Since 40M is going bat-guano crazy thought I'd....

I don't have a problem with someone varying the phonetics they use when the station they're communicating with is having problems copying the standard ones. But you know, the reason we use phonetics in the first place is to spell things out so that they are communicated clearly. Guys who make up wacky phonetics that confuse the listener, just to be cute, are missing the point of why they're using phonetics. Phonetics that confuse the listener, or that he has to think about to understand, are counter-productive. That's why I think we should stick with the standard ones, as much as possible.

Another reason for sticking with them is a bit more subtle. You know how CW operators learn to recognize the sounds of Morse code characters so that we end up automatically recognizing the character without having to think about it? Well, the same thing happens with the use of phonetics - after a while you just start to hear "Victor Echo" for instance as "VE" without having to think about it. But if you make up your own phonetics, the listener now has to make the effort of translating them in his head. It slows down communication by making what would otherwise be automatic into something manual.

Greg,
Victor Echo Three Lima X-Ray Lima