QSO confirmation with QSL cards. Production and printing of QSL cards Amateur radio qsl cards
Usually a QSL card is a postcard and has the appropriate format. IARU (International Amateur Radio Union) recommends 9x14 cm format and paper weight not less than 180 g/m 2 . The call sign of the originating radio station must be reproduced by typography or stamped. Handwriting your callsign is not allowed, and such a QSL will not be valid for many awards. Modern technologies allow you to print a card on a printer. It would seem, how does this option differ from the callsign inscribed by hand? After all, printing anything now is no more difficult than signing it with a felt-tip pen… Well, what can I say… Gentlemen are taken at their word, but when I send such QSLs, I put a stamp “Verified by UA9OAP”. It is customary to put the same stamp on a special sticker with QSO data printed on the printer. Maybe it's overkill, but no one will have problems with my card.
How to fill out a QSL card?
Because the QSL card- a document confirming the fact of a QSO, then it must be filled out as a document. By hand, the cards are filled in with neat and legible handwriting, dark (blue, purple, black) ink. Do not use red, green paste, pencil. Corrections are not allowed on the card (it's a document!), QSL with corrections is not valid. If filling out a mistake, then you need to take a new form and fill it out without errors. You cannot circle any data on a QSL. Sometimes, “for beauty”, the call sign of the correspondent is circled with a felt-tip pen. There is no need to do this: an overly principled award manager can "reject" such a QSL. The card is filled out using the Latin alphabet, on English language, code expressions are also used. Of course, you can add messages from yourself, wishes in the native language of the correspondent. When filling out the card, you need to make sure that the letters and numbers are read unambiguously and not confused U and V, I and J, the number 1 and the letter I, the letter O and the number 0. For this, it is customary to cross out the number 0 with a slash.
Date
it is better to write like this: 11 Nov 2011, that is, indicate the month with the word: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec. If you specify, for example, 09.10.11., then such a spelling of the date may cause discrepancies: not all countries accept the sequence “day-month-year”. Both "month-day-year" and "year-month-day" are used.
Time
radio communication is indicated on QSL - UTC (coordinated universal time - Coordinated Universal Time - the standard by which society regulates hours and time; UTC was introduced instead of the obsolete Greenwich Mean Time - GMT). In general, there are UTC, GMT, and UT designations on the cards, but the difference between them is not significant, and for amateur radio purposes, we can assume that they are one and the same. How to convert local time to UTC? Now, after the abolition of the transition to winter time, - as easy as shelling pears! The difference between Moscow time (MSK) and UTC is 4 hours. That is, UTC = MSK - 4. It turns out that 10 am in Moscow will correspond to 6:00 UTC. You can type time.yandex.ru in the address bar of the browser, click "Add clock" and type GMT in the line - a clock will appear on the screen that displays the exact time in Greenwich Mean Time.
Modulation
(type of radiation
) is usually indicated as it is customary for radio amateurs:
SSB
(Single side band) - single sideband modulation, sometimes indicated USB
or LSB
- upper or lower side band, respectively;
CW
(Continuous wave) - telegraph;
FM
(Frequency modulation) - frequency modulation;
AM
(Amplitude modulation) - amplitude modulation;
RTTY
(Radio teletype) - radioteletype;
SSTV
(Slow scanning television) - television with a slow scan;
BPSK, QPSK, FSK
etc. - digital modes of communication.
On the card, you must clearly indicate that there was a two-way radio communication: 2xSSB, 2xCW (2 way CW), etc. If there was a mixed QSO, then SSB / CW is indicated. This is necessary again because of the conditions of many diplomas: when the position on the diploma states that it is issued for radio communications only by telegraph, or only by telephone, or only mixed ( MIXED
). Therefore, if there is no specific indication on the card that the QSO is a two-way SSB, then a principled award manager can "hack" this connection. It is enough to indicate the range in meters or (more often) in megahertz. Sometimes the cards indicate the exact frequency in kilohertz. But this is optional. Report. Everything is simple here: the scale is used RS, RST
.
How to send and receive QSL mail?
So the card is complete. should be sent to a reporter. How to do it? If you send it by regular mail to the home addresses of everyone with whom you managed to make a QSO, it will be very expensive. So this is rarely done. For this, from time immemorial, there are so-called QSL bureaus. The principle of operation of different QSL bureaus of the world is easier to explain with an example. Firstly, it is clear that sending a pack of cards by parcel post to one address is cheaper than sending one copy in a separate letter. A radio amateur writes out cards for a certain period - it turns out a certain amount: someone has ten pieces, someone has a few kilograms. Then the cards are sorted by countries of the world and regions of their country and transferred to their regional QSL bureau. Dozens and hundreds of other radio amateurs in the region do the same: they send their sorted QSL mail to the local bureau. The regional QSL bureau, having collected QSL mail from radio amateurs in the region for a certain period (usually from a month to six months), forms parcels to various regional QSL bureaus of Russia and
sends it as if "wholesale" - a parcel post. Mail intended for foreign radio amateurs is sent to the central office. There it is collected by country, formed and sent to each specific country in the world. The mail arriving at the central (national) QSL bureau is sorted by regions and sent to each region as soon as there is enough volume for a parcel or parcel. In the regional QSL bureau, mail is sorted according to the callsigns of the recipients, and each radio amateur can personally pick up the pack of cards due to him. This method of QSL exchange, although time-consuming (the card can go to the correspondent for six months - a year), is optimal in terms of costs.
I recently ran out of old cards, I decided to print special ones for trips using the RDA program. After considering suggestions and advice, I decided to print two different cards of 1000 pieces each, with different QSL prints and make a comparison. It was required to print an inexpensive card, in 1-2 colors. And that the paper is not too heavy and thick. The choice fell on RA4HT and R9MC.
It turned out that in recent years they order to print in one color very rarely. I didn’t want to wait a long time until the circulation was completed, so I chose printing in 2 colors. RA4HT said that the circulation was almost completed, R9MC had to wait a bit. It suited me. What came out of all this is shown below.
1. Both responded promptly, expressed their readiness to develop a layout and tolerate my requirements.
2. The development of the layout began immediately after receiving a package of my minimum requirements.
3. The feedback is very good, I received several corrected and revised layouts per day.
4. I looked at my special album, in which I keep one form of all the QSLs that I ordered. There are almost fifty of them. Naturally, there is no longer a desire to order cards with only letters. QSL according to the proposed template, where only the call sign changes - this, in my opinion, is already the last century. If we pay money, then we should get something not like everyone else.
As for the originality of the card, it is difficult to invent something new, but one must try. Well, at least in small things...
RA4HT agreed to do the original drawing, since he has a person on staff who can draw. R9MC does not have an artist, he works in a slightly different style.
5. Thanks to the prompt work with the layouts, we managed in a few days. All my comments and suggestions were taken into account, both of them offered their own layout options for consideration.
6.
Payment for printing and shipping: There are various payment options on the RA4HT website, except for mail order. But personally, I prefer to use the mail.
After correspondence with RA4HT, it turned out that it is possible to pay by postal order. It would be desirable to indicate such an option immediately. R9MC has two payment options.
Both paid by postal order, it's easier for me.
7. Price: RA4HT has a print price of 850 rubles + a table by which you can try to calculate the cost of sending. It's a bit complicated, I couldn't figure it out on my own. RA4HT said that the shipping would be 250 rubles, total 1100 rubles.
R9MC has a print price of 750 rubles + shipping 250 rubles. Just in case, I asked again - how much money is needed and received an amazing answer -
only 900 rubles, including packaging and shipping!!! Didn't argue.
8.
RA4HT printed faster than expected. True, the post office threw out another trick - the cards lay in my post office for a week, and the notice never arrived in the mailbox. Only after correspondence with RA4HT and my appeal to the post office was the parcel given.
A couple of weeks later I received a package from R9MC.
9. Both cards are on approximately the same, decent paper, that's what you need. The print quality is good.
10.
Surprises.
Upon closer inspection, it turned out that the DIG emblem is distorted on the QSL from RA4HT - the inscription on the poster held by the eagle is unfolded
in some twisted way. It's annoying. And nothing like that was observed on the layouts. RA4HT advised to paint over the poster with black
felt-tip pen so that it is not so noticeable.
Cards from R9MC did not contain errors, but for some reason they are smaller than the usual size by about 7 mm. As it turned out - "this is according to the Italian standard", apparently to reduce weight.
11.
Conclusions.
Draw your own conclusions, I understood one thing for myself - the next time, if you have to order something else, I will immediately stipulate the condition - a printing defect that does not correspond
approved layout, redone free of charge.
A receipt card (QSL card) is a document that confirms the establishment of two-way communication between amateur radio stations or monitoring of their work. For this reason, certain requirements are imposed on the design of receipt cards and their completion. Currently, QSL cards are usually printed in a printed way for an individual order of a radio amateur or a collective radio station.
There are a few basic rules to follow when printing individual QSL cards. The size of the QSL must be 9 x 14 cm (as recommended by the International Amateur Radio Union). The maximum allowable size of a receipt card is 10.5 x 14.8 cm (same as standard postcards).
For forms, it is desirable to use colored or white paper with a density of at least 180 g per square meter.
When compiling the text of QSL cards use expressions from the amateur radio code and from the Q-code. The name of the locality in which the radio station is located is given in English transcription. In addition to the basic information about the communication, the QSL form indicates the conditional number of the region, the conditional number of the zone of the International Telecommunication Union (ZONE ITU ...), as well as the conditional number according to the WAZ diploma list (ZONE WAZ).
You can also specify other data on the QSL card. For example, the district identifier for the RDA diploma program, the island number for the IOTA or RRA diploma list, the conditional numbers for the WFF diploma program, and others.
QSL cards are single-sided, double-sided, and special, having 4 or more sides. If the card is double-sided, then the call sign and some information (country, QTH, conditional numbers of regions and zones, sometimes the name of the operator) are placed on the front side. All other text is located on reverse side QSL. Here (for the convenience of mail processing) it is advisable to duplicate the information placed on the front side of the card.
The basis of the QSL text is data on the conducted radio communication: the call sign of the correspondent to whom the card is sent; date and time of the QSO; range or operating frequency; type of radiation and assessment of audibility. This data usually supplements information about the equipment and antennas used, expressions of gratitude for communication and QSL (if this card is a response card), etc.
Front sides of QSL cards
Back side of the QSL card
When developing a sketch of a personal QSL and, finally, filling out a card after a radio contact, you should always remember that this is a document, and one that can be sent to another country in the world (by the radio amateur himself or his colleague - along with an application for a diploma). This QSL will form an idea of both the radio amateur himself and our country.
When filling out the QSL, corrections in the basic information about the communication made are not allowed - cards with such corrections are not counted towards amateur radio diplomas.
The call sign of the correspondent is entered in block letters. Radio amateurs with little experience on the air or poorly knowing foreign language, it is necessary to pay special attention to the clear spelling of similar letters of the Latin alphabet (for example, U and V, V and Y), not to confuse non-equivalent, but similar in spelling letters of the Russian and Latin alphabets (for example, Russian "ve" and Latin "be" - AT).
The date of the connection is indicated as a day, month and year, and it is advisable to write the month either in words (May, June, etc.) or in Roman numerals. This will avoid difficulties when checking the QSL, since some countries have a different order for writing the date (for example, month, day and year).
The time must always be indicated as universal time, even on QSLs intended for internal exchange with the shortwaves of their country. After all, such a QSL card can be useful for filling out an application for a foreign amateur radio diploma and, therefore, can be sent for verification to a foreign amateur radio organization.
The use of local or even Moscow time on cards sent to foreign radio amateurs sometimes guarantees ... non-acknowledgement of communication. The fact is that some radio amateurs, especially participants in competitions and operators of radio expeditions, making thousands of QSOs a day, due to the difficulty of finding the right connection in the hardware log, do not respond to cards at all if they do not indicate universal time.
The range on which the communication was carried out is recommended to be indicated in megahertz: 1.8; 3.5; 7; 10.1; fourteen; 18.1; 21; 24.9 and 28 MHz. It is also permissible to indicate the range in meters 160 m, 80 m, 40 m, 30 m, 20 m, 17 m, 15 m, 12 m, 10 m.
Mode should be indicated as 2 x CW (or 2 WAY CW), 2 x SSB (or 2 WAY SSB), 2 x RTTY (or 2 WAY RTTY), etc., and for mixed calls as CW/SSB, AM / SSB, etc. The fact is that for many amateur radio diplomas, communications are taken into account when both correspondents worked with one kind of radiation, and QSLs, on which this is not clearly indicated, are not counted for these diplomas.
If the QSL card is directed to a so-called QSL manager (a shortwaver who assists his colleague in sending cards), then the manager's QSL callsign is also indicated on the card with the VIA code combination (for example, VIA W3HNK). It is desirable to underline the manager's QSL call sign using some bright ink or paste (red, blue). This allocation of the call sign will help to avoid erroneous addressing of the card when sorting QSL.
The call sign of the manager on the double-sided card is indicated on the back of it in the upper left or right corner (depending on the location of the text on the QSL).
The ethics of amateur radio communications require a mandatory confirmation of the connection (if, of course, it took place) upon receipt of a QSL from a correspondent. Sending out his cards until this moment is at the discretion of the shortwave, for example, only to those correspondents, in receiving QSL from whom he is interested.
If a radio amateur adheres to this practice, then he should refrain from promising to send QSL. In these cases, the International Amateur Radio Union recommends using the combination QSL L, which means "I will send a receipt card after receiving yours."
The current rules allow confirmation of observer (and only observer!) QSL not only with the shortwaver's personal card, but also with the callsign stamped on the SWL QSL, the code phrase "CFM SWL" and the shortwaver's personal signature. The observation card issued in this way is returned to its owner.
The shortwave operator exchanges QSL cards with both Russian and foreign radio amateurs through the local radio club. Having sorted the cards by countries of the world (in alphabetical order prefixes) the radio amateur rents them to the local club. If he lives away from the club, then he sends the cards by mail.
Cards for QSL managers are usually best sent directly to the home address rather than through the national QSL bureau, but can also be sent through the CPP bureau.
In addition, in a number of countries, membership in a national amateur radio organization is not mandatory for a shortwave operator, but in this case, he does not use the services of the corresponding QSL bureau, and sends (and receives) cards only to his home address.
In this case, a Russian radio amateur can send his card directly to the address of a foreign shortwave operator or his QSL manager. To do this, he puts his QSL in an envelope, on which he writes the full postal address of a foreign radio amateur (in Latin letters or in English), sticks Russian postage stamps on the envelope for the amount established in our country for this international postal item. In the upper part, it is also necessary to inscribe the name of the country to which the letter is sent, in Russian.
QSL cards received from foreign radio amateurs are sorted by the CPP QSL bureau and sent to Russian radio amateurs through local radio clubs.
QSL card
QSL card (receipt card, in everyday life - QSL) - documentary confirmation of the fact of a radio communication session (QSO) between two radio amateurs. The name comes from the Q-code QSL, meaning "Your information received." They are used as proof of a radio amateur's achievements and are the basis for awarding amateur radio diplomas and other awards.
QSL card - a paper card, usually about 140 × 90 mm in size, which contains information about the QSO: the call signs of both operators, the time and date of contact, the radio frequency used, the type of modulation, RST (code describing the quality of reception), data on the location of the radio station. In addition, additional information may be indicated: characteristics of the antenna and receiving and transmitting equipment, communication conditions (presence of interference, fading, etc.), congratulations on holidays, and so on. Radio amateurs usually try to make their QSL cards more attractive by placing various images on them - views of their area, their own portraits, etc. Some national radio clubs order inexpensive QSL card forms for their members in bulk, in which the operator can put his call sign with a rubber stamp or otherwise.
QSL cards are usually delivered by the QSL bureaus of amateur radio associations, but direct forwarding is also practiced. At the same time, many stations require to send them an advance payment for sending a card - postal coupons or cash. Stations with a large volume of QSL traffic and working temporarily (for example, radio expeditions and memorial stations) use the services of a QSL manager - a radio amateur who takes care of the processing of QSL mail. On the QSL card for such a station, you need to indicate the call sign of the manager: "VIA WD9EWK", that is, "send via WD9EWK". There are also independent commercial QSL exchange services. The most famous of these is WF5E DX QSL SERVICE. In the USSR, the postal service, in agreement with the Central Radio Club, carried out free forwarding of QSL mail between local radio clubs and abroad.
QSL samples
See what "QSL card" is in other dictionaries:
- ... Wikipedia
QSL one of the Q codes, meaning "I confirm your reception"; QSL card QSO confirmation (radio communication) between two radio amateurs ... Wikipedia
- (reduced from the card): Business card Bread cards Payment cards QSL card In sports Yellow card Red card In philately: Postcard Marked postcard In computer terminology: Video card Network card B ... ... Wikipedia
- (according to the amateur radio code (See Amateur Radio Codes) QSL card) a special card, most often like a postcard, confirming the fact of establishing communication between amateur radio stations or monitoring them ... ... Great Soviet Encyclopedia
The figure shows a standard card, in the column "CFM QSO with" the call sign of the station with which the connection is confirmed is indicated, then the date and time of the radio connection (UTC), the range in MHz, the type of work (CW, SSB, RTTY) and the assessment of the audibility of the correspondent's signal on the scale RST. Depending on whether you want to receive a card from a correspondent or are already responding to the one that came to you, mark the appropriate box "PSE QSL" or "TNX QSL".
Additionally, various information, region, state, address, E-mail, WWW, etc. can be indicated on the cards. Almost all cards of radio stations are unique because they are printed in a small edition. They can be with color photographs, drawings, etc. Each radio amateur can certainly boast of unique QSLs sent to him. You can also visit my virtual home museum and view some of the QSLs.
And now about an integral part of the amateur radio QSL exchange. All QSL cards are sent by post. If you have issued a card to your correspondent, you can send it either to his home address (QSL DIRECT) or through a special QSL bureau of the national amateur radio organization (QSL via Buro). If you are sending a card through a bureau, you must be sure that the country where you are sending the card has a national QSL bureau (some countries do not have one), and that your correspondent is a member of a national amateur radio organization, otherwise case, the card will not be given to him.
Cards for radio amateurs in Russia are sent to the national QSL bureau of the Union of Russian Radio Amateurs in Moscow, and then sent to the regional bureaus in each region, or even city. You can also use the national QSL bureau to send your cards through the bureau. You can read more about his work on the CRR website.
If you sent a card through the bureau, then do not expect a quick response. The exchange of cards in this case can be delayed for years!!! Even now I sometimes receive cards for connections five or six years ago. This happens for various reasons, since usually the path of the card from you to the correspondent passes through two national bureaus and one or two regional ones and lies for some time, waiting for the owner.
Of course, the 21st century does not tolerate such time frames as "several years" and even "several months". Technology has already firmly entered the field of QSL exchange for radio amateurs and, in some cases, a paper QSL card is becoming somewhat of an anachronism.
Electronic confirmations
World Hardware Magazine - LOTW
The American League of Radio Amateurs has created a server for the "world hardware magazine" - LOTW. Any radio amateur with a license can register on this server, obtain an electronic digital signature (EDS) to certify uploaded data and upload their communications to this server. The server software compares the data received from the correspondents (date, time, range and call sign of the correspondents) and, if they match, confirms the radio contact and credits it to both correspondents for different awards. Thus, you can receive confirmation of the desired connection, say, 10 minutes after it was made, you only need that you and your correspondent upload the data about your connection, signed with an EDS, to the LOTW server. The server also allows you to keep statistics on various diploma programs, download data about confirmed connections, etc.
It should be noted that in order to register, you must send copies of your documents to the ARRL headquarters by regular mail, which in some cases may take several weeks, and you will receive a digital signature by e-mail.
EQSL.CC
Alternative system of electronic acknowledgment of radio communications. To register on the server, you do not need to send any documents by regular mail, but to become a certified user, a copy of the license must be sent by email. An important difference from LOTW is the ability to create your own virtual QSL card, which your correspondent can, for example, print out after receiving confirmation. True, not all diploma programs count EQSL.CC “cards”, but I think this situation will improve over time.
OQRS
Unfortunately, not all award programs accept electronic QSLs. Some fairly popular projects (for example, Islands on the Air - IOTA) require paper cards. In addition, in some cases you really want to get a paper card that you can hold in your hands, for example, for a unique connection with a major DXpedition, etc.
As a rule, in such cases, the DX-station forms an online system for ordering QSL cards - Online QSL Request System on its website. You simply enter your contact information, enter your home address and press the … button.
Of course, sending cards to you personally at your home address costs money, and therefore you are offered to pay for it in the form of a small donation (donation) through the paypal system. The cost of such a service depends on the conscience of the person offering it, but, as a rule, does not exceed 5 USD per card. This, of course, is more expensive than sending a regular card to a correspondent or QSL manager yourself and attaching a little postage to return it, but there is no need to look for addresses, buy envelopes and worry that your letter will be lost with all its contents... So there is a point...
So, if you are an observer, start sending your cards to the overheard stations as soon as possible, as this will speed up the receipt of the desired QSL.
Just for what??? About it ...