[CW] QRL? Or the old American "C" Are you busy?

[Richard Knoppow]

    Its been a very long time since I heard KSE, I could be 
remembering it wrong. I had a simple receiver for 500Kcs and used 
to keep it on a lot. KSE and KOK, the local stations, would call 
for a traffic list several times a day. KSE was noticeable 
because they sent A2 on 500. The announcement was simple, CQ 
followed by the call followed by TFC LIST followed by the working 
frequency and HF and UP meaning to shift to the working frequency 
or listen on one of the HF frequencies. I don't remember what KOK 
did and don't remember what the traffic list announcement was on 
HF. I wish I had made recordings of some of this.
    I also wish I had had the nerve to visit the station. KSE was 
in Torrance, they had a big flat top for 500Kc, I remember a 
horse grazing there. I could have knocked on the door. KOK was in 
Long Beach somewhere,  a much further drive so I never tried to 
find the site.


On 12/27/2019 4:48 AM, D.J.J. Ring, Jr. wrote:
> You're right on nearly all of this, Richard. I don't think you're 
> right about the traffic list announcement though but I didn't 
> listen to KSE.
> 
> Normally the traffic list announcement didn't end with up. Up was 
> used to announce that wavelength was going to be shifted. 500 kHz 
> was 600 meters (wavelength) so shifting to 480 kHz (ship working) 
> or 625 meters was "up." This practice carried on to the end of 
> ship radiotelegraphy. I did hear "CQ CQ CQ DE WSL WSL WSL TFC 
> LIST UP 418/HF =" on unique occasions, because QSW is correct and 
> everyone else was using it. Stations answering each other on 500 
> KHz and when asked to shift working frequencies on HF to indicate 
> the move was right then.
> 
> The announcements did end with BT or = (double dash).
> 
> I thought the "Warning: High Power" signal was interesting when I 
> found it out, it was still used when some R/O (Radio Officer) did 
> something stupid like calling during the silent periods. It this 
> case it was the OTHER meaning of "High Power", namely a BIG warning.
> 
> 73
> DR
> N1EA
> 
> 


-- 
Richard Knoppow
1oldlens1 at ix.netcom.com
WB6KBL