The path
Keep it on your phone
Milestones
Hear any character, any time
Tap one to play it. Use this whenever a sound will not come back to you — looking it up beats guessing.Your characters, weak spots, and lesson controls
Characters in this lesson
Weak characters
How to run this
- Two sessions of 10 minutes beats one of 30. Every day matters more than how long.
- Never write down dots and dashes. Write the letter or nothing.
- Miss one? Let it go and stay with the next character. Chasing a miss costs you the next three.
- Leave character speed at 18 wpm or higher. Speed up the gaps, never the characters.
Ham words on the air
Experienced operators do not hear these letter by letter — they hear one shape, the way you hear your own callsign. Drill until the meaning arrives before the last character does.
Everything in this set
| Sent | Means |
|---|
Callsign copy
Callsigns break every shortcut your brain wants to use — no word shape, no context, no guessing from the first two characters. This drill decides whether you can work a pileup. Your own call is salted in so it comes back instantly.
?5EDB DE <your call> K or just AGN?. Nobody expects a perfect first copy — asking for a repeat is what the whole shorthand exists for.Work a station
Each line is sent with the text hidden. Copy it in your head, then tap the line to reveal it and check. Your side is written the way you would actually send it — read along and you will have the script memorised before your first real call.
Your side, ready to send
What the separators mean
BT(=) — a pause, like a comma or a new paragraph.KN— over, to you only. Others should not break in.K— over, anyone may answer.AR— end of this transmission, no reply expected yet.SK— end of contact. The last thing you send.8 dits— I made an error, here comes that word again.
Sending practice
Sending is easier than copying, and sending badly is the fastest way to be asked for repeats. Watch the decoded line: if this cannot read you, neither can the operator on the other end.
Using a real key or paddle instead
Your rig is a better trainer than this page
- Plug the paddle into
KEYon the back of the radio. - On an IC-7300:
SET→Function→ set Break-In to OFF. - Set
Side Tone Levelto taste and the pitch to match this page. - The paddle now drives the internal keyer and sidetone with no RF out until you press TRANSMIT. Real feel, zero chance of keying up the band.
- Set the internal keyer speed to match what you are copying. Never send faster than you can receive.
A paddle plugged straight into a computer
- A key or paddle is a passive switch. A computer headset jack expects a microphone signal, not a contact closure, so a plain 3.5 mm cable produces nothing usable.
- What does work: a USB keyer interface that presents the paddle as a keyboard or serial device, or the rig method above.
- Until then the pads and keyboard here give correct timing and correct decoding. What they cannot teach is muscle memory in your hand.
Everything you need on frequency
Once the lessons have the characters in your ear, this is the whole language. Roughly forty of these carry ninety percent of a normal contact.
Letters
Numbers
Punctuation you will actually hear
T and 9 to N. 5NN is 599. Learn to hear both.Your first contact, word for word
Prosigns — sent as one run-together character
| Prosign | Sound | Means |
|---|
Q-codes
| Code | Statement | As a question |
|---|
Abbreviations
| Sent | Means |
|---|
RST — the report you give and get
| R | Readability |
|---|
| S | Strength |
|---|
| T | Tone |
|---|
Where to find slow CW on the air
- SKCC straight-key calling frequencies: 7.055, 14.050, 3.550. Patient operators, mechanical keys, happy to slow down.
- K1USN SST — a one-hour slow-speed sprint, 20 wpm max, Fridays and Sundays. The friendliest first contest that exists.
- CWops CWT — Wednesdays, fast, but you can copy just the callsigns as practice without transmitting.
- W1AW code practice — scheduled slow-speed transmissions on several bands, sent by the ARRL.
- POTA CW activations sit just above the band edges, usually 13–18 wpm with a short fixed exchange.
- General class CW segments: 3.525–3.600, 7.025–7.125, 14.025–14.150, 21.025–21.200, 28.000–28.300.
Structured help, mostly free
- CW Academy (CWops) — semester-based classes with a live advisor, beginner through advanced. The single most effective thing on this list.
- Long Island CW Club — daily Zoom classes, small annual fee, very beginner-friendly.
- SKCC and FISTS — membership clubs with sked pages where you can arrange a slow, forgiving first contact with someone who expects a beginner.
- lcwo.net and Morse Code Ninja — more drilling than any one person can finish.