We've seen bigger duplexers.
A radio go-bag is a portable emergency kit that's ready to grab at a moment's notice. When severe weather threatens, power goes out, or you need to evacuate, you don't want to be hunting for batteries and scrambling to remember frequencies. Pack it once, keep it maintained, and it's ready when you need it.
Not every emergency requires the same level of kit. A tiered approach lets you grab what you need without carrying everything every time:
Most people only need Tier 1 and Tier 2 ready. Tier 3 can be assembled from items already in your home.
Print and laminate a card with:
A go-bag that's too heavy won't get grabbed. Keep Tier 1 under 2 lbs and Tier 2 under 5 lbs. The biggest weight offenders are power banks (a 20,000 mAh bank weighs about 1 lb) and solar panels (even foldable ones add up). For most scenarios a 10,000 mAh bank is plenty - it can fully charge most GMRS handheld batteries 4-6 times. Buy the smallest panel that will recharge your bank overnight in sun, not the largest one you can find.
Water ruins electronics and paper documentation. Even if you're not in a flood zone, getting caught in heavy rain during an evacuation is a real scenario. Keep the radio in a zip-lock bag or a small dry bag inside the go-bag. Laminate the info card. Consider a fully waterproof pouch for the whole kit - waterproof stuff sacks are inexpensive and weigh almost nothing. Test your waterproofing by putting your bag under a running faucet for 30 seconds before you need it in the field.
A go-bag is only useful if everything in it works when you need it. Quarterly maintenance takes 15 minutes and prevents surprises:
Update the bag at the start of each season. Winter means your phone and battery bank will have reduced capacity in the cold - consider that when sizing your power reserves. Summer heat can degrade lithium batteries stored in a hot car. Spring and fall are good times to verify your local repeater list is current, since repeaters do come and go. If your family's rally points or contact plan change, update the info card immediately.
A separate, smaller kit lives in each vehicle. It's not meant to replace the home go-bag - it's there for situations when you're away from home when something happens. The vehicle kit is simpler: a GMRS handheld (or the mobile radio already installed), a spare battery or AA adapter, the laminated info card, and a charging cable. Store it in the glove box or center console. Remember that vehicle interiors can get very hot in summer - avoid leaving lithium batteries in direct sunlight for extended periods, and check them when seasons change.
Keep it ready: A go-bag is useless if the batteries are dead or the radio is programmed with last year's repeater list. Check your bag quarterly: charge all batteries, verify radio programming, and update your information card. Pair it with your emergency communication plan so your family knows it exists and where it's kept.