PFD's

[Team.IFL.Gabriel]

Hey guys,

I know asking around to see what type of PFD or life jackets anglers are wearing at the moment as people prefer different styles of life jackets depending on what they are doing. I am using the ISO style life jacket, but was wondering if anybody is using any other life jacket such as the inflatable life jackets.

For those who are wearing life jackets, what type of life jacket do you wear? For those who wear something different from the normal ISO fishing life jacket, if you could state the brand/model it would be great so I can look into some new designs to stock.

[pauly]

I wear a Deckvest Lite. Its an auto-inflatable pfd. It has a co2 canister which inflates the vest and is only triggered when submerged in water (a wave or heavy rain wont triggger it).
Its not as handy for fishing as the Asian vests with all the pockets but I can honestly say its so light and comfortable (esp neck & shoulder area) that I forget Im wearing it.

My reasoning for this choice was as follows.
Im a heavy guy and the thin foam in Asian vests wouldnt be buoyant enough.
The thick foam in Aus Standards compliant pfd's are too bulky and cumbersome for fishing, climbing and rockhopping.
Therefore an inflatable was the best choice for me.
There is manual or automatic activation and both types rely on a co2 canister.
Manuals require the wearer to pull a cord for inflation.
Automatics are triggered by water submersion but as a backup also have a cord for manual inflation.
I never considered the manual as a serious contender.
When considering circumstances that may result in being washed in, I kept thinking theres a pretty decent chance of bumping your head when being swept across the rocks or on the way down.
So youre in the water and youre too dazed, disorientated or unconscious to remember to pull the cord.
In this scenario a manual pfd will just be a useless piece of clothing.
So automatic all the way !

spinlock.jpg54208453_o2.jpgSpinlock-Deckvest-Lite-before.jpgSpinlock-Deckvest-Lite-after.jpg

The PRO vests are $500-600 and are worn by ocean racing crews.
I have the Lite version. I paid $190 for mine and couldnt be happier. Cheapest life insurance ever.

[neutrino]

I have Nautilus manual inflatable PFD 150N. As Pauly said, inflatable PFDs are light but they are not as versatile as life vests. I'll probably invest in one of these Deckvest Lite PFDs.

[Team.IFL.Gabriel]

Thanks for the replies and info Neutrino and Pauly. I agree on that the automatic ones are much safer than the manual ones. Not only that Paul, but people can also panic and not be able to inflate it in time.

[Rooster81]

I am using the Shimano life vest.

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[Michael]

I use a Ultra PFD Sportfish L50S.

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[Ronald]

Hey guys,

I know asking around to see what type of PFD or life jackets anglers are wearing at the moment as people prefer different styles of life jackets depending on what they are doing. I am using the ISO style life jacket, but was wondering if anybody is using any other life jacket such as the inflatable life jackets.

For those who are wearing life jackets, what type of life jacket do you wear? For those who wear something different from the normal ISO fishing life jacket, if you could state the brand/model it would be great so I can look into some new designs to stock.

Hi Gabriel,

I came across an article in a fishing mag recently by Dave Rae, a fairly well known rock fisho. He found himself washed into the water while fishing a low ledge.He makes the point that it was important to dive under the incoming waves to be able to climb back onto the ledge, and felt that he would have been bashed about if he couldn't get under the waves. I should make the point that Dave is an experienced surfer.

This obviously raises a question mark on life jackets with rock fishing. As you know, I'm old school, but I do accept that life jackets will save lives in some situations. I'd like to see a report from someone getting washed in and how they dealt with the wave bashing issue in getting back onto the rocks.

[Team.IFL.Gabriel]

Hi Gabriel,

I came across an article in a fishing mag recently by Dave Rae, a fairly well known rock fisho. He found himself washed into the water while fishing a low ledge.He makes the point that it was important to dive under the incoming waves to be able to climb back onto the ledge, and felt that he would have been bashed about if he couldn't get under the waves. I should make the point that Dave is an experienced surfer.

This obviously raises a question mark on life jackets with rock fishing. As you know, I'm old school, but I do accept that life jackets will save lives in some situations. I'd like to see a report from someone getting washed in and how they dealt with the wave bashing issue in getting back onto the rocks.

Hi Ronald,

There's always the point of having to dive under waves being brought up into the topic of life jackets for rock fishing and I agree that it Is important to be able to dive under waves in areas where it is washy and where the swell can push people against the rocks.

I know of a few people who have been washed in with life jackets and have survived, but their English isn't the best so it would be hard for them to explain in English the situation.

[whiskey]

I bought this one from BCF on an impulse buy, probably should have done more research. It's only rated for level 100/100N.

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http://www.bcf.com.au/online-store/p...ecommendations