N3ZN Background (from memory)

Tony's professional experience in the past included purchasing used paddles from eBay, conducting general maintenance on them, and then reselling them to radio amateurs. Drawing on his past experiences with different makes and models of keys and paddles, he ultimately came up with the concept to make his own. Utilizing the knowledge he acquired from working on other keys, he crafted a design that enabled him to create a product that was truly unique. Ultimately, this resulted in the development of his own invention. All ZN products are MADE IN THE USA solely by Tony Baleno, N3ZN.

He initially constructed his parts by himself and eventually could no longer keep up with the demand. Now, he out-sources for only the best quality parts and has them powder-coated to perfection. Side-by-side comparison reveals a vast difference in quality between his products and those of competitors.

I have the ZN-Lite II Next Generation CW Paddle

The ZN-Lite II is an iambic paddle that weighs under 5 oz (not including aluminum powder coated home station base with feet). Instead of feet, the paddle has an 8-32 threaded blind hole in the bottom for mounting. OTO for this paddle is 9/16". 5/16" OTO is available as a special order (and uses the lexan fingepieces as seen on the full size paddles) -see photos 5 and 6.

The ZN-Lite II uses 6-32 knurled screws for both contacts and magnetic tension. No tools required for adustment - adjust on the fly. The paddle has a total of eight ball bearings, solid silver contact points, magnetic return and 24" chord with 1/8" stereo plug. The fingerpieces are powder coated alumimum.

-from N3ZN website.

Thank you