Life Rafts

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tara11

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Hi all, after watching Deadlest Catch and some other shows in the last few days, I may invest in a life raft, I would want one mounted on my hard top and really easy to get from the canister and inflated as easy as possible, I plan on heading 50 to 70 miles out alot, and after drilling that hole for the Transducer, seems like a good investment, and would hate for something to happen and need it and not have it, better to have and not need than to need and not have , anybody have any feed back and sugestions on brand, do not want to break the bank !
 
I'm no expert on rafts, but they are something that I have done some research on.

I guess one of the first things you need to decide on how large a raft you want (how many people will you have aboard?), and what raft features you want.

Do you want a hydrostatic released hard case, or would a manually deployed valise be better for you? Do you want an open, or a covered raft? Nearshore/inshore or offshore rated? Finally, how much do you want to spend?

Lots of good names in the liferaft industry. Zodiak, Switlick, Givens, Winslow, Revere, and more...
Here are a few links you can use to start your research.

http://www.byownerelectronics.com/store ... hp?cat=345
http://www.onlinemarine.com/cgi-local/S ... ?E+scstore
http://www.blueoceantackle.com/life_rafts.htm
http://www.boatus.com/boattech/liferaft.htm
http://www.winslowliferaft.com/raft_cat ... &page=home
http://www.1stdirectproducts.com/oflifraf.html
http://www.lrse.com/products.cfm?cat=001&prod=147
http://www.landfallnavigation.com/winslowoff.html
http://www.givensliferafts.com/

Good luck!
 
Today I will call Jim ( I think tha is his name ) at BOE marine, his prices are way better than here on the west coast for the same brand and size and pick his brain, I will let you know what path we take !
Craig
 
You could also call Jim O'Connor of Life Raft and Survival Equipment, Inc of Portsmouth, RI. Site = http://www.lrse.com/ , phone = 800-451-2127.

He's the one that gave about 100 of us that group buy on the PLB with GPS, plus ditch bag, strobe lights, and more for $510 delivered. He could also help you out with your selection.
 
I'll second the rec for Jim at lrse. He is willing to match most sane prices, so check with him before you decide. He cana lso help you figure out which raft to go with and how to mount it.

I have a zodiac 6 person offshore raft in a cannister with hydrostatic release. It's mounted on the hardtop.

Some peole like valese rafts so they can take them on other boats, or for ease of deployment. For me, I always want to know where it is and have it out of the way. On a 2510, it may also be easier to get to than on a 2520.


in any case, it is definately worth the investment even if you never have to use it.
 
I did not read this fast enough, I got a Zodiac from BOE Marine, they had really good price, I got the raft, the mount for the hardtop and the Hydrostat release, so will take a pic once it is installed !
 
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