RADIO:
QCX+
Endfed monoband with pico 64:1 homemade
3x18650 cells pack
earplugs
3m of coax RG-316
Paddle (Begali Traveler or Ba-Ma-Key III)
fishing pole 6m
VK-por-a-log app
Pencil (always two as backup) and notebook
Gear:
Winter: down jacket or wind stopper, warm hat and gloves
Summer: cap and sun cream
Always Gore-tex jacket
Victorinox folding knife o multitool
1 litre water bottle
food
chair or matt for sitting
headlamp
For an internal combustion engine, the old saying is: “There is no replacement for displacement”.
For transmitters, it is feeder current and free space that cuts the mustard.
Regards
David
G0EVV
Ah, I think you may be referring to the Buick big block 455 here David. 
Hi Fred,
Can we get some details on the construction of the 12/15/17/20/30/40/60 trapped antenna? Must be really elaborate. Do you use 6 traps? I’ve been using your 20/30/40 EFHW for years. To me that seems like the perfect SOTA antenna. I don’t see any reason to use anything but that. Except the 12-60m is intriguing
Paul Christy
N0GN
ex-WB9QAF
My “default” radio kit for activating is:
Elecraft KX2 w/nternal battery, and built-in ATU
Yaesu FT-60 VHF/UHF Handheld
Spare battery identical to the KX2 internal one
Bioenno 3Ah LiFePO4 on longer trips
20ft RG-174 Coax
9:1 EARCHI UNUN
31 ft wire (normally, I also take a 41ft, and 84ft but rarely use them)
20 ft “Crappie Pole” or SOTABeams Carbon 6 mast
WhiteRook Single-Lever Paddle with K6ARA “MiniPaddle” as a spare.
Small clipboard
Write-In-the-Rain Notebook for logging with RITW Pencil
Pack to carry it all along with “the ten essentials”, poncho, water, etc.
I also take a “backup antenna” that consists of a BNC-Binding Post adapter, a 31 ft radiator wire, and a 17 ft counterpoise. Spres are good!
This all changes from time to time but the basics above are always the same. I also have a couple MTR radios, a linked dipole, taller masts, etc. that sometimes get swapped in and out.
Tim N9PUZ
When hiking any distance;
When not walking very far;
QCX-mini 20m
SOTAbeams wire and picobalun
electronicsUSA mini-paddle
3 aH Bioenno battery
all and all about 1.5 pounds
QCX-mini 20m and 40m
Homemade 3D printed key
VK3IL pressure key (for backup)
2x 3S1300mAh Lipo
EFHW bi-band antenna
6m fiberglass pole
5m of RG58
Light JVC Headset
Paper bloc, pens, gas solder iron, spare fuse …
Standard equipment for hiking
73, nico
Nico –
The orange item in your photo looks like it is to hold the base of your mast in place. Is it something you made yourself or a commercial item?
Tim N9PUZ
Needed from time to time: the tick removing tool - used just last Wednesday.
All other parts have already been mentioned.
73, Markus HB9DIZ
Hello Tim,
I found it in a famous sports shop in France. The reference is THALYDRIS A PIQUE W/RS04.
It is convenient but I bring also some cords when the ground is only rock …
Best 73,
Nico
Hello Nico, hello Tim,
I found these in the local garden center.
73,
Gerald
This is my DIY version. Cost me less than 5 euros, but could use some improvements, especially weight reduction.
M8 threaded rod, 28mm PVC end cap + 50 cm PVC pipe. They separate, so the total package is 54 cm long. The 5m telescopic whip is also mounted on an end cap and goes on top. Total of 730 grams, which for say hikes is not too bad. Setting it up takes less than 2 minutes.
I’m trying to making my sota equipment smaller and smaller.
This is for longer hikes:
For smaller hikes:
Update:
I build a new smaller coupler 64:1 and I rebuild my antenna mount. Its smaller, lighter and extremly robust.
This is for longer hikes:
For smaller hikes:
Some comparisons:
Radios:
FT817 5W - 1.138 kg____________________ vs FT891 100W - 2.137 kg
Batteries:
3x 18650 - 3500 mAh - 10.8V - Aliexpress case __4x 26650 LiFePo4 - 3300mAh - 13.2V
ALM 12V7 - 8x 26650 LiFePo4 - 4.6Ah - 13.2V
All in all I carry, on longer hikes, 3kg with me.
so thats my equipment and I’m pretty happy.
Cheers see u on HF
73,
Julian, IN3JIB, OE1JLN
MTR-3b (Primary)
(tr)uSDX (Backup)
QCX-Mini 17/60 (maybe)
FT3DR or FT270 if known high RFI summit
SRH-770 antenna
BamaKey TP-III
N0SA paddle (backup)
20/30/40 linked EFHW (Primary)
Elecraft AX-2 (depending on summit situation)
850mAh LiPo battery
Need to build the QMX kit I have on the bench. It may very well find a place in the pack.
I don’t carry a pole any more. The AX-2 antenna has proved to be a surprisingly good performer, so it gets used where I can’t logistically deploy the EFHW. Heck, I’ve even used it when I was pushing against incoming rain and got enough 20/40m contacts for a quick dual SPOTA activation.
Now i use
SW-3B+Palm key
SWR led meter
BaoFeng UV-3R
6 meter pole+ some wire
Batery Lipo 3S 2200 mAH
Shunt dipole with coils for 20, 30 and 40 meters or EFWA for 20, 30 and 40 metres with traps (more lighter)
7 meters of rg174 coax
Hello all, first time posting. I’ve just started getting into activations and chasing after K6CPR gave a talk to our local club. I used to do a lot of hiking and have been on some local summits before without realizing it.
I have an FT891, ATU-100, and a buddipole that I use for car-based or car-adjacent POTA activations, which has served me well for digital modes. The buddipole does a good job of getting me on 10, 12, 15, 17, and 20. It does OK with 30 and 40 and the ATU-100 does a wonderful job of getting the SWR into the low 1s most of the time. This radio, while powerful, is a bit heavier than I’d like.
For SOTA, I’m looking to lighten the load quite a bit. What are everyone’s thoughts on the (tr)uSDX? I did see it mentioned above as a backup unit. I bought one recently with the 3x18650 batteries battery pack and took it with me on vacation (via a plane flight) last month. It worked well with the ATU-100 and an EFHW out a window, though more than 5w (or the 6 and change I was putting out) would have been an improvement. I’m thinking of pairing that radio with the tuner and a buddipole on a tripod, probably not very far off the ground, unless I bring a mast and something like the above PVC mast holders and then clamp the antenna to that. I would also still need my 6ah LiFePo4 battery for the tuner and a raspberry pi if I went digital.
The summits I’m looking at are W6/CT summits that are local and pretty much in the middle of residential areas. Not having hiked in a while, even those push me (which is a big part of why I’m getting into SOTA).
In my previous post I presented my “loud” equipment with FT817-Z817 etc.
Now, after a hundred activations my rig has two configurations; light&speedy activations and normal activations. The light rig has telescopic stylus (MFJ18xxT type) for 20-30-40 m band mounted over a ski pole with an extension to put them at about 1,6 m from ground and 1 or two radials. The normal rig has a LW antenna 16,2 m long mounted as an inverted L with a 4m mast again over a ski pole to have a maximum height of about 5m. A 9:1 Un-Un is connected to the base of the wire and to the coaxial RG174. In all cases the radio is a SW-3B powered with a battery pack (4s LiPo with regulator and voltmeter). The pictures will explain better.
Light equipment:
Normal equipment:
(see previous pic for more details)
3) extension to insert fishing pole
4) fishing pole 4m
6) automatic tuner ATU 10
8) 9:1 UN-UN
10) LW 16,2 m
17) Coax to connect ATU
21-22) Straps to hold the ski pole (if necessary)
In both rigs consider also pencil and paper log
Hi Ryan, Welcome! It doesn’t look like anyone “local” has answered your question, so I will try.
The tr(usdx) has a reputation for poor audio from the speaker, so use 'phones or a small powered external speaker. It also has out of band spurious emissions, however I believe a firmware update has resolved this.
Power. You have a radio, a tuner and a raspberry pi which all need power. The radio doesn’t draw much, the tuner should only use a bit when actively tuning and your raspberry pi needs 5.1v at least 3 amps. You don’t mention if you are handy with a soldering iron. You could power the radio and tuner from the same 3 x 18650 pack using a split power lead and use a UPS board with the pi, which will take 2 x 18650’s. That’s how I power mine in the field. Alternatively use your LiFePO4 for everything, however you’d need a buck converter to drop the voltage to 5.1v for the pi. There are many ways to skin a cat!
Weight and and antennas. You could ditch the tuner. Your EFHW is likely to be resonant on 40, 20, 15 and 10m without one, however please check! The EFHW over a 5m fibreglass pole or 6m SOTAbeams carbon 6 plus tr(udx) and 18650’s is a very light option. I understand you’re starting off on urban summits and it sounds like a vertical on a tripod is a good idea for that. You’ll soon ditch that when you veture further afield.
Hope this helps. Good luck experimenting!
Fraser
MM0EFI
