by Anthony A. Luscre (K8ZT) You have decided to change your call sign. Maybe you just upgraded your license, moved to a new call area or decided you want a shorter call. Maybe you want something easier to use in contests, a call that is easier for your friends to remember or just plain don't like the way your call "sounds" or "looks". Hams treat call signs with a special reverence, attaching a whole personality to a short sequence of numbers and letters, so changing your call can be an intimidating event. No matter the reason, this article can help you choose your "ideal" vanity call sign. First, before we get started on choosing your call sign, a little "how-to" information.There are some great sites that will give you all the information you need to know to be successful in applying for and obtaining your selected call sign:
What makes an "ideal call sign"? First of all, there is no universal "ideal call sign". Everyone's choice will be personal for them and limited by the group of call signs available to them based on their license class, geographic location, previously issued call signs, etc. Your first step should be to check for available and soon to be available call signs from sites above. Selection of your "ideal call sign" can first be divided into 3 categories based on your reason for wanting a new call. I have divided these into Personalized, Cute and Optimized Characters (some callsigns incorporate more than one):
Optimized Character Criteria Considered Included:
I have developed a spreadsheet, “Compare Your Callsign Choices”, that makes these comparisons easier. It is free and you can choose from different formats:
Other criteria you could use might include difficulty in sending a letter in CW, letters difficult in certain foreign languages, similarity to "well known" call signs, etc.. I rated my selected calls on 1(best) to 10 basis for each category (either subjectively or by numerical value depending on criteria) then found average score for each call. Well, this may sound obsessive (and my wife told me it definitely was!), but I had my old call for 19 years, used it many thousands of times and hope I do not need to change my call again soon. After you have selected and ranked your call sign selections, you need to complete your FCC Vanity Application. For invaluable help with this process, please refer to the three URLs presented near the beginning of this article. Then the wait begins as you hope the FCC grants you one of your top choices. Fortunately, the process usually takes less than one month. I hope to hear you on the air soon with your "ideal call sign". © 2017 Copyright All rights reserved Anthony A. Luscre (for reuse please contact email contact information-- k8zt@arrl.com or a@k8zt.com) |