Automatic or Manual PFD's

[fishingpox]

Does anyone use auto or manual PFD's? If so, what has been your experience with them , if needed. I'm wanting to buy one. I want to start wearing one while fishing.

[mikeg]

Slabmaster I have one it is automatic or manuel,havent used it but they are comfortable. I would get one that was automatic that way if you fel out of the boat and got nocked out the automatic one would float you.

mikeg

[whizkids]

I wear a life jacket similar to what speed boat drivers wear. It has a neck support to keep you head up if you are unconsious. I also has leg straps put I never use those. I also have the automatic inflatable that I wear in the summer. Do not wear it on rainy days or store it in the boat where it can get wet. Rain will inflate them.
The first one I mentioned is hot, buy I have gotten used to it.
Over the years I have went into the water three times that were unplanned. First in 1963 before life jackets were required or even used very much. I would have drowned but another boat heard me yelling above their motor noise. Thank
goodness for 5 hp. motors. The other two times were in bass tournaments and a a partner was with me to help me get back in the boat.
I am older and I hope wiser in someways. I fish alone a lot and I wear the jackets fully buckled all day everyday and require everyone in the boat with me to do the same.
The head/neck support jacket is by far the safest.

[Moose1am]

I am with Whizkids. When I was much younger I went swimming all the time and eventually started taking formal swimming lessons. I then took the Red Cross Life Guarding Class and finally become a Water Safety Instructor and private swimming instructor. I didn't really enjoy teaching classes very much but I wanted to know how and I wanted to learn more about water safety. I ended up taking scuba diving lessons and then going out in the Ocean on a few dives which I really enjoyed. I used to swim a mile every day and I did that during my 1/2 hour break from lifeguarding.

These days I bet that I could not swim over 100 feet without getting a leg cramp. I am totally out of shape as I have not been swimming for a long time. These days I wear my life jacket all day long. I won't get in the boat without it on and I don't take it off until I get the boat out of the water. Even when it's 99 deg outside I will have my life jacket on. I may use an umbrellla in the boat to keep shaded but I wear the life jacket always.

I know that accidents can happen and that I am not as young as I use to be. I also fish a lot by myself and if I were to fall down and hit my head and fall into the water there may not be someone there to pull be out. So the life jacket is on to protect me. I still get around pretty good but there is always that one time when I loose my balance. I am not afraid of just falling out of the boat as I know survival skills and during the summer there is no fear of hypothermia. But during the cold months the cold water can take your breath away and cause your arms and legs to stop working.

Don't wait until it's too late guys. Wear a Coast Guard Approved life jacket, one that will keep your head up out of the water if you are knocked unconscious. You guys that have fast boat are especially vulnerable to being thrown out of the boat and run over by the motor. I have seen guys get thown out of racing boats and get cut up by the other boats props. It's not a pretty sight and it makes me more safety conscious because of the things I have experienced.

I wear a life jacket similar to what speed boat drivers wear. It has a neck support to keep you head up if you are unconsious. I also has leg straps put I never use those. I also have the automatic inflatable that I wear in the summer. Do not wear it on rainy days or store it in the boat where it can get wet. Rain will inflate them.
The first one I mentioned is hot, buy I have gotten used to it.
Over the years I have went into the water three times that were unplanned. First in 1963 before life jackets were required or even used very much. I would have drowned but another boat heard me yelling above their motor noise. Thank
goodness for 5 hp. motors. The other two times were in bass tournaments and a a partner was with me to help me get back in the boat.
I am older and I hope wiser in someways. I fish alone a lot and I wear the jackets fully buckled all day everyday and require everyone in the boat with me to do the same.
The head/neck support jacket is by far the safest.

[TAE73]

I also have the automatic, for the same reason some Mikeg stated. If you fall out and get knocked out. It wouldn't be any good if it was a manual. Whizkids, I wear my auto in the rain and have never had a problem. And I have fished in some down pours. From the design of them it would be hard for water to get up under them if they where wore correctly or hanging on the back of the seat. But you are right about the storage, if you boat doesnt have water tight boxes or gets mosture do not store it in there. My old boat it got left in the box after a rain storm. When I opened the box next time to use it, it had deployed.

I also have the automatic inflatable that I wear in the summer. Do not wear it on rainy days or store it in the boat where it can get wet. Rain will inflate them.

[CrappiePappy]

that have the "auto-inflate" capabilities -- CAN deploy simply from condensation (setting off the dissolvable bobbin & opening the air cylinder). A friend of mine had a set of "automatic" SOS-penders in his boat's dry storage compartment .... condensation set them off and busted the fiberglass lid into pieces. They do have replacement kits with the "bobbin" & air cylinder - and it's probably a good idea to replace them at least once a year (if not deployed in that time period). They run between $15-$20 for a "re-arming kit". (cheap insurance !!)

Another item to consider - especially for the cool & cold weather applications - is a "float coat". These are coats with built-in floatation. Something like this - http://www.landfallnavigation.com/-sfc01.html

Whatever kind you have/wear ...... WEAR IT !! It won't do you much good in the storage compartment or on the floor or seat back. Some state laws "require" you to have your PFD .... "within easy reach" (not stored away). KY law requires this .... but, it isn't enforced as much as it probably should be. ..........cp