so ive been trying to learn CW for about 3 months now and i can copy maybe 10-12 wpm on a good day when someone is sending nice and clean. the problem is when i try to actually send, everything sounds terrible. im using a cheap set of paddles i picked up used and a keyer built into my radio (kenwood ts-590s) and i cant seem to get the weight and speed settings dialed in to where it sounds right.

i keep getting what sounds like mushed together characters, like the dits and dahs are running into each other. ive messed with the weight setting a little but honestly im not even sure im doing it right. does anyone have like a starting point for weight settings or is this more of a technique problem than a settings problem? also my paddle tension feels really light, not sure if thats contributing or if i just need more practice with squeeze keying. any help appreciated, this has been bugging me for weeks

the mushy sound is almost always a technique issue more than a settings problem, at least in my experience. the weight setting on most radios defaults to 50 which is standard, i wouldnt mess with it too much until you get your paddle feel sorted out. what i'd suggest first is bumping the tension up a bit on your paddle, light tension tends to make you squeeze too hard and then youre triggering extra dits you didn't want.

also if youre still learning, iambic mode B vs mode A can make a real difference in how things feel. some people hate mode B when theyre starting out. try switching to mode A if you havent already and see if that helps. mostly though its just seat time, your hands have to learn to relax. when i first started i was gripping the paddle like it owed me money and everything sounded awful. took me a few months before my fist started sounding halfway decent on the air.

yeah same boat here not too long ago. one thing that actually helped me was recording myself with a little voice recorder app on my phone and listening back. painful but you can really hear where the timing goes wrong. also slowing way down helped, like even slower than felt comfortable, just to build the muscle memory clean before speeding back up. the 590 keyer is decent so its probably not the radio.