G3KHZ paddle keyer

Well lets start off with a classic keyer from about the mid 1970's. This is a single paddle key with built in keying circuit built underneath in the base. The paddle moves in two directions one for the dots and one for the dashes, each having a silver plated contact to the in built keying circuit. This keying circuit has variable speed control at the front so you can alter the sending speed to suit from around 5 words per minute to around 30. I obtained this key from a friend and although in good condition it was in need of a little work. First of all the "keying" was a little erratic, this was traced to some dry joints and poor solder connections on the printed circuit board, a relatively easy fix. Next the paddles are returned to their resting position by means of a couple of phosphor bronze springs(I think they are phosphor bronze). These springs were very weak and had next to no "spring" left. These were replaced by a couple of bog standard steel springs, a bit stronger than before but after adjustment they are almost as good with slightly heavier feel. The key runs off a 9v battery which lasts for months of use. This is an easy solution to iambic keying for simple cw radios and must have been good match to the rigs of the 1970`s , like early Yaesu FT101 or KW rigs like the Atlanta (my first transceiver).