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butch41

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can any one give me so information on epirbs and which is the best one to get
 
I bought the Mcmurdo smart find plus it is the manual one with gps.
I read a article on EPIRB'S and it won some awards. I wanted one for the boat and it was easy to register. I bought it from BOE electronics on line.
Here is a link http://byownerelectronics.com/store/home.php?cat=2958.
I have read to many reports of guys floating in the gulf for days.
Not me!!! I think any epirb on the boat is a smart move, You never Know ? I am going to buy a raft next.
Joe
 
After considerable research, I bought the Mcmurdo PLB Fast Find with GPS.

It's a manual unit, which IMHO is preferred.

The unit is registered to the OWNER, not the boat, so you can take it with you onany boat.

24 hour battery that you can replace yourself. The larger (48hr) units have to be sent back to a authorized dealer for replacement. + batteries are a LOT cheaper.

It has all of the technology of the larger units except the battery is only 24 hours instead of 48 and it does not have a built in strobe.

You can easily tuck it in your ditch bag.

FWIW, the dealer told me that the Coast Guard just ordered 1000's of the Mcmurdo PLB's. Each Coastie will have their own plb.

With the money you save, you can buy a backup handheld GPS or VHF radio.
 
I also bought one of the personal EPIRB's... the ACR Aquafix 406 with the onboard GPS.

aquafix.jpg


I bought the personal EPIRB because I did not feel that I needed an EPIRB with a hydrostatic release and didn't want to wait for the boat to sink to have the unit call for help.

On an ocean going sportfisher, or a coastal cruiser, the full size EPIRB's are the ticket, but for my use, the Personal EPIRB made more sense especially when moving other peoples boats from place to place. As pointed out, Personal EPIRB's are registered to a person, not to a vessel.

You can get more info on all of the the different types of EPIRB's by going to:
http://www.acrelectronics.com/
 
I mounted an ACR 406 global fix EPIRB with the built in gps on the roof of the pilot house. It has an automatic release system or can be manually activated. The cost is from $850-1000 and it is worth it if you plan to venture offshore. You should also consider a good liferaft.
 
we went for the ACR 406 Globalfix with GPS, but got the manual instead of the hydrostatic. my feeling is, the EPIRB has to be more than 13' (i think) down to deploy with a hydrostat. even if its on the pilothouse roof, if that boat turns turtle, its still not gonna be 13' under and guess who's NOT swimming down to try and pry it out of a case? i figure its alot faster to have it in a ditch bag that i can get ready to go when things get sketchy. just my feeling, internal GPS is a must by me as well. life raft would be nice, but im not sure its in the cards just yet, thats the next thing though
 
Good Choice! - Your reasoning makes a lot of sense to me.
Regardless, having one, no matter where placed, is better than not having one at all. SAFE BOATING!
 
Scoops... I agree with pelagic2530 100%, and that is why I bought a personal EPIRB with internal GPS.
If everything goes to he!! and I have to get wet, I want the CG to find me first... we'll worry about the boat later. :wink:
 
ScoopsAhoy":38lg48jh said:
After considerable research, I bought the Mcmurdo PLB Fast Find with GPS.

You can easily tuck it in your ditch bag.
Click to expand...

Kevin, I'm with you. I prefer the PLB's as well.
 
After getting your reply about the activation of the unit I contacted ACR as I have no desire to swim under the boat either. According to ACR it activates between 5 and 13 feet - with 13 feet being the longest it would take to activate. They state that if the boat overturns and the unit is submerged it will activate and release. I also have a ditchbag with gps, handheld vhf, flares, h2o, etc as well as a Winslow 6 person offshore raft in a valise pack. Things happen fast and hopefully these items would be able to be retrieved prior to the boat overturning/sinking. We've all heard stories of boats swamping and sinking so quickly that people were not even able to get to the lifejackets. All you can do is be as prepared as possible and hope you're not one of the unlucky ones.
 
CMARSALA":13draw7m said:
After getting your reply about the activation of the unit I contacted ACR as I have no desire to swim under the boat either. According to ACR it activates between 5 and 13 feet - with 13 feet being the longest it would take to activate. They state that if the boat overturns and the unit is submerged it will activate and release. I also have a ditchbag with gps, handheld vhf, flares, h2o, etc as well as a Winslow 6 person offshore raft in a valise pack. Things happen fast and hopefully these items would be able to be retrieved prior to the boat overturning/sinking. We've all heard stories of boats swamping and sinking so quickly that people were not even able to get to the lifejackets. All you can do is be as prepared as possible and hope you're not one of the unlucky ones.
Click to expand...

yea, i guess theres different situations in which you'd be screwed either way.... however, the unit i have, if its off its bracket and is submerged, it too will activate. so i guess the answer for me would be to take the beacon off the bracket if things get remotely nasty. that way, no matter what happend or how much time i have, someones gonna know where im at
 
What is the difference between the McMurdo Fastfind PLB with GPS for about $300, and the McMurdo FastFind Plus Max G w/built in GPS for about $500? There are so many models with similar sounding descriptions that it's hard to understand what the main differences are.
Some also say w/GPS and some say w/GPS Interface. Has someone sorted these all out?

Regards, Paul

2005 2310WA / F250
Pt Judith Salt Pond
Pt Judith, RI
 
Parker Paul":19bvpf6k said:
What is the difference between the McMurdo Fastfind PLB with GPS for about $300, and the McMurdo FastFind Plus Max G w/built in GPS for about $500? There are so many models with similar sounding descriptions that it's hard to understand what the main differences are.
Some also say w/GPS and some say w/GPS Interface. Has someone sorted these all out?

Regards, Paul

2005 2310WA / F250
Pt Judith Salt Pond
Pt Judith, RI
Click to expand...

They both have built in GPS, the cheaper one has a 50 channel monitored network, the Max G broadcast to all eligible receivers. Max G 48 hour broaadcast time, cheaper one, 24 hours. Max G floats, cheaper one doesn't.
 
The units with a "GPS interface" have a port that you can connect a cable from your on board master GPS unit to the EPIRB, and it is supposed to store your last known position inside the EPIRB.

The more expensive units actually have a GPS receiver on board that will fix your position off the GPS satellite system and will report that position to the CG.

Bottom line... the on board GPS receivers are better for your health and well being.
 
I bought the ACR ResQfix because I liked the color, just kidding. I liked the idea of having a PLB on me because as Capt. Kevin said I will worry about the boat later, right now I want the CG looking for me. Defender Marine has the ResQFix for $519.00, it was the cheapest that Google found for me.
 
I like the ResQfix, but it doesn't float. I think you need the bag to make it float. The two in contention are the ACR Aquafix with GPS ( 2797.4 ) and the McMurdo Fastfind Max G. Both float. The ACR is rated for 24 hrs, but reportedly can go about 36. The McMurdo is rated for 48 hrs.
The ACR has a 5 yr warranty but there is no warranty stated for the McMurdo. McMurdo lets you change the battery yourself, while on the ACR, that is a service item, but I assume that they probably check the operation of the unit when they replace and service the battery after 5 yrs. Probably a good thing. About the same price, price not an issue.
I don't know about self checks - or how many permitted in the life of the units. Please help me decide. Thanks.

Regards, Paul

2005 2310WA / F250
Pt Judith Salt Pond
Marina Bay Docking
Wakefield, RI
 
The only thing I can't get my arms around is the comments that a PLB has to be held above water pointing at the sky to transmit while an EPIRB can be tethered to you floating around and transmitting your location.

Is this true with the fastfind units?
 
ryanc2":1y9956qt said:
The only thing I can't get my arms around is the comments that a PLB has to be held above water pointing at the sky to transmit while an EPIRB can be tethered to you floating around and transmitting your location.

Is this true with the fastfind units?
Click to expand...

Yes. The easiest, least complicated choice is the standard EPIRB. It's also the more expensive choice.

Also, remember that EPIRBS are registered to boats. PLB's are registered to people. If a PLB goes off, the CG knows it is looking for a person. If an EPIRB goes off, they are looking for a boat.

What happens if you take your EPIRB on a buddy's boat and you have to deploy? Do they contact your spouse? What if she tells them the boats in the driveway? What happens next? I don't know. How much time does that all take? I don't know.

PLB for me.
 
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