so ive been at this for about 8 months now and im stuck. not like completely stuck but it feels like ive been sitting at around 12-13wpm for the last two months and just not moving. i started with the Koch method back when i got licensed and that got me to about 10wpm pretty smoothly but now its like hitting a wall.

my current routine is maybe 20-30 minutes a day with lcwo.net and some of the W1AW practice sessions when i remember to tune in. the W1AW stuff is nice because its actual on-air copy which feels different than the computer stuff. anyway i keep reading that you're supposed to receive at speeds faster than you can send but honestly when i crank it up past 15wpm i just fall apart completely and start missing everything and then get frustrated and turn it back down.

did anyone else go through this plateau thing? what actually helped you break through it? i really want to get to 20wpm, partly for the personal satisfaction and partly because i want to do some serious CW contesting someday. any advice from people who've actually done it would be great

oh man yes the plateau is totally real and honestly kind of discouraging when youre in the middle of it. i was stuck around 13wpm for like three months. what finally clicked for me was just forcing myself to copy at 18 or 20wpm even when i missed like half of it. the brain kind of catches up eventually if you push it. the key thing someone told me that actually helped — stop trying to write down every letter. just listen and let it wash over you for a few minutes a day. sounds counterintuitive but your brain starts processing it more as sound patterns instead of individual letters and that's when the speed starts to come.

also honestly just get on the air. like actually make contacts. the realness of it, knowing theres a person on the other end, does something that practice software just cant replicate. i used to call CQ on 40m around 12wpm and people were always patient with me. still are when i slip up lol

the W1AW practice files are good but have you tried the Just Learn Morse Code software or the MorseRunner program? morserunner simulates contest pileups which sounds terrifying but its actually a really good way to train your brain to pick out callsigns fast. i went from about 14 to 20wpm over maybe 4 months using that alongside regular lcwo sessions.

one other thing — your sending matters more than people say. if your fist is sloppy your brain gets confused even at lower speeds. spending some time on a straight key or a bug just making sure your characters are clean can weirdly help your copying too. not totally sure why but it worked for me