4KZ QSL ARRIVES - JUST LIKE THE OLD DAYS!

4KZ QSL ARRIVES

JUST LIKE THE OLD DAYS!

I am no longer an avid hunter of QSL cards. I did that for many years, accumulated lots of verifications, and I don't feel the need to hunt anymore.

However, I did get excited about sending a reception report to Al Kirton, the General Manager at 4KZ! He is also an amateur radio operator (VK4FFKZ).

I heard 4KZ on their first night 's operation, but I was too busy recording the event and posting the news and YouTube video to this blog that I didn't get to writing a report. It was not until December 29 that I finally got around to sending a detailed report to Al.

Today, I was delighted to receive the 4KZ QSL, a station bumper sticker, and a personal hand written note in an envelope displaying the NQ Radio logo on the front and a small 4KZ blue and gold sticker on the back. Nice work, Al. 👍👍

At the top of this post, you can see the full data 4KZ QSL. Obviously, this card has been prepared specially for the 5055 kHz outlet and not just as an add-on to a mediumwave 4KZ QSL. I don't think you can see it on the scanned image here, but just to the right of the signature is a circular embossed emblem pressed into the card which says Radio 4KZ, Est. 1967, and Coastal Broadcasting Pty Ltd. Impressive!!

Here is the enclosed 4KZ bumper sticker:

And the hand-written "With Compliments" note. I had said in my reception report, I looked forward to listening to 4KZ next time I'm travelling in Far North Queensland (especially now that Radio Australia and the Northern Territory Shortwave Services have closed). In the note, Al refers to a regular ham radio net:

"Hi Rob. Thanks for your report. When travelling in north QLD the friendly afternoon net is on 7.120 daily from 4pm local time. Al"

The front of the envelope:

And the back of the envelope with the little blue and gold seal sticker (a nice touch!):

Receving this correspondence reminded me of "the old days" when the Latin American broadcasters would send personalised letters and cards, postcards and printed envelopes - they were always a treat to receive in the mail. You can find some of my old LA QSLs on this web site HERE and HERE.

So, I say a special thanks to Al Kirton and NQ Radio for providing this QSL service upon the opening of 4KZ's operations on 5055 kHz.

POSTSCRIPT

If you are lucky enough to hear the low-powered 4KZ, here are some guidelines for writing a high quality reception report:

• Include all details including date, time (in both UTC and Queensland Stand Time), and frequency.
• Describe the quality of reception in detailed sentences. Signal strength, interference, noise, any fading and over all quality of reception. Don't just throw out a SINPO code and leave it at that! In fact, forget SINPO!!
• Details of your radio and any external antenna used.
• Around 30 min of program details (if reception holds up OK) including song titles, advertisements and news, station identification announcements, etc.
• Attach an mp3 recording of no more than 1 minute in length. Al would be interested to hear what his station sounds like over a long distance.

Good luck everyone and good DX to you all!

Rob Wagner VK3BVW

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