and materials, I don't think Richie is getting rich enough to pay anyone to shill for him! I would like to see a nice guy with a great product succeed, however, as well as seeing other cw devotees learn of his paddle. |
|
| N4XX |
Rating:      |
1999-12-30 | |
| Unequaled beauty, unsurpassed performance |
Time Owned: unknown months. |
| The Long Island Mercury, handmade by Richie, KG2ED, is one of the finest examples of form following function that you ever will see! From the heavy (over 4 lbs.) highly polished chrome base to the smooth level action, this set of paddles speaks of quality and performance rarely found in any equipment today. Set-up is quick and easy (only four adjustment screws!) and sending is effortless at any speed. The contacts are silver, and so, they should "work in" with time, providing even better performance as the paddles are used. The key Richie built for me is SR# 12, and it's a beauty! To preserve the mirror-like finish of the unit, Richie kindly agreed to engrave my call under the base. The finger pads are bright red in color, but you can select from a variety of colors that are available at no extra charge. It takes about 4-5 weeks for Richie to build one of these keys, but it's well worth the wait. If you are addicted to CW and insist on owning only the best, there can be no other choice but the Long Island Mercury by KG2ED. |
|
| AD6A |
Rating:      |
1999-10-06 | |
| Serial # 5 here - Absolutely Superb Paddles! |
Time Owned: unknown months. |
Doug, KI6DS, put me onto these paddles in the summer. He was brief and to the point - "Dave" he said, "Email KG2ED right away and order yourself a set of his Mercury copy paddles. Just do it!". I took his word for it, and was not dissapointed at all. The Long Island Mercury paddles are absolutely wonderful, both to look at and to use on the air. The spotless, mirror-like chrome finish is so deep that it looks like light falls into them and doesn't come back, but it does, because they're so shiny (if you know what I mean!). You can sit for hours just staring at the beauty of these paddles - they are hypnotic! Just staring at them is not what they're best at however - the fully adjustable spacing, weighting and feel of them makes them a joy to use. I swear my accuracy and speed is much better using them. I thoroughly recommend them to you. OK, they cost quite a bit, but when you see the amount of time, work and loving care that Richard has put into each handmade set, you'll see instantly that it was worth every penny! There's a growing line of people ordering them - get your order in fast!
(NB, I have no affiliation with Richard KG2ED whatsoever, other than being a totally satisfied customer) |
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