Alex_c
Well-Known Member
Got a link?
Auto PFDs
- Thread starter Alex_c
- Start date
BC Coast Pilot
Well-Known Member
There is no requirement to wear your pfd once you have safely boarded a recreational vessel and are not working on deck commercially. Just to have them on board
Newf
Crew Member
I was just reporting what I was told by the RCMP and DFO reps. They said you don't have to wear the non-inflatables but if the inflatables are all you have on board then they must be worn. Wouldn't be the first time they were wrong though.
Rain City
Crew Member
That was my understanding as well
Sharphooks
Well-Known Member
I wear the manually inflatable ones, or a straight PFD. I got spooked a decade or so ago reading a scary account of a guy who almost went down with his boat when he pitch-poled with 4 people on board. They all made it off the boat but he had on a water activated PFD---the bladders inflated inside the wheelhouse in an up-side down boat and he couldn't get out of the wheel-house door. He ended up puncturing the bladders with a fillet knife and lived to tell the tale.
This was an experienced captain and the water-activated PFD fiasco is only part of the story. The reason he pitch-poled? People on the back deck were getting fast and loose with braid.....probably yacking and not paying attention. One guy spun up a pile of it into the prop of one of the outboards. The wind blew against an outgoing tide on the way back to port and the waves stacked up big. The Captain tried to go up the backside of one of them on the one operable outboard. With all the weight in the boat he skated back down into the trough; the second wave came up behind him and lacking the power of both screws, he ended up pitch-poling.
That story not only sobered me up about automatic PFD's but majorly spooked me about getting cavalier using braid on my boat....when alone, I NEVER fish two rods for that very reason.
Double-headers are exhilarating when fishing alone until they're not.....
This was an experienced captain and the water-activated PFD fiasco is only part of the story. The reason he pitch-poled? People on the back deck were getting fast and loose with braid.....probably yacking and not paying attention. One guy spun up a pile of it into the prop of one of the outboards. The wind blew against an outgoing tide on the way back to port and the waves stacked up big. The Captain tried to go up the backside of one of them on the one operable outboard. With all the weight in the boat he skated back down into the trough; the second wave came up behind him and lacking the power of both screws, he ended up pitch-poling.
That story not only sobered me up about automatic PFD's but majorly spooked me about getting cavalier using braid on my boat....when alone, I NEVER fish two rods for that very reason.
Double-headers are exhilarating when fishing alone until they're not.....
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ziggy
Well-Known Member
It was on the Mustang site over Boxing week. Sales over now I think.
BC Coast Pilot
Well-Known Member
Application
- 2 (1) These Regulations apply in respect of
- (a) a pleasure craft
- 2 (1) These Regulations apply in respect of
- 10 (1) A personal flotation device or lifejacket that is required by these Regulations, if it is of an inflatable type, shall be worn by a person in an open vessel or, if the vessel is not open, shall be worn when the person is on deck or in the cockpit.
I stand corrected......my apologies. I didn't know that applied to pleasure craft in that manner. I carry both so i guess I'm compliant.
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Alex_c
Well-Known Member
What model did you end up getting?
ziggy
Well-Known Member
I was told by the RCMP during a safety check that you had to be wearing an inflatable for it to count. I guess because unlike a PFD it might not float up
ziggy
Well-Known Member
Khimera dual flotation. Thought it’s good to have a bit of flotation prior to pulling the cord, especially when out alone. Was 299 on for 209.
EstevanPoint
Active Member
The Khimeras are great! Super comfortable and the pocket on the front allows for a few basic tools while fishing. Plus a little added warmth on those cool days, but they never feel overly hot either with your neck fully free. 10/10 would recommend.
Aquaholic
Crew Member
When inflated in the water, do they hold your neck above water?
EstevanPoint
Active Member
Majority of the flotation is in the chest so they keep you face up. But there is no collar to provide extra support for the head and neck.
InterMechanico
Well-Known Member
Mustang Khimera Dual Floatation PFD
Mustang Survival PFD Buying Guide Best Recreational PFDs and Life Jackets for Paddling Best PFDs for Inflatable Kayaks The Mustang Khimera Dual Flotation PFD offers you the freedom to move on or in the water. The ultra-slim Khimera was designed to keep you nimble and fluid on the water, with a...
aqoutdoors.com
Gong Show
Well-Known Member
It really comes down to personal preference and how 'you' are going to use the product or if it is just there to satisfy the regulations.
If you are going to wear an inflatable and you test it annually, you have mitigated a lot of the risk and you are wearing your life saving device.
When I was racing the VanIsle 360, we would do overnight legs and as the off-watch skipper, I would be doing most of the dark watches. I wore a pretty heavy duty Spinlock inflatable that had a spray hood and a light on a mast. It was the right tool for that job.
Many guys wear WorkSafe approved foam flotation vests, I used to also. These do not have huge amounts of lift, since you are supposed to have a crew around that will fish you out pretty quick and WorkSafe mandates that you are wearing it at all times. Right tool for that sort of situation.
You have to evaluate the type of boating you are doing and the risks. If you are not going to perform annual maintenance on your life saving gear, go with foam. If you are not going to be wearing your pfd, then you better have a foam lifejacket on board for the regulations.
If you do not like inflatables or wearing bulky foam, but would wear a hybrid, then that is the best solution for you.
There is no one right answer, you have to take the information provided in this thread and make a decision for you.
If you are going to wear an inflatable and you test it annually, you have mitigated a lot of the risk and you are wearing your life saving device.
When I was racing the VanIsle 360, we would do overnight legs and as the off-watch skipper, I would be doing most of the dark watches. I wore a pretty heavy duty Spinlock inflatable that had a spray hood and a light on a mast. It was the right tool for that job.
Many guys wear WorkSafe approved foam flotation vests, I used to also. These do not have huge amounts of lift, since you are supposed to have a crew around that will fish you out pretty quick and WorkSafe mandates that you are wearing it at all times. Right tool for that sort of situation.
You have to evaluate the type of boating you are doing and the risks. If you are not going to perform annual maintenance on your life saving gear, go with foam. If you are not going to be wearing your pfd, then you better have a foam lifejacket on board for the regulations.
If you do not like inflatables or wearing bulky foam, but would wear a hybrid, then that is the best solution for you.
There is no one right answer, you have to take the information provided in this thread and make a decision for you.
Tinny
Well-Known Member
Six years ago I was a split second away from falling in head first while solo fishing in the Harbour in early February. I was wearing an automatic inflatable PDF, but in all reality (if it worked) it just would have given my family a body to bury. If I didn't die from that first gasp, or from cardiac arrest (common when hitting cold water), I would have had maybe 5 to 8 minutes in that water and there was nobody at all around as my boat kept trolling away from me. This is my formula for safety now:I should probably get a PFD I’ll actually wear, especially winter fishing in a small boat where taking a dunk in 4°C water will probably be unpleasant, especially if my muscles cramp up and I can’t swim.
Anyone have any experience with this model?
Cabela’s® Automatic 40 Inflatable PFD | Cabela's Canada
• ULC/ Transport Canada Approved • 40 Pounds of Buoyancy • Halkey Roberts V95000 Automatic Inflator Mechanism • Wide Angle View Visual Indicator Window • Red/Green Cylinder Seal Indication • Sublimated Graphic Front Shell Design • Internal Space Cylinder Pocket • 2” Belts and...www.cabelas.ca
Or can recommend anything in the ~$200 price range?
1. I do not go solo fishing in the winter.
2. In the winter, or when solo fishing at any other time of year, I wear one of those foam sailing type of jackets - lots of support up front, nothing around neck or arms. Takes a bit of getting used to but worth the peace of mind to me. "Automatic" may not work and the liner can easily get a pin hole in it during fishing activities.
3. Since the PDF has a front pocket in it, I keep a floating handheld radio in it that has an emergency button with my MMS number programmed into it.
4. When summer fishing with a friend who knows how to operate the boat, I'll relax and wear an automatically inflating PDF.
No fish is worth the risk of meeting an untimely end.
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Alex_c
Well-Known Member
Great post. Very true that hypothermia is a huge risk, especially if you aren’t rescued in a couple minutes and receive proper first aid. Also why I don’t go out solo in the winter.
Rain City
Crew Member
So what happened? As in, what were you doing at the time that caused the close call?
