Is your bug out bag ready? 

Excellent protocol to live by. You're a head of the curve.

😊

Thanks, buddy. Honestly, the GoPro just comes along for the ride. I never plan my videos. You guys are just getting a sneak peak of my actually experiments, training events, and general growth in the hobby.

@@TheTechPrepper we'll take whatever you give us. 😉

Hey, Shane. Thank you for the kind comment. I believe in being transparent and honest about the wins and failures. I am not a radio or backcountry expert and I'm still learning. This channel is all about sharing the ride. The gear, skills and techniques have evolved over the last 4+ years and they will continue to evolve while this channel is operational. Take care, my friend.

My pleasure. I had a feeling that some gear was missing. This is what I get for swapping gear between bags.

I just remind them about what they went through with Superstorm Sandy and how "prep"aring for emergencies is more than Doomdays Preppers.

My wife has been on board for the few last years. She has experienced a personal "SHTF" situation with me a few times and the advanced preparation has always paid off. For example, there was a power outage on a trip to Maui about 6 years ago that shut down the island for about 8 hours. She could not believe how handy it was to have cash, a headlamp and some snacks in my travel bag. I am sure you can sell it. Good luck!

I'm never afraid. The trick is learning from the failure and moving forward. I am happy to share the experience. Cheers.

You're very welcome. It was a great lesson. After answering a few more comments this morning, it's time to start getting the ruck up to 100% readiness.

Glad to hear it, Gene. I would imagine that if most people are honest about their level of prep, that there are very likely a few gaps. 73

My other bag actually has a hank of 26 AWG silicone stranded wire and the cobra head. This is what I get for switching the modular gear. Great tip. 73

I have been conflicted for some time now. Modular kits save money, but the reality is that they move from bag to bag and are easily forgotten. For this one, I am going to bite the bullet and invest in an inexpensive solar charge controller (future video on this one), buy an extra 25' run of RG-8x, and build a 40m dipole this weekend using a Cobra head. It was a good lesson. I used to have an index card-sized laminated checklist, but stop using it. Big mistake! Failure is a good teacher.

@@TheTechPrepper best thing is this gives me more videos to look forward to! 👍

You are 100% spot on. My pocketbook took a hit this morning, but I'll have confidence in a few days that this bag is 100% up-to-date, minus the consumables. A monthly calendar reminder will now be alerting me to check the consumables and other gear. Have a good one.

Glad to hear it. This was a kick in the pants for me as well. I spent the morning pulling out everything (even the gear that you did not see). Good luck updating your gear. It might good to try this same video in 3-6 months.

Tech gear has way too many moving parts for comfort, but it has a ton a value. I guess it's a necessary evil to try to make the gadgets and gizmos work.

@@TheTechPrepper Self-sufficient comms is basically a superpower

Thanks, bro!

My pleasure. More on the way. Have a good night.

Tattoos are older than written language. I wouldn't hold your breath.

@@kerbalairforce8802 Check family photos from just 20 years ago. Very rare. Now they're everywhere and it's just an ugly phase.

You're welcome. Trying doing an update for the next few days to your bag. Cheers.

Good for you. I missed the CB golden age, but it's worth exploring especially for highways.

Glad to hear it, Turd! "I'll take the the-rapist for 500, Alex" ;-)

My pleasure. Be safe.

Have a safe voyage. I have droid psk app on my phone, with that an receiver I can at least receive digital transmissions.

Cheers from the US. Thank you for debrief and good luck with Winlink. Shoot me a message. 73 de KT7RUN

Glad to hear that I reached at least one person. Good luck getting your kit updated.

Well, I guess it would be good to have a partially complete bag versus no bag. Good luck.

For adults only. ;-)

Nope, but I have been a long time StarLink RV user since it was introduced.

Thanks, buddy. The investment is worth it. Apparently, we are still having repeater issues due to excessive temperatures, wildfires, and power outages due recent monsoons. That was an extra curveball that I was not expecting.

​@@TheTechPrepper​ That is very interesting. Are they even able to reach it to do whatever they need to do to get it back to normal? It's cases like that is why I want to try 2m SSB. Do they have alternative repeaters available?

@@ke8mattj The issue was restored within about 36 hours. I have no details on the resolution. However, it is issues like this, that make it clear that simplex should always be in the plan if possible.

@@TheTechPrepper Okay, was more curious. I don't use repeaters often since I mostly just stick with family with GMRS and just use HF to practice long distance comms at this point. I'm in agreement with you on the simplex, hence why I keep bringing up 2m SSB. I really need to write to some people nearby to see if they're willing to do an experiment on that so that we can at least pass traffic between ourselves if something pops off and the repeaters go offline.

@@ke8mattj Good luck with your tests. I am actually working through some 2m SSB tests soon.

There's lots of good choices of radios on the market today. My question is what do you want to do with an HT and a HF radio? Are you wanting to buy brand new or used radios? As for the HT, are you wanting to analog FM only or get into digital voice modes like D-STAR, Fusion/Wires-X, DMR and such? If you're not interested in getting into digital, a Baofeng would do ok without breaking the bank. Yaesu makes some FM Transceiver HT's that will be better, but cost more money. For radios that have digital voice capabilities, they will command a higher price and have more capabilities than a standard FM Transceiver. As for the HF radios, there's good options out there. Question is; Are you wanting to have a base station at home or go portable? While some people will take a IC-7300 and similar radios out for portable operations, they are cumbersome to carry around. If at home, can't go wrong with a IC-7300. Icom radios have a similar menu structure on all their radios, which makes learning to use them easy compare to competitors on the market. There's plenty of deals on ebay if you're looking to buy used radios. I can go on and on about radios and different modes to work. There's lots to do in amateur radio. I was in your shoes once and I went down the rabbit hole and enjoy it. Welcome to the hobby and hope to hear you on the air. W4ISB Mike in Tennessee

I think Josh from Ham Radio Crash Course says it best: "that depends." ​ @pale_2111 has an excellent answer for you: it depends on what you want to do (along with the IC-7300). There's also your budget. I could go into a long post about my own use cases to so you'd get an idea of what we mean, but that'll bore you to death. It'd be better to list what your end-goals and use cases are. That is, what is it you are planning on doing with ham. I know you said you already use GMRS for family (excellent choice, I do the same with family!) So what else do you plan on doing with radio? Ham has so many things involved that it is nothing but a deep never ending abyss that stares right back at you.

@@pale_2111thanks so much Mike!! Oh the rabbit hole is what I’m in right now haha. Not too sure on the HT yet in terms of analog or digital. Still trying to decide which I would like to go with. In terms of HF I’m definitely looking at the icom you mentioned!

@@ke8mattjhuge help, thank you! Going to take some time and figure out what I want to do with HF and mature radio all together.

@@kaynenbrown5102 Rabbit hole is an understatement. Welcome to ham radio lol! You'll enjoy it though. At least you got your general so you opened up a lot for you to learn to see what you want to do. Tech is way too limited. Want to do digital modes for emergency communications? You are definitely on the right channel for that, along with Julian's channel OH8STN. Want to build antennas? DXCommander and Coastal Waves and Wires are both excellent channels. The hobby goes deep. Deeeeeeeeeeeep. Like I mentioned, your case uses will be a good starting point on what to get. If you plan on operating portable, something like the IC7300 or (what I have) IC7100 would not be the best. They're better as base stations for home use, despite the 7100 is advertised as a mobile. Plus, they're both high in price range, so we don't know your budget. Otherwise, if that is what you are looking for, I can recommend the 7300, as I know a lot of people who bought them and still use them. It has a lot excellent features that will benefit you a lot in the hobby. The IC7100 is just better for my use case since I need a what's called "shack-in-a-box", but it lacks a lot of excellent features like waterfall display and internal tuner. Otherwise, it's an excellent rig for me. You also mentioned you already use GMRS for local comms, so needing the 2m and 70cm on the IC7100 is probably not relevant to you. Again, it's a deep abyss. Good luck navigating!

Check out the DigiRig videos from last month. Look for the one that covers WoAD. The video is already out there.

It's the Eberlestock FAC Track. It's been used on the channel for the last few years, I even have. a couple of pack dump videos on the subject.

It's the Eberlestock FAC Track. I did a pack dump a few years ago on this channel.

Great question and welcome. I did a full video on this earlier in the year. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-FrWuHM5cyyw.html

@@TheTechPrepper thnx! Watch now

Exercise your imagination. He's perfectly set up to do search and rescue after a disaster.

@kerbalairforce8802 not what a bugout bag is for.

You are 100% incorrect. I support public service events and I support my local community when disaster strikes. These bags are designed to provide a service and be able to self support. Often we are displaced by wildfires, so you have no clue what you are talking about. This is a "go-bag".

No clue. I stopped weighing my gear. My motto has been to take what you need and just get your fitness up if needed to carry it.

@@TheTechPrepper STRONG!! i have back problems so i try to keep it under 25lbs now.

@@va2dkkGood for for still getting out there. My normal trail running pack is well under 20 lbs with water. 73