so ive been meaning to do this for like two years and after the storms we had last month i finally got off my butt and started building a real go-kit. right now i have my ft-891 in a pelican case with a 40ah lifepo4 battery, a SignaLink for digital, and im throwing in a copy of my license and some basic paperwork stuff. also got a roll of coax and a couple connectors.

the antenna situation is where im not sure. i have an EFHW that i like but its kind of a pain to deploy fast and i was thinking maybe a vertical like a Chameleon or something would be quicker. anyone done side by side comparisons of those for field use? mostly thinking HF for ARES stuff but i want some VHF capability too so im trying to figure out how to keep it all manageable without hauling a truck full of gear.

also is there stuff people always forget that they wish they had included? im sure im missing something obvious

the antenna thing is real, i went through the same debate. ended up with a Chameleon MPAS Lite and honestly for quick deployment its hard to beat, you can get it up in just a few minutes once you know what youre doing. the EFHW is great when you have time to tune and hang wire but in an actual activation when things are chaotic you really want something that goes up fast.

stuff people forget — a headlamp with extra batteries, seriously this sounds dumb but ive shown up to two different events where guys were fumbling around in the dark. also a notepad and like five pens because youll lose three of them. and some kind of power distribution, a cheap PowerPole distribution block so youre not daisy chaining adapters. oh and food, not radio related but ive sat at a net control position for six hours with nothing to eat and its not fun.

for VHF just throw a cheap handheld in there, you dont need the 891 doing dual duty if youre going to be doing ARES work, easier to just have a dedicated HT for local comms. that way HF and VHF are independent if something goes sideways.

documentation is the thing i always tell people about. like have a laminated card or something with your common frequencies, net schedules, ARES contact numbers, stuff like that. when youre tired and stressed at 2am you do not want to be digging through your phone for the repeater input.

also maybe consider a small solar panel if youre doing longer deployments. 40ah will last a while but if you end up somewhere for 3 days without power it gets real old real fast. i have a 50w panel that folds up pretty small and its saved me more than once.