Marshall Emm (N1FN) of Morse Express has announced this years' Christmas Key - this officially marks the start of the countdown to the big day.

The Morse Express Christmas Key is a fully operational miniature key, hand machined from solid brass, under-plated with nickel and finished in 18 carat gold. It measures 2" by 1" at the base and weighs 3-1/4 ounces.

All of the usual adjustments (trunnion bearing tension, lever spring tension, and contact spacing) are available by means of gold plated screws with matching locknuts, and the sculpted knob is very comfortable to use. The pre-attached shielded cable has a molded 1/8" mono plug. The machining and assembly processes were done by hand. The result is a beautiful little key that will make an excellent Christmas tree decoration or stocking stuffer, but is also a fully functional key. It’s one of the smallest practical keys we’ve ever seen, so it will be very handy for QRP portable operations. It will also add something special to Straight Key Night. The base of each key is engraved with the Morse Express “Speedy Key” logo and “Christmas 2005.” This is a LIMITED EDITION of 200 keys, and each key bears an engraved serial number on the base. The Morse Express 2005 Christmas Key is $69.95 (plus s/h). More information is available at the Morse Express Website