so i've been meaning to do this for like two years and i finally sat down last weekend and actually built out a proper go-kit. nothing crazy, just an old pelican knockoff case i had sitting in the garage, my FT-857D, a small switching power supply, some coax, and a j-pole i wound up making myself last spring.

got it all packed in and did a quick test in the driveway to make sure it actually works as a unit and not just as a pile of stuff. took me longer to get on the air than i expected, maybe 20 minutes which honestly felt embarrassing. i know during actual served agency stuff you sometimes need to be operational in like 5-10 minutes depending on the situation.

anyway my main question is how are you guys handling antennas in your kits. the j-pole works fine but it's kind of awkward to deploy when you're by yourself and don't have a convenient tree or pole nearby. i've been eyeing some of the wolf river coil setups and the buddistick type stuff. also wondering if anyone keeps a backup HT in their kit or if that's overkill, i have an old UV-5R that just lives in a drawer doing nothing.

would love to hear what other people have settled on after going through a few iterations of this because i feel like there's no perfect answer and you just kinda learn what you actually need vs what you thought you needed

the 20 minute setup time thing is real and it honestly gets better just from practice. what helped me was doing timed drills in my own backyard, sounds silly but after doing it maybe 6 or 7 times you start to figure out where the friction points are. for me it was always coax management, i had a rats nest situation until i started using velcro straps and labeling everything.

on the antenna question, i went through a few options and ended up keeping a super antenna MP1 in my kit for portable ops and then i have a 40m linked dipole in a stuff sack for when i have more time to set up. the buddistick and wolf river coil type verticals are convenient but honestly they can be a pain to tune in the field if conditions arent ideal. the MP1 has a built in counterpoise system which helps when youre on pavement or somewhere without good ground.

and yeah throw the UV-5R in there, dont overthink it. having a backup HT is not overkill at all, its actually pretty standard in most go-kits ive seen at ARES exercises. at minimum you can monitor local repeaters while youre setting up HF. just make sure the battery is charged and stays charged, thats the thing people forget about backup gear.

im kind of in the same boat as you actually, newer to the whole emcomm thing and still figuring out my kit. one thing i did that helped was i made a laminated checklist that lives in the top of the case so when im stressed or tired i dont have to try to remember everything. saw that tip somewhere on here i think.

the antenna thing is tough. i dont have a great answer but someone at my club showed up to a field exercise with one of those tactical mast setups, like the push-up fiberglass kind, and it made the whole deployment way smoother. kinda pricey though. i just use a squid pole which works okay most of the time.