Although there is no requirement in the SOTA scheme for confirmation of contacts by QSL cards, some chasers apparently do like to exchange cards. A few even QSL for each and every summit worked!!!
I do answer all QSL cards immediately upon receipt, but I am only just beginning to receive cards via the RSGB Bureau for activations in 2009. Please be aware that it takes three years or more for QSL cards to reach me via the bureau … and it probably takes just as long again for the reply to reach you!
If you must have confirmation of a contact, please use eQSL.cc if possible. That way, you will get an instant reply.
Hi Walt… I’ve just joined the RSGB (on a three months free offer - very attractive!)
Only this morning I was thinking about what a great service the QSL bureau is and I’m getting my first batch of cards printed up shortly - but THREE years?!?!
Bureau certainly isn’t the way to go if you actually need QSLs in a hurry…
I’ve only been licenced since March 2010, but I’ve had one or two that arrived over two years after the QSO. I’ve no idea whether that’s because they weren’t sent 'til my card made it through the other way, or whether they actually took two years one way. It would be interesting to find out where those cards spend all that time.
Only this morning I was thinking about what a great service the QSL
bureau is and I’m getting my first batch of cards printed up shortly -
but THREE years?!?!
If you must have confirmation of a contact, please use eQSL.cc if
possible. That way, you will get an instant reply.
Walt, I’ve been absolutley inundated with QSL cards over the past couple of years! So much so, that I’m looking toward employing the services of a QSL manager… Whatever that involves.
Heh. There’s apparently a code of ethics for QSL managers: The Ethics of QSL Management.
At least there’s a provision for sending your logs off to a DX club to handle it if you become too old, sick or fed up to deal with it. Another alternative would be to pass your callsign on to a descendant.
I use LotW and I also QSL direct. I’m thinking of joining the bureau, but it’s a bit expensive since I don’t do large volumes of DXing yet. I got a free batch of cards sent to me as an introductory offer, and it was a nice gesture; the cards were only about one year old.
Does anyone design special QSL cards for their summit activations? Or do you just use the same card as your fixed station?
In reply to LA9XSA:
Hallo,
yes, I do create a special QSL card for each summit I activate for the first time . As I always take my photo camera with me, I normally have some pictures of the summit.
For my own pleasure I keep one of these cards as a remembrance.
But I do not expect getting a QSL card from the other side.
In reply to HB9BAB:
with the number of chasers these days, sending a qsl-card for each activation, would make a huge pile of cards.
I plan to make a SOTA-card, and send one to each of the chasers. Only need to bring a working camera some time…
Does anyone design special QSL cards for their summit activations? Or
do you just use the same card as your fixed station?
No you need to have the summit reference and the correct locator on the QSL-card. I did some QSL-cards with a photo with an inkjet printer at home in the beginning. Now I can produce a pdf-file from the csv-log using ‘adifmerg’. It has a more simple QSL-card on each page with all the QSO information already filled in and is ready for printing. Printing at home with the inkjet is possible, four cards on each A4, but should find something better for that.
In my last batch of cards from the bureau, I received a card from a French station, QSO date 14-7-1980. If I answer it and it takes as long to get to him, he shoul have it in 2044.
Patience really is a virtue.
Jim, G3ZQQ
PS. in this August batch, there were some cards from Jan/Feb 2012
In reply to G3ZQQ:
There’s not time limit for sending QSL’s, so it could be that the station who sent the card suddenly decided to start collecting prefixes and sent out a card for a 20 year old QSO. Or maybe the card had been sent via a club and had fallen behind a desk, only to be discovered when the club shack was re-built?
I’m pretty old-fashioned when it comes to QSLing. For my home operating, I use commercially printed photo QSLs to confirm all DX QSO’s, new grids on 6, two-way QRP QSOs, etc, - either direct or via the bureau. I also upload all QSOs from home to LOTW for everything. But for each of my few summit activations I have created my own photo QSLs.
It is a very simple process: I overlay the summit info and my call over a digital photo from the summit operation. Then I print a QSL-sized version, two per page, using the high quality (photographic) setting, onto good quality photo paper. Once I cut them out, I print a large label containing the QSO information (as well as the summit info again) and adhere that to the back of the photo. The result is a nice photo QSL that is not too flimsy. I can just print as many as I need and it is relatively easy, quick and inexpensive. It sure isn’t rocket science, but I’ve gotten some nice compliments from these homebrew creations! I also like to keep one of them as a memento.
Since I don’t get the opportunity to activate many summits due to geography, they’re very special and I just enjoy being able to “commemorate” them. For guys that activate a lot of summits, this method of QSLing might not be practical.
I use Microsoft Publisher and it is great to design and print your own cards. I had the call GO6TUH and changed the card graphics according to Team GB success (see QRZ). The greatest advantage is flexibility - costing works out as 5 pounds per 100 which is not too bad. I have sent QSL cards to SOTA activating stations to say thank you with no expectation for a return card…
