Tutorial on "Cut Numbers"
Everyone worth their salt already uses some cut numbers:
For example,
9 = N (dah-dit) ... as in ... 599 or 5nn. Heck, I even did that as Novice
Class....we (almost?) all did.
Ø = long dah (well, today, just a single DAH). As in serial number 1 = TT1
Now the "Hard" stuff:
1 = A (the opposite of "nine"...both by at-the-end-of-range and in the American
morse). If you can "do"
N=9, then this one should be just as easy.
5 = E (how easy is that?).
Almost nobody (less than 5 entrants per contest?) use any other cut numbers.
So all you need to
do is learn two "new" cut numbers, namely, 1 and 5. If you hear someone
sending U as a cut number,
then I'll join you in complaining....maybe.
Again, the percentage of folks using these is very, very, very tiny and they
often only send
it to "each other" (among friends), but maybe you can be a new friend with
someone!
And here's the best tip of all. I am 99.5% confident that if you're reading
CQ-Contest and
also actually participate in the contest, you use some type of contest logging
software....
AND....that it will auto-fill the zone for you. Further, I speculate that if
have been a CQWW
contest devotee for any length of time, that you already know the vast majority
of zones
you'll be working based on the callsign alone (save the USA zones where it may
not be
obvious and very, very few others [some UA9s]). So between the two (being able
to correclty
anticipate the zone AND the logging software filling it in for you), you should
have no problem
learning or "on the fly" decoding of these two addition cut numbers (one of
which "E" will almost
never be sent). When I work CT1BOH in the test, I'll send him "enne" just
because I know that
I can. But I won't send that to too many others, if any. I also do that to
K1DG at EE5E, just
cuz it seems like the right thing to do...if I remember to.
Anyhow, what is worse: sending cut numbers or sending the exchange at 60wpm? I
know....
doing both.
Have fun in the contest and don't forget to send in those SSB logs soon (yes,
PHONE logs)!
de Doug KR2Q
stirring the pot just a tiny bit
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