[Dx-qsl] Rookie needs a clue

[Peter Dougherty]

At 10:24 AM 03/21/2007, John McCarthy wrote:

>I'm new to DX'ing and need some idea of how long it usually takes to
>get cards back.

If you're sending direct, I'd say expect about 2/3 of any batch you 
send to be back within 8-10 weeks. Some in 4-6 months and the rest 
maybe never or in a year or two. It depends on the types of 
operations you're QSLing. If all you send for are DXpeditions, 
they'll probably all come back in varying timeframes, generally from 
3-6 months for the most part. the bigger the operation, the longer 
the wait by and large, though 5A7A was far faster. If you're starting 
out and QSLing individuals, it can vary from as short as 4 days (to 
the UK or Canada--wild when that happens) to never.

>  For the most part, I have been very happy with the
>hams I have dealt with. These are the three I have had outstanding
>for the longest time.  Is this normal or should I just blow them off?
>
>3XM6JR (Guinea) QSL mailed on 24 Oct 06 to UA6JR

They're coming out now. I haven't gotten mine yet, but I'm hoping in 
the next 2 weeks. I've seen numerous reports of them showing up on 
the cluster recently.

>3DA0WW (Swaziland) QSL mailed on 28 Oct 06 to ZS6DXB

Not sure about this one. I worked 'em but don't need a card.

>9J2VB (Zambia) QSL mailed on 9-Nov-06 to UA4WHX

Ahhh, That's Vlad! He's been traveling throughout Africa since 2005. 
Watch the bulletins for news about when he's going home. Save up all 
your VB QSLs till then (I think I have about 10 waiting, and at least 
10 already sent >1 year ago, before I realized he was still on the 
road). I suspect by now he has enough frequent flier miles to go to Venus.



Cheers,

Peter,
W2IRT