so ive been meaning to do this for like two years and after the storms we had last month I finally got serious about it. got a pelican case, my FT-857D, a little 40Ah lithium battery pack, and a roll of RG-8X with some PL-259s already soldered on. threw in a j-pole I built last summer and figured that was probably a decent start.

the thing is I keep reading these lists online and everyone seems to have wildly different opinions on what absolutely needs to be in a go-kit versus what's just nice to have. like do I really need a second radio? some guys on another group were saying you should always have a backup HT at minimum and honestly that makes sense but now im second guessing everything else too.

also not sure how to handle power in a real emergency situation where I might be deployed somewhere for 24-48 hours. the 40Ah pack should theoretically last a while on low power but I havent actually tested it under real conditions yet. should I be looking at a solar panel setup too or is that overcomplicating things at this point? I just want something I can grab and be operational within like 20-30 minutes of arriving somewhere.

anyway curious what you all have learned from actual deployments or drills, not just the theory stuff

the backup HT thing is real, I learned that the hard way at a public service event when my main radio had a connector issue and I was basically useless for about 45 minutes while someone tracked down a spare. now I keep a cheap Baofeng in the kit just for that reason, nothing fancy, just something that works on 2m and 70cm in a pinch.

on the power question -- test it before you need it. seriously just run your 857 at a realistic duty cycle for a few hours and see where the battery sits. a lot of people are surprised how fast things drain when youre actually in a net versus just monitoring. the solar panel is worth having if you think youll be out more than one night, I have a 50W panel that rolls up and it adds maybe 3 lbs to the kit, not a big deal. also dont forget a way to charge phones and other stuff because in an actual emergency everyone around you is going to be asking and having a USB output on your power setup is just a nice thing to have.

sounds like you've got the basics honestly. the other thing I always tell people is document everything in the kit -- like a little card that says what freqs are programmed, what power settings you normally run, that kind of thing. your brain does weird things under stress and you dont want to be guessing.

what kind of antenna options are you planning beyond the j-pole? asking because depending on where youre deployed you might not always have a good vertical takeoff angle and having even a simple wire dipole you can throw up in a tree can make a real difference, especially if youre trying to hit a distant EOC on HF.

I keep a 40m/80m linked dipole in mine, fits in a small bag, takes maybe 15 minutes to get up if I have some help. just a thought. your setup sounds pretty solid otherwise for getting started