[CQ-Contest] "Test" At End of CQ

[Bob Shohet, KQ2M]

I don’t know why other ops send “Test” after the end of their CQ but I can tell you why I send it: 
It IS to let the tuner know that I am in a contest and to call me NOW. 
Some people feel that that is not necessary but I have a different view.  The reasons are simple.
Let’s say that I am tuning across a freq. and I hear only a callsign  “W1ZZZ”.  I don’t know whether W1ZZZ is calling another station or W1ZZZ hasjust called CQ.  Do you?  
 
If W!ZZZ is calling another station (W1YYY) then I am a LID for assuming that W1ZZZ has just called CQ – and by calling W1ZZZ I am causing QRM to the CQ’er (W1YYY) on freq. as well as station W1ZZZ who is calling the CQ’er.  So my calling “blind” would be creating QRM and wasting everyone’s time – the CQ’er on the freq., the caller and myself.
OTOH, if W1ZZZ has just called CQ and I did not hear the CQ because I tuned across that freq. AFTER the “CQ TEST” or “TEST” and only heard the W1ZZZ, then I won’t call – this means that that W1ZZZ won’t work me before I continue tuning up or down the band.  So not sending “Test” at the end of the transmission wasted the CQ’ers time (W1ZZZ) and my time as I listened briefly before continuing to tune.
In addition, maybe the “CQ TEST” or “Test” got wiped out in rapid QSB or was splattered over or qrm’ed by some other caller or other CQ’er who was trying to steal the freq.  Sending “Test” after the callsign at the end of the CQ makes it easy to understand whether you are hearing a CQ’er or Caller.  Omitting it at the end makes it unclear.
Now, what does, in my opinion waste time, is sending “CQ” before “TEST”.  Why the need to send CQ?  In a major DX contest do tuners really need to hear me send “CQ TEST KQ2M KQ2M TEST” to know that I am CQ’ing in a contest? Or would “TEST KQ2M KQ2M TEST” suffice to let them know that I am CQ’ing and that they should call me?   :-)   I think that omitting the “CQ” is a good time saver as it is totally superfluous but I realize that some might disagree.  CQ also means general call to anyone listening – that might attract callers who are not contesters and might think that they are going to have a regular qso.  NOT sending CQ eliminates any confusion.
BTW, I often “mix it up”.  Sometimes I send “TEST KQ2M KQ2M TEST”, sometimes “TEST KQ2M KQ2M” and sometimes even “KQ2M KQ2M TEST”.
When a band is wide open and the rate is high I’ll often cut it down to “TEST KQ2M” or “KQ2M TEST”.  Sometimes just a “KQ2M” – mostly to tell the pileup to call NOW.   I try to be flexible and provide a little something for everyone! :-)
73 and thanks for all the WPXCW qso’s this past weekend!
Bob KQ2M

On 01/06/2020 04:32, K9YC wrote: 

> ... "test" at the end of a CQ completely throws off the rhythm of 
> answering a CQ. If you need that "test" to tell you it's time to call, 
> you need to go back to contesting school! 

Please explain the perceived difference between "TEST K9YC" and "K9YC 
TEST". Why is the latter a time-waster? 

73, 
Paul EI5DI