What do you put on a QSL card?

All QSL cards should contain basic information about yourself:

1. Your callsign.
2. Name and postal address, including your country.
3. Detailed geographic information such as your CQ Zone, 4-digit grid square, or (if in the U.S.) your county.
4. A nice added touch is your email address (I have my Twitter account on my QSL card)

How do QSL cards work?

The term “QSL” comes from the international Q code and means “I confirm receipt of your transmission”. A QSL card is therefore a written confirmation. The sending of QSL cards dates back to the 1920s when AM radio broadcasts were still a novelty and stations wanted to know how far away they were being received.

Are QSL cards still a thing?

Quite possibly, paper QSL cards will become a thing of the past, but there are still many Amateurs who like to collect cards, thus bureau QSL's will likely be exchanged for some time. The cost to purchase and distribute cards continues to increase, so help yourself and the bureau system by QSL'ing wisely.

What does PSE mean on a QSL card?

answering a QSL: “Thanks for QSL” • Circle “PSE QSL” to indicate that you are. requesting a QSL: “Please QSL”

What does QSO mean in ham radio?

Ham Radio operators still make liberal use of them today. A QSO is another word for “contact,” as in “I made 783 QSOs during Field Day last year!” or “Making QSOs with European stations was difficult during the contest.” Many Hams enjoy keeping a record of stations they've made QSOs with by writing them in a log book.

How Do I Make QSL Cards?

How do you use QSL bureau?

You can claim your QSLs by sending a 5" x 7-1/2" or 6" x 9" self-addressed, stamped envelope (SASE) or money credit to the bureau serving your call sign area. Neatly print your call sign in the upper left corner of the envelope. Place your mailing address on the front of the envelope.

What is the difference between QSO and QSL?

QSL = the DXCC entity of the station confirmed in the QSO. If there is no information in the QSL box then the QSO is not confirmed. In the matrix above the QSO with WA0EIR is not confirmed. The QSO with KK4FYV is confirmed because United States of America is displayed in the QSL box.

What is a Ragchew?

Amateurs use the slang expression ragchew or ragchewing to refer to an extended, informal conversation, a variation of the common idioms "chewing the fat" and "chewing the rag". Sometimes, a contact in person, between two ham radio operators, is humorously referred to as an "eyeball QSO".

What does QRZ stand for?

QRZ, the name of the web site, is the "Q" amateur radio code for "Who is calling me?" and corresponds to the site's purpose of assisting amateur radio operators with the lookup of ham radio call signs from every country in the world.

How do I request QSL?

Sending or requesting a QSL Card:

To send a QSL to an amateur you have contacted (QSO) you usually have several choices. QSL direct via the Post Office (Post Mail), via your QSL Bureau or by the now popular OQRS (On-line Qsl Request System)*.

How long can you talk on ham radio?

For example, if you and a friend are using handheld transceivers (HTs) with a typical output power of 5 watts, you can expect your range to be about 5 miles maximum. If you're using a repeater, however, you should be able to talk much farther.

How do you stop a ham conversation?

If you'd like to join in or "break" in to an ongoing conversation or QSO as its called, the first thing you want to do is LISTEN. Make a note of the callsign of one or all in the QSO. Then, WAIT for the transmitting station to hand it back to the next station. Between the break in their QSO, you would say your call.

How do you confirm QSO in LoTW?

For your QSO to be confirmed via LoTW, it must match the information your QSO partner submits. In particular, the callsign you log must match the callsign your QSO partner uses to submit your QSO. the callsign you use to submit your QSO must match the callsign your QSO partner logs.

What size are QSL cards?

The cards are printed 5.5 inches wide by 3.5 inches high. This is a standard size for a QSL card.

What is a QSL Manager?

QSL managers are often used for DXpeditions and for stations operating in rare locations. The QSL manager is able to manage the QSL operations on behalf of the DX station.

Why do hams say 73?

73 is an old telegraph code that means "best regards". 73, as well as 88 (which means "hugs and kisses") are part of the language of ham radio.

What is 59 in ham radio?

Variations. An example RST report for a voice transmission is "59", usually pronounced "five nine" or "five by nine", a report that indicates a perfectly readable and very strong signal.

What is a valid QSO?

The International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) in their HF Manager's Handbook and VHF Manager's Handbook says: A definition for a valid QSO is: A valid contact is one where both operators during the contact have. 1. mutually identified each other.

What does Q mean in ham radio?

(Q abbreviations take the form of questions only when they are sent followed by a question mark.) Q-Signals. Abbr. Questions.

What in ham lingo is a lid?

“Lid” is ham-speak to denote a poor operator; one who is inept at the practice of the radio amateur art. It is someone with very poor operating technique, a newbie or an experienced ham that acts like a neophyte. This old term likely originated from the days of wired telegraphy.