I'm new and buying a perception sports pescador 12 today after work. is it common to use these water activated co2 pfd's? I hate wearing a life jacket while fishing in my bass boat. Can't imagine trying to paddle all day in one. If this is not a good idea can somebody recommend a good reasonally priced paddling/fishing vest and paddle from academy sports? I'm 6'2" 180 if that helps. Thanks
I recommend
an inflatable PFD, but I opted for a manual one. I don’t know how sensitive the auto-inflate ones are, but I didn’t want mine going off in the rain or from spray.
I made one mod (I mod EVERYTHING) to mine. I clipped a brass whistle on a thong inside the cover flap - pinning it through a non-inflated part of the fabric, of course. It’s completely out of sight and tangle-free but will be right there if I ever need it.
Cool mod
Cool mod, I’ve wondered about sensitivity too. Seems they would have it covered so it be submerged but I don’t know.
There are great PFDs
out there for paddlers, cut to be comfortable while you are sitting down and give you good arm and torso movement. I prefer conventional PFDs for several reasons:
1. They are always "on". For paddling, an auto-inflate PFD isn't usually practical, so you are going to have to have a manually inflating one. But what if you get incapacitated somehow and can't pull the cord?
2. You can use them to float without having to then rearm them, unlike inflatables.
3. They are foolproof, still float when punctured, and require minimal maintenance.
But, if it comes down to you not wearing a regular one, by all means get an inflatable if it means you are more likely to wear it.
On wearing an inflatable though - a reminder. There are plenty of paddling situations where it really isn't necessary to wear a PFD, for instance, for me when I am paddling the waist-deep water of the saltmarshes. I can have my traditional PFD sitting behind me in my kayak or canoe, and still be in compliance, but an inflatable PFD only fulfills the legal requirement of a PFD for every person on board if it is worn. Get caught not wearing your inflatable, and you could get a ticket.
Thanks
Good info and good points. Thanks. I’ll get a paddling vest.
Good points, indeed
You do have to actually wear an inflatable to be “legal” but I’d rather have one on than see my “reachable” PFD float away after I’ve been unceremoniously turtled by some brainless skiboat driver.
One other option that executes two bushy birds in your hand: Replace or augment your 'yak seat with a boat cushion. Adds to your butt comfy level and provides a legal and throwable PFD as well.
Checked em out
Looked at em at academy. They have a model that is automatic or manual. You can bypass the auto completely. Although i see no way it can be activated by spash. That part is recessed inside the covering and has very small holes in the housing that the sensor is in. That model is only $80 and i hardly even noticed that i was wearing anything when i tried it on. Much much much more comfy than any traditional style could possibly be! Im gonna get one soon.
LIFE vest ?
(A) You can drown in 6" of water; (B) The time you need it the most is when you’re incapacitated; © If it has to be inflated, and you’re unconscious, you become a “victim”.
type3 vests
The standard type 3 vests that we all have are not designed to hold your head upright if you are unconscious. Inflatable all the way. Type 3 are hot uncomfortable and as serious fishermen cant fish in one. Maybe a weekend warrior, but precision casting is awkward to say the least.
What??
I canoe, I fish, and I wear a PFD. And I don’t remember a time when it got in my way in the 4+ decades I’ve been doing it. Maybe you should shop for a better (as in more comfortable/useable) PFD.
Tom
I have
Im one of the oldest kayak dealers in the country and I sell all the major brands including Stolqhuest and Lotus. Sitting in a kayak a conventional vest pushes your lower back forward and out of wack.
You’re better off in a canoe
for a myriad of reasons.
I disagree on every point
First, a type iii is far more likely to hold an unconscious person's head out of the water than an uninflated inflatable.
Second, I live on the Texas Gulf Coast, while you live in New Jersey. Who do you imagine gets hotter more humid weather, for a longer part of the year, and hotter water temps to boot? Yet I don't find a good paddling PDF to be particularly hot or uncomfortable.
Third, I sight cast to tailing redfish with a fly rod while sitting in a kayak wearing a type 3. hard to imagine more precision casting than that. One made for paddling isn't going to impede casting.