When to re place Hammar firing heads - followup thread

[Elemental]

This is really a followup thread to - http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.php?424084 where the poster asked asked about whether to replace Hammar auto heads at their expiry date.

I was servicing / inspecting my lifejackets earlier today. Generally I wipe them down, give them a visual once over and then inflate them with a pump and leave for 24 hours. Now, last year I got lazy. I didn't do anything with them at all - working on the principle that they'd be OK. So this year when I checked I noticed that the expiry year - 2013 was overdue on most of my LJ actuators. I'm normally of the opinion that safety stuff needs to be in date, although I'm equally convinced that it's probably unnecessary. So I inflated them (as normal) and one deflated within 5 minutes. I reflated it and noticed that air was escaping though the Hammar unit (not around the edge, but through what I take to be the hydrostatic pressure inlet. Clearly useless.

Given that I had now condemned the actuator I pulled the inflate cord - the LJ instantly inflated, but deflated after 5 mins. What's even worse though was that the OK/Not ok indicator on the Co2 cylinder remained in the green



Even after I'd removed the Co21 cylinder it showed Green



The LJ that failed, is the one I generally use. It was OK whe I tested in 2013 (and I really should have changed the actuator when I serviced it then) but I've been wearing a potentially useless LJ for two years. Furthermore, you cannot use the OK/Not indicator to know whether the cylinder has been fired. Inspection or weighing is the only way to be sure. If I didn't know it had been operated, there would be no way of knowing from the useless gauge.

 

[Ammonite]

I had the same problem with an in date hanmar unit. I also had a universal moulders LJ fail to fire when 2 months out of date
Thats two useless jackets out of the three ive purchased in the last few years and all have been top of the range / best buys at the time. Doesn't exactly inspire confidence does it? I'd be really interested if we / YBW could organise an end of season just out of date firing test amongst those on here to see exactly how reliable LJs are. I suspect that while most would work there would be a significant proportion that wouldnt

 

[sailorman]

are these made on the IoW :disgust:

 

[Alpha22]

I just replaced 3 out of date Universal Moulders triggers. Two were 2004, the other had no date!!!!???

I tossed them all into a sink of water and all 3 instantly 'popped' - I assume they would have fired the CO2 if it was still connected.

Ashamedly, on the one I normally wear, the trigger cylinder was loose.... almost ready to fall off..... this was looked at last year!!!! It hadn't had much use either as we don't use the gas life jackets inland, where we do most of our boating, but only for the occasional foray onto the salt.