[RTTY] RTTY DX'ing tutorial (was: VK0EK RTTY Update)

[Alex, VE3NEA]

I started chasing DX using RTTY three months ago, after 35 years of DX'ing CW only. Trying to learn the new mode, I searched the 
Internet for RTTY tutorials, and I found quite a few, but all of them either explained how to set up MMTTY, the software that I 
do not use, or how to operate in the contests. The only presentation on RTTY DX'ing I could find just told me that I needed two 
macros, my callsign and "599 TU" - something that I had already figured out myself. How to crack the pileups, how to find the DX 
listening frequency, how to choose the right time to send your call - none of this was covered in the publications that I could 
find. I know that many of the subscribers to this list are experienced RTTY DX'ers, even though it is a contesting list, some 
are even on the Honor Roll - perhaps you guys could share your RTTY DX'ing techniques with those of us who are just making their 
first steps in this area.

Having no RTTY-specific skills, I tried to use my CW techniques to crack the RTTY pileups, and this worked, to some extent, but 
I quickly discovered that there are some important differences between the two modes that needed to be addressed. For examnple, 
in CW I use QSK to know when the DX station starts transmitting, so I can abort my own transmission and listen. Since there is 
no QSK in RTTY, those who send their call 4 or 5 times, have no idea if the DX has already answered someone or is still 
listening for a new call. They just keep calling, often on top of the station being worked. My solution to that is to ensure 
that my own messages are shorter than anything the DX might send. Since the DX usually sends something like <call> 599 <call>, I 
figured I should send my own call no more than 2 times, then I will catch at least the end of the DX transmission and know in 
what stage the current QSO is.

There is another difference between CW and RTTY. When I find the DX listening frequency in CW, I tune my TX about 100 Hz higher 
or lower, since I know several others will be calling precisely on that frequency and will interfere with each other. This often 
works in CW, but not in RTTY: the RTTY decoders do not pick up the signals that are 100 Hz off, so I have to either call on that 
exact frequency or tune a few hundred Hz away, hoping that the DX will do the same.

One technique that rarely worked for me in CW but worked much better in RTTY is tailgating. If the DX operates simplex, quite 
often several stations start calling him on the same frequency, resulting in no copy at all. I wait until they finish calling, 
then, without any pause, send my call once. On more than one occasion I added a new one to the log using this trick.

What works for you, and what doesn't? What extra hardware or software does one need to be competitive in the RTTY pileups? 
Please share your experience.

73 Alex VE3NEA