"What's In Your Go' Kit?"

Portions of this article appeared in Field Forum, Published by the ARRL, Copyright 1997

Nonprofit reproduction permitted with attribution C. Edward Harris, KE4SKY, AEC Fairfax ARES Many of us take an HT along on our daily activities. Obvious accessories are an extra nicad battery pack, auxiliary power cord, some sort of gain antenna and comfort and safety items in case of some unexpected disaster. It only takes your nicad to "go south" when you need to access the autopatch to report a traffic accident, or to get lost or break down on the road in an unfamiliar place to appreciate the value of being "prepared."

The best kit for you may not fit a "canned" list, but should be based upon your operating mode, experience and local conditions. It is better to have the bare essentials always handy than to leave a bulky pack someplace where you can't get to it. A larger kit bag is more practical if you are almost always in or near your home or car.

The trunk is the best place to store emergency gear because it is dry, relatively secure and is accessible either at home or away. I actually have three kits. An "everyday" kit accompanies my HT and is small enough to fit in a briefcase. A larger "backup" bag stashed in the car provides 24 hours of auxiliary power, a spare HT, brick amp, coax and accessories for extended operating. The "disaster " bag has emergency cash, food, water, rain gear, deep cycle gel cell battery, clothing and shelter to sustain a 3-day activation or evacuation.

The Fairfax County ARES Handbook, the Skywarn Net Control Operations Manual, and the ARRL ARES Field Resources Manual provide excellent guidance on "Go" or "ready" kits. If you travel through rural areas, you should also include fire making supplies, a pocket knife and a compass in the kit. In the suburbs, you'll want a local street atlas, change for a pay phone and emergency cash or a credit card. A compact, sturdy flashlight, extra batteries, first aid kit, extra HT battery pack and spare eyeglasses of your current prescription are useful everywhere. If you regularly take prescription medications, you should carry those.

A typical "go" kit should sustain a day of continuous operation and be easily supplemented for overnight or weekend trips. The bare essentials are a 2-meter or dual-band HT, some sort of "gain" antenna, auxiliary power source, writing materials, comfort and safety items. You can do a lot with a minimum kit, if you plan its contents carefully. There is risk of not having something you may need if you go "too" light, but obvious "bells and whistles" should stay home.

The Every-Day Bag

• Dual-band HT in padded belt case.
• Copy of current FCC Operating License.
• "Tiger tail" (enhances transmit and receive of typical "rubber duck" by 3 db).
• Extra high-capacity (1000 man) nicad, or backup AA battery case for HT.
• DC adapter & fused power cord for HT
• Two extra A fuses, for HT cord .
• Earphone and/or speaker mike
• Swiss Army pocket knife
• Leatherman multi-purpose tool
• Mini-Mag-Lite, extra bulb and spare AAs
• Pencil and pocket notepad
• Emergency gas / phone money ($10 bill, + six quarters and six dimes in pill box).
• SO-239 to male-BNC adapter to fit HT to mobile antenna coax and female BNC to SO-239 to fit HT gain antenna to jumper.
• 6 ft. RG8-X jumper with soldered PL-259s, plus suction cups or car window clip.
• Spare eye glasses, with safety lenses, of current prescription.
• Band aids, moist towelettes and sunscreen
• Pocket sewing kit
• Small pocket compass
• Operating reference card for HT

• Emergency phone and frequency list

The Backup Bag

• Neck-lanyard pocket with spare car keys, emergency cash, credit card, long-distance calling card and ARES photo ID.
• Second, "backup / loaner" 2-meter HT. (battery packs and accessories should interchange with the dual-bander)
• Spare nicad or AA-battery pack, ear phone and speaker-mike for second HT
• Operating manuals for HT's.
• Fused DC adapter cords with Molex connectors for brick amplifier and HTs
• Extra 10' AWG 10 gage twin lead extension cord, with battery clips, in-line fuses and Molex connectors to power brick amp or HT.
• Compact, but rugged, 25-40w 2 meter or dual-band brick amplifier.
  • The purpose of a brick amp for emergency use is to provide better range and clarity than a "barefoot" HT while providing maximum operating endurance when operating on limited battery power. FM mode only is fine. No preamp is wanted or needed, because a preamp usually increases intermod. An ideal portable amp weighs no more than 1.5 lb., is capable of 10-15w output when driven by an HT on low power and 25- 40w output when driven by the same HT operating at 2-3w output from its standard battery pack. It should draw no more than 8 amps of current at maximum rated output, so that it can run safely from a PowerPole connector and fused cigarette plug. Low-priced, no-name amps may overheat and "quit" under heavy use. It is more important to buy a quality amp with ample heat sink than to seek the smallest "box." Our ARES group has throughly tested the Mirage B-23, RF Concepts Mini-144 and dual- band Mirage BD-45 and found them satisfactory.
• Gain antennas for both HTs. (telescoping half-wave Larson or AEA "HotRod" and flexible dual-band, full-sized 1/4-wave VHF - 5/8-wave UHF, such as the Comet CH-72, rated for full 30w output of brick amp).
• Gel cel1 batteries, sufficient to small brick amp at 25w + 25 percent duty cycle for 12 hrs. (minimum, four NP2-12 or equivalent)
• Two refills of AA Alkaline batteries for HT.
• RG8-X jumpers with soldered PL-259s, two 3 ft., one, 6 ft., one 10 ft. and one 25 ft. with double-female connectors to combine all.
• BNC-male+BNC female to SO-239; BNC-male+BNC female to PL-259; NMO to SO-239 adapters.
• Cable ties, large and small, 6 each
• Lensatic compass, 7.5min. series area topos.
• Two sharpened pencils, pencil sharpener, gum eraser, note pad, permanent marker.
• Quick-reference card(s) listing primary and secondary ARES repeaters, local wide-area coverage or cross linked repeaters, repeater and phone patch access codes, Skywarn and ARES / RACES working frequencies.
• ARES Field Resource Manual
• Compact, rugged, flashlight (Pelican Stealthlite), with extra bulb and AA batteries
• Two sets of spare fuses (2A, 8A, 15A) for HT cords, mobile radio or brick amplifier.
• Comfort, safety and basic first aid items: sunglasses, matches, tissues, toothbrush, sun block, sewing kit, insect repellent, tweezers, band-aids, adhesive tape, gauze pads, wound cleaning wipes, etc.

The Disaster Bag

• 3-ring binder with Fairfax County ARES Handbook, Skywarn Net Control Operations Manual, area topo maps and operating manual for auto mobile rig, in zipper portfolio.
• Dual-band or 2-meter mag mount antenna, with portable ground plane, or wind-up J-pole, throwing weight, coax and nylon line.
• AC charger for HT nicads and small gel cells
• Two, 33 ah (wheel-chair size) gel cells and 1 amp trickle charger (alternate/charge in 4-hr. cycles or when AC mains are down can power HT brick amp or mobile rig on low /medium power, plus 12V drop light as needed for 24 hrs).
• 50 feet of 9913F coax with PL-259 connectors and double-female through connector
• 12-volt utility drop-light with alligator clips for attaching to auto or gel cell battery, with spare bulb. Adequate light is important for maintaining operating efficiency and morale. A strong, battery powered light is safer and more reliable than gasoline lanterns.
• 12-volt, 30w soldering iron to fit auto cigarette lighter plug, or propane soldering torch with fuel, 63/37 eutectic solder and flux.
• Leather work glove shells, wool finger less liners, warm hat, wind/rain suit, sweater, insulated rubber safety boots, extra dry socks and change of underwear.
• Tarp or poncho
• Wool blanket or insulated poncho liner
• Two message pads, two pencils, grease pencil, two sheet protectors, 12 push pins.
• Vinyl electrical tape for rain wraps, 1 roll
• Cable ties, large and small, 1 dozen each
• Rubber bands, medium and large, six ea.
• Adjustable open-end wrench, 6"x 0-5/8"
• Folding hex key set
• Side cutters
• Needle nose pliers
• Channel locks or Vise-Grip pliers
• Small, mobile-type SWR/power meter
• Pocket VOM or multi-meter w/ test leads
• Assorted connectors / adaptors including no-solder BNC and UHF for emergency repairs
• First Aid Kit container.
• 3 days supply of bottled water and nonperishable food (which can be eaten cold*), mess kit and utensils.
• Personal hygiene and sanitation supplies.

* 1 gallon of water per person/day, is needed for drinking and washing. Good are canned soup, beans, tuna, juices, fruits, veggies which can be eaten cold, or warmed without further preparation; also peanut butter, cheese spread or jam in plastic jars, lots of hard candy, instant coffee, tea, dried fruit, crackers. Sterno is best for warming. Military MRE's are light weight and convenient, but are expensive and boring. You get better variety, more appetizingly and cheaply at your local grocery store, if weight is not a problem.

All of the above seems like "overkill," but ARES Mutal Assistance Teams must be entirely self- sufficient, otherwise they cease being an asset and become a liability. The above is not the "last word", but is offered as a "thought starter" for your family or group disaster planning.