AN SMA PLT LOSES HIS ELECTRICAL ON AN IFR IN PROX OF FOUL WX. FLT ASSISTS ARE ATTEMPTED BY ZHU AND CXO FSS. RPTR FINALLY GETS OVER TO EAGLE LAKE USING A HAND-HELD NAV UNIT AND LANDS. THE LAST PART OF FLT HE WAS USING A CELL PHONE FOR COM WITH CTR VIA FSS.

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WHILE IN IMC; ENRTE FROM AUSTIN; TX; TO HOUSTON; TX; I LOST ALL ELECTRICAL PWR. I WAS IN THE VICINITY OF TSTMS AND HAD SEEN A FLASH TO THE R FOLLOWED BY THE GPS DISPLAY FLASHING AND GOING DARK AND THE CTLR INFORMING ME HE HAD LOST MY XPONDER. MY IMMEDIATE THOUGHT WAS THAT I HAD BEEN HIT BY LIGHTNING. HOWEVER; INSPECTING THE AIRPLANE AFTERWARD; IT DOES NOT APPEAR THE FLASH WAS A LIGHTNING STRIKE OR A CAUSE OF THE PROB. WHEN THE CTLR TOLD ME HE HAD LOST RADAR CONTACT AND TO RPT NAVASOTA; I TOLD HIM IT LOOKED LIKE MY NAV RADIOS WERE OUT. AT HIS SUGGESTION; I TRIED RESETTING THE ALTERNATOR. I ATTEMPTED TO RESPOND TO FURTHER CALLS FROM ATC; BUT WAS OBVIOUSLY NOT BEING RECEIVED. I HEARD THE CTLR ASKING OTHER ACFT TO LISTEN FOR AN ELT. I TURNED ON MY HAND-HELD COM/VOR; STILL WITH THIS I COULD HEAR; BUT NOT BE HEARD. APPARENTLY THE BATTERIES DID NOT HAVE ENOUGH CHARGE TO XMIT WITH SUFFICIENT PWR. IT DID PROVIDE A RADIAL TO NAVASOTA. LISTENING TO IAH ATIS; WHICH I COULDN'T HEAR VERY CLRLY; THE VISIBILITY DIDN'T SOUND GOOD ENOUGH TO GET INTO IWS; WHICH HAS NDB AND VOR/DME APCHS; WITH ONLY THE HAND-HELD VOR RECEIVER. I ATTEMPTED THE VOR APCH TO NAVASOTA; BUT COULD NOT SEE THE ARPT AT MINIMUMS. I BEGAN CLBING BACK TO MY ASSIGNED ALT AND HDG FOR COLLEGE STATION; THE NEAREST OTHER VOR I COULD RECEIVE AND WITH LOWER APCH MINIMUMS. IT THEN OCCURRED TO ME I HAD A CELLULAR PHONE. I USED THIS TO CONTACT FSS; WHO CONTACTED ATC. I WAS TOLD THAT COLLEGE STATION WAS USING THE ILS. SINCE I COULDN'T FLY THAT WITH THE HAND-HELD; THEY SUGGESTED I FLY S TOWARD PALACIOS AND TRY TO CLB TO A VFR CRUISING ALT. I TOLD THEM I WOULD CLB TO 5500 FT; BUT THIS DID NOT GET ME VFR. THE FSS SPECIALIST GAVE A HDG AND SAID HE'D GET ME A DISTANCE IN A SECOND; BUT I LOST CONTACT AND NEVER COULD RE-ESTABLISH. I TUNED EAGLE LAKE; A VOR ALONG THE WAY TO PALACIOS. I FREQUENTLY CHANGED TO THE ATC FREQ AND TRIED TO CONTACT ATC OR OTHER ACFT. I GATHERED FROM WHAT I HEARD; THAT THEY WERE TRYING TO VECTOR ANOTHER ACFT TO ME; AND THEREFORE PROBABLY HAD A PRIMARY TARGET ON ME. IT OCCURS TO ME THAT; HAD ATC ASKED ME TO TURN; I COULD HAVE COMPLIED; VERIFYING THAT THEY HAD THE CORRECT TARGET AND THAT I COULD HEAR THEIR XMISSIONS. ON ARR AT EAGLE LAKE; I FLEW THE APCH WITH THE INTENTION OF CONTINUING S TO PALACIOS IN THE EVENT OF A MISS. I SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED THE APCH AND LANDED; WHEREUPON I IMMEDIATELY CONTACTED FSS ON MY CELLULAR PHONE.