Offshore PFD's

[Happy03]

Ahoy,

New to this site. Hello all.
Heading offshore to St. Croix in Nov. 2010.
Looking for recommendations for purchasing a PFD.

Ray
Dreamcatcher

[osirissail]

Well the best PFD is the ocean vest with full survival suit. But normally that is a little extreme as you might not be able to do much useful work along the way. IMHO the best PFD is a very intenseful respect for the sea and the ship and do not put yourself in a situation where you will need to go swimming in the middle of the ocean. That said, I would recommend to flat inflatables with an integral safety harness. They lay flat against your chest and can be either manually or automatically inflated upon contact with the ocean. Here again the best feature is the safety harness and tether that keeps you permanent attached to the ship should you be foolish enough to go out on deck in a nasty blow.

[MarkJ]

We have one thats in a little pouch that you can sling over your shoulder or clip about your waist.
Its got a big zippable pocket for torches etc (me) or chocolate (nicolle) and we find it terrific! We only have one because we havent seen any good chandlers for more than a year. When we do we will buy a second

[Healer52]

An inflatable with integral harness, with leg straps and a pouch for accessories, and a whistle, strobe, and water activated light, and a three-headed tether (middle leg to the harness, long and short leg so you're ALWAYS attached to the boat.

I also have a day/night flare and a PLB on mine, and a light-stick PML LIGHT PFD CYALUME PML USCG & FAA APPROVED BL/PK 150937

That assumes you have jacklines, 1/4" dia spectra covered with 1" tubular webbing secured fore/aft on either side of the boat. Because STAYING in the boat beats the hell out of floating around it.

[Pblais]

Looking for recommendations for purchasing a PFD.

You are more likely to fall overboard from something that just happens rather than some nasty situation. You slip, something goes wrong and you fall. With colder water immersion suits are the better choice. The auto inflatables allow you to be unconscious and still floating. They cost more and so do immersion suits. A harness and jack lines are also nice. They make sure you don't get too far away. It makes recovery of the body easier too.

Lots of scenarios to consider but the ones that happen may not be on the list. Covering a broad spectrum seems best.

[speciald@ocens.]

I would suggest the Musto harness/suspenders. Better than the West/SOS but more expensive.

[sarafina]

The best PFD is the one you will wear... Far more losses due to not wearing the pesky things at all times, than the style or brand of the vest.

That said, Himself loves his CrewSaver with the built in harness and auto inflate.

I like my hip pouch a Mustang. I know that it's not as fool (or headbanged by a boom) proof as a horseshoe, but I know that I am gonna put it on every time we leave a dock...

[EAkerberg]

Be careful with the tethers that hold you to the boat. They can kill if not equiped with a quick release. Two sailors were killed that way last month on Lake Michigan. See an excerpt from a news story below.

WingNuts overturned when thunderstorms moved through the area overnight, creating wind gusts of 52 knots and 4- to 6-foot waves, according to a statement from the Chicago Yacht Club. The eight-member crew had lowered the sails in preparation, but the wind caught one of the hulls and flipped it over.
All of them were reportedly wearing safety harnesses that secured them to the boat — a precaution that keeps sailors from falling overboard during rough seas, but can become a hazard when a boat capsizes.