Which LJ?

[TiggerToo]

I may be in the "market" for a new set of LJ for us (couple). What do you lot find good about the current offerings?

1. Comfort
2. Design/features
3. Cost

Any comments/advice appreciated

 

[Daydream believer]

Go & try a couple at theChandlers. Different typess suit different people. I have Spinnlock but I admit that it tends to hang on the neck a bit. I bought it because it was quick to fit & very quick to adjust for waist fit & had all the gixmos, Hood etc.
Adjustment is important to me because I wear mine ALL the time that i am sailing. That means that I can be in T shirt then in full on oilies with several layers under an hour later. Even putting my jacket on means I have to adjust the strap. That means it has to be easy to adjust & most are stupidly awkward.

The under straps on my Spinlock were useless because , when I sat down they slid down my legs & when I stood up they restricted my movement. I believe they have been altered on newer versions. i have cut mine off & now have a sail tie fitted that I tie at the front. Once again this gives me instant length adjustment when i put wet trousers on.
Spinnlock make a purse for PLB & flares but this can possibly fitted to other makes. It is useful. I believe some make a VHF pocket but I am not sure

One make I put on had a horrid lump where the rear straps fitted at the back. This meant that if one was sitting against a hard cockpit the lump stuck into my back; made worse with the boat motion. So put the jacket on & rub your back up against a wall in thin clothes

When my crewsaver jackets needed new cylinders my son & i decided that my wife should try hers on & inflate it to see how it went.
She refused to strip off & sit in the bath ( ) but stood in the lounge hunting for the cord. Pulled & nothing happened. She had been sailing for 3 years with the cord hooked round the cylinder & would never have inflated it if she had fallen in. So check that out when putting it on.
When we did set it off it inflated under her neck with such force that it snapped her head back & the seam in the inflation collar was sharp & just under her chin. It drew blood & if she had been in the water would have cut into her & been painful.

She decided to wash my daughters one which is a different type for Squib racing & as soon as she put it in the sink it inflated. Daughter was NOT amused
So if you are going to throw it in the bottom of the dinghy rather than wear it ( silly) -- beware.

Whatever you do do not worry about cost. Look at the accessories, self inflating light, hood,line cutter, lifting point for MOB ease of fitting, adjustability & most importantly ,comfort- It you do not wear it it will not work

That is all on my yacht. When i am out on my work boat laying moorings I have a Seago Classic 190 which is a cheapo but comfortable.
Just my 2 pennorth

 

[Goldie]

Firstly, I agree with most of the points in #2 - the LJ has to work and has to be comfortable for YOU (or you won’t wear it). I borrowed a Spinlock to try but apart from the leg strap issue, I found it uncomfortable on my neck. Current LJ is an Ergofit which I find much better but I think one of my greatest hazards at sea is going overboard underway and as such, I’d almost certainly be clipped on and as I don’t fancy being towed face first, I’m seriously considering a Backtow by Teamo: video at VIDEOS

 

[Poignard]

My wife and I have Kru Sport Pro ISO Auto Lifejackets and they are very comfortable.

 

[wrr]

Lifejackets are like seatbelts, no **** good unless worn. For this reason, I would advise waiting until the "non-essential" chandlers open and trying the candidate jackets on as fit and comfort are critical. Personally, I regard life jackets without built-in harness as being solely for dinghies, you can even go overboard from a mobo! If you venture out to sea, a built-in hood is also essential, as otherwise the lifejacket may just keep your expired corpse afloat. An automatic light and pouch for knife, so that you can cut the harness as you are towed under by a fast unmanned vessel, are also on my essential list. As to cost, I have rescued far more people from the sea than I have from life-rafts, which may put the expenditure in context.

 

[lustyd]

The under straps on my Spinlock were useless because , when I sat down they slid down my legs & when I stood up they restricted my movement. I believe they have been altered on newer versions. i have cut mine off & now have a sail tie fitted that I tie at the front. Once again this gives me instant length adjustment when i put wet trousers on.
Spinnlock make a purse for PLB & flares but this can possibly fitted to other makes. It is useful. I believe some make a VHF pocket but I am not sure

This matches my experience of Spinlock perfectly. For inshore I generally use one of the cheap ones on board instead and save the spinlock for offshore since it has all the safety features and a PLB on the waist strap. Mine needs replacing and I'm torn because it's an excellent LJ and service has been superb including two proactive updates which were free with free postage both ways.
I am considering a Team-O as an option which I hope to try on soon before I commit

 

[Sandy]

I may be in the "market" for a new set of LJ for us (couple). What do you lot find good about the current offerings?

1. Comfort
2. Design/features
3. Cost

Any comments/advice appreciated

Wear as many as you can before purchasing. What you find comfortable I might think a straight jacket.

Ignore the cost, "because you are worth it".

 

[anoccasionalyachtsman]

The Seago Active Pro 190 came top in a review in (I think) PBO a few years ago, and on that basis I bought a set. One of the features is that the inflated front directs waves away from your face. Certainly comfortable, reasonably easy to service once you've done it a couple of times. My only criticism is that there's nowhere to hang a h/h vhf on it.

 

[pvb]

It's a minefield! You have to try them on and imagine moving around wearing them. Ignore magazine reviews.

 

[RJJ]

The Seago Active Pro 190 came top in a review in (I think) PBO a few years ago, and on that basis I bought a set. One of the features is that the inflated front directs waves away from your face. Certainly comfortable, reasonably easy to service once you've done it a couple of times. My only criticism is that there's nowhere to hang a h/h vhf on it.

+1 for the Seago Active Pro. Not that I've used it in anger, but we bought four and find them comfy, well-equipped and good value - by some way the cheapest that include hood and light.

 

[Hermit]

I haven't tried these but think the concept looks interetsing so may be worth a look. LIFEJACKETS

 

[Romeo]

You have to be clear as to what type of sailing you do. I don't want or need a harness, and I need to be able to move well in the lifejacket not least because I will be wearing it when rowing. I have found that the least intrusive lifejacket to wear is the Crewsaver Crewfit 165sport. Bit of a mouthful that.

I also have a gilet with automatic air bladder inside, which is a buoyancy aid. I just treat that like an item of clothing, so more likely to be wearing that around the dock when I would not get round to putting a lifejacket on.

 

[Plum]

My wife and I have Kru Sport Pro ISO Auto Lifejackets and they are very comfortable.

That's nice to hear as they are near the top of my list although I am put off them somewhat as Kru have a policy of not providing repacking instructions to users/purchasers.

Www.solocoastalsailing.co.uk

 

[Gary Fox]

Re-packing it yourself, and changing the hammar/salt pill and bottle, varies in difficulty. Some l-j's (eg Kru sport) seem to be packed by machine and are impossible, but the bottle and capsule are easy.
Others eg Spinlock are packable but have internal hammar gear with an awkward 'O'-ring.
If a manufacturer would advertise easy re-packing and bottle changing, with full instructions etc, that would be a major plus point to me.

 

[Poignard]

That's nice to hear as they are near the top of my list although I am put off them somewhat as Kru have a policy of not providing repacking instructions to users/purchasers.

Www.solocoastalsailing.co.uk

Mine ( bought 2016 ) did have re-packing instructions in the User Manual. I would gladly send you a copy but the manual is in Brittany and I am not!

My lifejacket automatically inflated when I capsized the dinghy off a beach a few years ago and I sent it back to Ocean Safety to be re-packed and serviced.

It wasn't cheap, although the most expensive item was the return carriage : £9.50 + VAT



I don't remember doing so but I must have succeeded in re-packing it myself because after the capsize I had to go through Arzal lock and the lock-keeper there won't let you through without a life-jacket on.

 

[Poignard]

Re-packing it yourself, and changing the hammar/salt pill and bottle, varies in difficulty. Some l-j's (eg Kru sport) seem to be packed by machine and are impossible, but the bottle and capsule are easy.
Others eg Spinlock are packable but have internal hammar gear with an awkward 'O'-ring.
If a manufacturer would advertise easy re-packing and bottle changing, with full instructions etc, that would be a major plus point to me.

That's a good point because if you were in some remote location where there was no service agent and your life-jacket went off you would be left without a usable one until you found an agent

 

[lustyd]

Not really unless you bought some really obscure thing that doesn't use standard firing mechanisms. All the major manufacturers use pretty much one of three models which are available fairly cheaply all over the place. Spinlock certainly used to have videos on re-packing etc. and I'm sure others do by now too, but most of the standard velcro types are easy enough that you woulnd't need instructions.

 

[Poignard]

Not really unless you bought some really obscure thing that doesn't use standard firing mechanisms. All the major manufacturers use pretty much one of three models which are available fairly cheaply all over the place. Spinlock certainly used to have videos on re-packing etc. and I'm sure others do by now too, but most of the standard velcro types are easy enough that you woulnd't need instructions.

The Kru has a complicated system of folding the bag and special zips instead of Velcro.

If it isn't folded properly the zips won't close. Anyway, as i said, I must have been able to do it even though I don't remember doing so.

 

[ashtead]

As said no substitute for trying on . Personally I prefer waistcoat style by say Kru as opposed to a more traditional strap type of offered by XM and Baltic etc a few years ago. Avoid metal buckles if you can ideally. A spray hood is a good idea although I don’t have one but it might increase bulk of jacket around neck. We recently bought one from a supplier in Cowes (ocean safety ?) which has a modular approach so you can specify named cover style , a hood etc . They are very helpful if you want to talk over options on phone though . Look at fitting a light ideally and maybe buy a new tethering line to clip on with at same time as ideally it’s better to stay on board. Avoid leaving on board if boat gets damp as they can auto inflate in damp conditions if no dehumidifier on board.

 

[Romeo]

being able to repack yourself is essential.... although you might be wanting to send the LJ off for servicing professionally, you should certainly unpack and check yourself from time to time. I did this with an LJ last week, and found that the bottle had unscrewed. If I had not opened it up myself to do and inflation test.... I would not have known that this lifejacket was worse than useless.