FT8 Logging & Reporting

If you are in our DRC (Digital Radio Club) even if you’re not,  you will soon learn that FT8 is the most popular digital mode and you can quickly and easily build up a huge list of contacts in a less than one hour at the right time of day.  We could build up a list of 11 pages of contacts in about an hour just letting FT8 run on 40 meters at night here. (copy and paste contacts from wsjt-x into word)

Then we would go back and log each one into eQSL and report that we picked them up having QSO with whomever they contacted (In The Comments) and we would give the Signal report – Date – Time – Band & Mode.  This is what we call the most basic way to build your base up on eQSL and get lots of contacts sending QSL cards back to you.

Remember for the most part many HAMs are also shortwave radio fans and love it when SWL’s send them QSL cards.  What you really need to do is make sure you have the information correct or if the HAM operator says I had no contact with this person or wrong frequency – you will end up with a lot of Red Tags in your log for incomplete contacts or rejected ones NOT GOOD!

Using this method is good and like we said you can build up a lot of contacts and countries which is the goal.  You want to get your first 25 countries because you will receive an eDX award from eQSL and you will receive from DRC your IDX (International DX) Award from us, so it’s worth going for.

Below example of the type of list we would build from WSJT-X

Example: From the above image we can see – Kosovo – Russia – Japan – Argentina – Australia & a few others. This is cool but the difference in what I am about to show you these are not all the contacts just picked up by my station. This is what is on the frequency and the FT8 app is pulling it in from everywhere.

The #2 Way Of Building A List:   I call this the #2 way to build but it is in no means a just the second option it can be your first and only way to do things.  Before we go into it let me explain – When you are new and getting people actually sending QSL cards back to you – you are excited and feeling great about the countries and people & some of them will give you really really nice messages of thanks. 

But then once you have 40 QSL cards from one country 60 from another and you start learning that most of the countries coming up you have contacted before and that if you send QSL card it’s not helping your country count grow Now My #2 Way becomes important.

Using PSK Reporter:  If you are a member of our DRC we would have shown you how to get WSJT-X to report your station with your SWL Call Sign to PSK Reporter.  (If You’re Not A Member Why Not?)  Ok using this does 2 things really good:

1. #1 Shows countries and Ham Operators that your station can pick up only
2. #2 Shows the distance that your antenna can actually pick up!

If you compare the first way of getting contacts you will notice when you do what we are calling the 2^nd way of getting contact you will quickly notice that then number of conversations picked up by WSJT-X compared to the number of stations your station is actually hearing is totally different in numbers!

Above Images – QSL card I got picking up EA8WU on 20 meters then Next day above on 40 Meters. You can see how if he clicks on my station on PSK reporter he can see my info and that I my eQSL Authenticity Guaranteed – so he knows that I am legit!

Now this can work in your favor as well – Now you will start to get a feel of the countries you already have and now when a new contact pops up on your Stations PSK Reporter you will right away know you don’t have that country!  NOTE:  For me this was the most exciting part – from here in Australia I picked up a station 18,960 k’s from me & my antenna MLA 30+ Loop Antenna – (Radio RTL SDR v3) – was in my window on second floor apartment!  OMG – I did not have the Canary Islands in my books – I immediately shot off a QSL card to him and got a response from him right away!

Of course this made my day!  Using PSK reporter let me know that my SWL station is doing a pretty good job with the right conditions.  It also made it easier to sift through and see right on the map that I had a new country instantly.

So give this thought as you build up your contacts – I love sending QSL cards and getting responses back from operators around the world.  In the old days of the hobby, you would send a radio station a post card and they would send back their QSL card and thank you for listening. There was not a way to send HAM operators a QSL card that was simple and easy./

Today we can not only listen we can – Decode / Send Reports / Be Seen Online As SWL Station / Send QSL Cards / Receive QSL Cards WOW wish I could have been doing this in the 60’s when I was a  kid..

Good DXing and I hope this helped someone or was just fun to read. Join Our DRC If You Have Not See More Info On Our Website! www.swlqsl.com

73’s CJ VK2021SWL – GMRS WRYG735