Best Lifejacket?

racinglasers

racinglasers

Member
Hey folks what is the best lifejacket for a Laser.

I'm 6'4" and need to have no bulk on my back so as to have the boom clear me when tacking or jibing.

Light weight is the other requirement!
 
Because nobody has mentioned this up to this point, it MAY be important to have a USCG approved vest. This is a requirement at some regattas in the USA.

PS: this topic has come up repeatedly on this Forum. You can use the Search function to find those prior threads (upper right hand corner).
 
Wavedancer said:
Because nobody has mentioned this up to this point, it MAY be important to have a USCG approved vest. This is a requirement at some regattas in the USA.

PS: this topic has come up repeatedly on this Forum. You can use the Search function to find those prior threads (upper right hand corner).
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Pardon me for posting an inappropriate question and making you waste your time with a useless response.
 
I like the zhik and gill, they provide decent floatation, they're not coast guard approved though and I don't blame them, it costs a fortune to get a vest approved
 
I have used Zhik, Henry Lloyd, SEA and Neil Pryde. They are all EU compliant but not US Coastguard approved. I found the SEA is the least bulky, then HL, then NP then Zhik. The Zhik also feels heavier to wear, but it is a quality unit and seems to have more buoyancy than the others. It's a good idea to wear a spandex vest over the top to keep it snugged against your body.
 
racinglasers said:
Pardon me for posting an inappropriate question and making you waste your time with a useless response.
Click to expand...

I think his point was that one of the favorite life jackets used by international sailors is not USCG. Fine for international competition, controversial for US competition. I forget which life jacket that is ... I'm sure someone knows.
 
Mrs. P said:
I think his point was that one of the favorite life jackets used by international sailors is not USCG. Fine for international competition, controversial for US competition. I forget which life jacket that is ... I'm sure someone knows.
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USCG approved, I mean.
 
I have sailed on the junior laser crcuit all over the country and the world......I have been checked for a USCG life jacket mabe 4 times since I stopped sailing optis....The coast guard pulled me over twice and never questioned my pfd.
 
oztayls said:
I have used Zhik, Henry Lloyd, SEA and Neil Pryde. They are all EU compliant but not US Coastguard approved. I found the SEA is the least bulky, then HL, then NP then Zhik. The Zhik also feels heavier to wear, but it is a quality unit and seems to have more buoyancy than the others. It's a good idea to wear a spandex vest over the top to keep it snugged against your body.
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A previous thread on this topic indicated that AU would be reviewing their rules in 2013 on life jacket regulations. Do you know anything about how that might affect the SEA jackets?
 
cmansonh said:
I have sailed on the junior laser crcuit all over the country and the world......I have been checked for a USCG life jacket mabe 4 times since I stopped sailing optis....The coast guard pulled me over twice and never questioned my pfd.
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That's one aspect of the point I was trying to make. Another one is that if the SIs specify that one needs to wear a USCG approved jacket, one can be protested for not wearing one. I don't want that to happen to anybody, but it has happened...
 
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