Key: Vibroplex Iambic Presentation
Serial: 70217
Vintage: 1993
Acquired: August 5, 2026
Plate: D8 | No Address | No Patent Info
Base: Chrome-plated with gold-plated brass plate
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Review
The Vibroplex Iambic is a dual-lever paddle key which is designed to interface with an electronic keyer. First released in the late 1970s when the company moved to Maine, the Iambic is built upon the same base platform as the Vibrokeyer, which came before it. Instead of a single lever, the Iambic uses two levers which move independently. Like the Vibrokeyer, the Iambic requires a three-wire connection terminated with a TRS plug.
The frame used on the Iambic differs from those found on the Original, Blue Racer, and Vibrokeyer in that it houses two trunnions instead of one. Contact posts are situated to the outside end of each lever. Operating the Iambic is as simple as pressing the left lever to the right or the right lever to the left or squeezing both levers simultaneously in what is called “squeeze keying” or “iambic keying”.
For any Vibroplex fan, or any CW op in general, the Iambic paddles from Vibroplex would be a nice addition to anyone’s key collection. If you can afford it, spend the extra money for a Deluxe model or go crazy and get the 24K gold plated model! The deluxe and gold models utilize the “jeweled” trunnion screws which were introduced as part of the La Hiff patent in 1939.
Collectible versions of this key would include the “Iambic Presentation” model, which appeared in 1983 and ran for several years and had a thin gold-plated sheet of brass affixed to the top of a chromed base, similar to the Original semi-automatic bug “Presentation” model. Vibroplex began producing an Iambic with its entire base plated with 24K gold when the company moved to Alabama. The Presentation models may have come and gone, but the “Iambic Gold” is still being sold today and may well be a collector’s item in its own right in the years to come. As with most collectibles, older is typically better. An earlier version of the 24K gold-plated base is more collectible than a recent one.
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