Straight Key Month, the annual Straight Key Century Club celebration draws to a close today (Jan 31). I’m a long time SKCC member (3383T) who has been MIA in this event for the last few years. I probably would have missed it this time around too except I happened to copy a few stations using the K3Y call sign just a few nights ago and that prompted me to jump into the action.

I’m glad I did. I had forgotten how much I enjoy using a straight key to manually generate Morse Code. While I didn’t fill every possible slot available, I did manage several sweeps. Working a K3Y station in all ten US call areas got me the basic US sweep. I also worked KH6, KL7 and KP4 which garnered the US Possessions Sweep which resulted in the combined US and Possessions Sweep. I missed a couple of the DX stations, but was pleased to have worked NA (Canada), OC (Australia), and EU (Germany and Portugal).

I needed only SA, AS, and AF to have snagged the coveted Grand K3Y Sweep awarded to stations who have worked all of the K3Y stations worldwide. Maybe next year?

Straight Key Month

Each year, beginning on January 2nd SKCC members around the world operate special event CW stations using only straight key, bug and cootie keys. These three key types are the original instruments of early radiotelegraphy, which this event celebrates. 2023 was the 17th Straight Key Month event and the 17th anniversary of SKCC.

The Straight Key Century Club is the most active group of mechanical-key Morse code radiotelegraph operators in the world. Founded in January 2006, we have more than 27,000 thousand members around the globe.