Hi Robert,
Absolutely and I recognize many of your summits by just looking at the pictures!
One thing I forgot to mention: since we both used the same but not so common rig, we could call the three contacts TX-500 S2S 
To be on the safe side, I carried a 4S 4Ah LiFePO4 battery with me that was also used to charge my smartphone. Difficult to say how much energy was left after a day of activation, but the voltage in RX mode never dropped below 13.1V.
Have fun and 73, Stephan
Hi Stephan,
Great idea! Unfortunately, not many around of them at the moment.
Each time I take the unit out of my backpack, I am astounded by its sheer small size and marvel at its engineering.
My TX-500, 40/20 linked dipole incl coax, LifePo 4200 battery, mic (and sweatband to put over the mic to muffle windnoise), powerlead, and a plastic sheet in case of bad weather all fit into an old padded Lynx washbag the size of 26x14x12 cm (10x5.5x4.7 inch).
For SOTA I do not miss the lack of a tuner as I use resonant antennas, but my T-1 tuner would fit in the bag as well if needed.
To charge my smartphone on the trail, I tend to use a small lighweight powerbank and top my phone up in the car between activations.
73, Robert
M0RWX
Thanks Gerald!
I noticed when planning the trip you had activated several of them a few weeks prior.
Lovely part of the country.
73, Robert
M0RWX
Hi Robert,
Thanks for your explanations!
Me too and I think, after using it now for more than one year, I should once in a while update my review of this transceiver.
Me neither, since I mostly use my 7-band EFHW antenna.
To reduce the number of items that need taken care of, I built USB chargers with PowerPole connectors. The charger can then be looped into the transceiver’s voltage supply. They can be bought for a few bucks in Chinese online shops and usually allow 8-20V input and deliver max. 3A@5V output. They are sealed and therefore at least splash proof.
On the left side an older construction with a micro USB connector and a USB-C adapter and a PowerPole Y-connector that weights 55g. On the right side a more recent construction with a USB-C connector and a double PowerPole connector that weights only 26g. Moreover, this one is very efficient.
Some of them may produce some RFI on certain frequencies, depending on their load. But since they charge with up to 15W, you don’t have to run them for a long time.
Since I already had problems with charging in the car (on Android, the charge icon looks like it’s charging, but it’s actually depleting), a portable charging possibility comes really handy.
73 Stephan
