CW PUTIKEEG MINI PADDLE

£18 PADDLE BARGAIN!

I didn't need it, but with an AliExpress Discount Code, I couldn't resist it! For £18 including free postage, I got this wonderful little paddle made by Putikeeg. Despite the postage being free and the huge distance involved, the package arrive in the UK pretty quickly!

I didn't realise it at the time of ordering, but it actually comes with a very neat plastic storage case which is padded to protect the key in transit. Additionally, it came with a tiny spanner and a hex-key to adjust the device! And to add even more value, they threw in a 3.5mm lead!

The paddle looks really cool and while it's not Begali, it ain't that bad! After adjusting it to suit your own particular preference, it actually works quite well. The adjustment is a little fiddly because once you've found the sweet spot, you have to tighten up the nut, which then moves the sweet spot. It's a case of anticipating how much the final tightening will alter things. It reminds me of adjusting tappets on a pushrod engine 😂

The paddle has a 3.5mm stereo jack socket and a micro-switch for reversing the dits and dahs. On the base there are three neodymium magnets which do an amazing job of keeping the key secured to whatever steel base you use (usually the top of your radio or to a steel clipboard).

You also get a set of thin, self-adhesive silicon feet to reduce movement when not taking advantage of the magnets and the good news is, the magnets are still 100% effective with the silicon pads fitted anyway.

This paddle in TINY and is perfect for those hikes up hills and dales. One of my favourite places to operate from in the summer is a place called Nicky Nook which is a Trig Point near my holiday home in the Forest Of Bowland  and while it's not Mount Everest, it feels steeper and steeper as I head towards my 70's 😂. Any weight-saving is very welcome. 

So how good is it in use? Hell, I don't know - I'm not qualified to say. It feels fine to me, but a proper CW operator who works at normal speed, might find it wanting. But who cares? It functions, it's tiny, it's reasonably well made, it's cheap and it makes me smile 😀

That'll do!

73, Tom, M7MCQ.

available in other colours
(and exaggerated sizes)

😂