QSL Cards --- Things of the Past
Today's subject is QSL Cards. So for the BTE's who just recently got their license via a subscription to QST, you perhaps are not aware of this bit of radio history.
There are many urban legends regarding how QSL Cards came into existence. In the early pioneering days of radio it was easy to say I worked the east coast from the mid-west on 80M running a type 27 vacuum tube five watt TPTG CW transmitter. Yeah Right! But if you had a slip of paper from that other station affirming that contact then that was confirmation and proof positive that you really did make that contact. That slip of paper often was a post card that on one side contained the contact exchange and the other side was the usual mail To From address format and a place to put a stamp.
Commercial radio broadcast radio stations in the 1920's liked receiving such cards as that gave them proof positive of their broadcast coverage --especially the clear channel stations like KDKA in Pittsburgh.
Then the ARRL stepped in and created awards for collecting cards like Worked All States or DXCC (100 countries) or the coveted worked all radio call areas world wide. In the old days one had to send the confirming QSL cards. The use of the post cards made that pretty easy; but you did have to purchase the post cards from the post office and have printing placed on them or you had cards made. Whole new industries came out of the QSL Cards. BTW before QRZ.com there was the Radio Call Book Publication (The Flying Horse) where you could look up the call signs and addresses. Frequently the radio publications would have address info of some of the exotic stations.
The mailing of domestic post cards was pretty easy as you either used the post office variety card and after filling out the info simply popped them in the mail or added a stamp to the other form cards and into the mail box.
But another twist was added and that was the QSL Bureaus where you could bulk mail say a whole slew of cards to the bureau and then there was a process where cards for the station or for you were then distributed to the intended ham. For a small fee I have a bunch of envelopes on file at the W6 QSL bureau and periodically they mail me a batch of cards.
But if you wanted that very special DX card then you had to QSL direct and that often required sending IRC's (International Reply Coupons) so that the cost of sending you back a card was covered. But often it was extortion as the required IRC to send you back a card was less than the minimum you were told was needed. Then there was the phrase "green stamps" only. Green Stamps = US Dollars. Who would do that ?? -- Well if you wanted a card from Bhutan, you did!
This meant that you had to send dollars to get a card back. There was a trick to this as often the mail would be rifled at the foreign country post office and the dollar bills stolen. Here was the trick. You used the front of one QSL card and the back of another then you carefully folded like a $5 bill and inserted it between the front and back cards and with a thin bit of Elmer's glue around the edges you pasted the cards together. Some trick.
So what prompted this post. Two days ago I received an envelope with a QSL Card inside and the first thing that caught my eye were Amateur Radio Postage Stamps that are vintage 1970 on the primary envelope. The second thing was that the actual QSL card was a 1 Cent (penny) official US post card with the blank side printed with the exchange information. Man it has been a long long time since I saw a Penny Post Card let alone a Ham Radio Stamp. Someone must have a stash of these.
But as technology has moved on, the QSL process has changed too -- we now have Log Book of the World and e-Cards so that the US mail is being cheated out of revenue. But cost is an issue. I can remember that in the mid-1970's as I was pursuing DXCC I choked as I saw that one day I spent $45 on cards, postage, IRC's and Green Stamps just to get a few cards back. I stopped sending cards!
A bit of a note on a secondary aspect of the QSL process. Hams in foreign countries would email me direct and I should add I never asked for green stamps or IRC's. But they did send envelopes with colorful stamps. A fellow employee where I worked at that time was a stamp collector and I would provide him the envelopes so he could collect the stamps. He was ever so grateful as many of the stamps added significantly to his collection.
A bit of history came back to me as I opened that letter the other day. My printer is out of ink and today I need to get a new cartridge so I can print up a return card. The reason I like the homebrew card is that I can change the photo depending on the rig I am using. My process after printing is to then laminate the card as it is only typing paper.
This makes for a durable card --and slipping a $5 bill between the front and back then laminating makes it hard to steal the $$$. The second card is from Midway Atoll (improperly called Midway Island as it is actually Midway Islands) where I was custodian of KM6BI. Keep in mind 3000 US Navy personnel and 6 single women (school teacher's). Three of the six were over 45! While I was stationed there, it was like being in prison for 13 months!
73's
Pete N6QW
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