so ive been trying to learn CW for about 3 months now and im using an old Bencher paddle i picked up at a hamfest connected to my IC-7300's built in keyer. the problem is everything i send just sounds... off. like the dits and dahs are all running together and i cant tell where one letter ends and another begins when i play it back.

ive been practicing with the paddle every day, maybe 20-30 minutes, mostly just copying off the air at like 13wpm and trying to send along. my receive is actually getting pretty decent i think, at least for slower QSOs. but my sending is just embarrassing. i tried slowing the keyer speed way down to like 8wpm and it sounds better but then i feel like im developing bad habits because the timing feels unnatural at that speed.

is there some trick to getting the paddle tension and spacing dialed in right? i feel like the paddle itself might need adjusting but i honestly have no idea what im doing with that part. any help would be great, been lurking here a while and finally decided to just ask

the tension and gap adjustment on a Bencher really does make a huge difference and a lot of people dont realize how sensitive it is. there are two adjustments — the spring tension screw and the contact gap. you want the gap as small as you can get it without the contacts touching at rest, like maybe a business card thickness if that. too much gap and you have to work way harder to close the contact which throws off your rhythm completely.

for the tension, lighter is usually better once you get used to it. most beginners crank it up tight because it feels more controlled, but that leads to muscle fatigue and slop in your timing after a few minutes. try loosening it a bit more than feels comfortable and just spend a week with it.

also honestly the iambic keyer in the 7300 is fine but make sure you're in mode A not mode B to start — mode B does some extra things with the last element that can confuse people when they're learning. look it up in the manual its worth understanding the difference before you go too much further.

dont worry about the 8wpm thing, go as slow as you need. the whole idea that slow speed builds bad habits is kind of a myth as long as your element timing ratios are correct. a dit is a dit whether its at 5wpm or 25wpm.

i had the exact same problem when i started and for me it turned out i was just squeezing the paddle too hard. like death gripping it. once i consciously relaxed my hand the whole thing clicked. sounds dumb but try practicing with just the lightest possible touch and see if that changes anything.

also if you havent already check out the G4FON Koch trainer software, you can use it with a straight key or just keyboard but it really helped me internalize the rhythm before i worried too much about paddle technique. just a thought