Tag: shtf
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GMRS Is Great for Family Comms, But It Won’t Save You When SHTF
GMRS gets recommended constantly in prepping and family communication circles, and for good reason. But it’s not a complete emergency communications plan by itself.
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The Key Parts of a SHTF Communications Plan: PACE, Rally Points, and Roles
A SHTF comms plan needs more than a radio and a frequency. Here are the actual components: PACE planning, rally points, defined roles, and a common list everyone can reference.
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Emergency Communications and Preparedness
A practical roadmap to EmComm capability, covering ARES and RACES, message formats, digital tools like Winlink, and what actually holds up when it matters.
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Tactical Team Comms vs. SHTF Comms: Why You Can’t Copy-Paste the Playbook
Why the PACE-driven, locked-down comms plan of a tactical team doesn’t hold up in a grid-down scenario, and what your radio setup actually needs instead.
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Weekly Nets Are Stuck in the Past, and They’re Not Preparing Anyone for SHTF
Most weekly nets have become a comfortable check-in ritual that teaches nothing and tests nothing. Here’s why that’s a problem for preparedness-minded hams.
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Repeaters: How They Work, Why They’re Great, and Why They’re Not a SHTF Plan
Repeaters turn a 5-watt handheld into a radio that can talk 40 miles. Here’s how that works, and why you shouldn’t bet your grid-down comms plan on one.
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What a Real SHTF Communications Plan Actually Looks Like
Most people’s SHTF comms plan is a radio in a drawer and a vague hope it’ll work when it matters. Here’s what an actual plan looks like, and why it’s mostly about people and documentation, not gear.
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Integrating Meshtastic Into a Preparedness Plan (Without Overselling It)
Meshtastic gets pitched online as a SHTF communications solution. It’s useful, but it’s not that. Here’s an honest look at where it actually fits in a preparedness plan.
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Documenting Your SHTF Communications Plan: The One-Page Reference Everyone Needs
A plan only your one radio operator understands isn’t a plan. Here’s what to actually put on paper, in what format, and where to keep copies so it’s useful when it matters.
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DMR Talkgroups Are Great Fun, But Don’t Mistake Them for a SHTF Plan
Brandmeister and TGIF talkgroups are a fantastic way to stay in touch and play radio every day. Just understand what they depend on, because that same dependency is exactly why they fail when it matters most.
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Why a Single-Band Radio Isn’t Enough for SHTF, and Where Digital and Encryption Actually Fit
One band and one mode is a fragile foundation for emergency communication. Here’s the case for multi-band, digital-capable gear, an honest look at where encryption is and isn’t legal, and what a MARS mod really does.