RescueMax Inflatable Manoverboard System

Hey, Brent -- I saw that also and am wondering what you and Dixie have worked out in case you are in the water and unable to assist her in getting you back on board?

Warren
 
At $60 it looks like a great buy. I agree with Warren--that every boat has to also consider what they are going to use to get the person overboard back on the boat. We have tested various lifting systems for the life sling--which is somewhat similar to this inflatable device.

We don't yet have a davit on the current 22--but it is a good reminder to put one on, which can be used to lift a person aboard.
 
I found that the Lifesling 5:1 pulley system together with some appropriate carabiners could be attached to the roof handrails on the CD22 and this gave just enough clearance to slide a body on board.

There are pictures in the Kingfisher album

M

On edit. Correction I had a brain fart. The pulley system attached to the Radar Arch.

(memory... what memory?)
 
I was wrong--I had put the regular defender price--the AC price is $39.99!
A real bargin!

I do think that an attachment point on a radar arch would work. In the past Marie and I have done actual drills using me in a wet suit and she doing the pulling to see how it worked. Much of this was on larger boats, or using a davit system on the large C Dorys. One of the problems in cold water, is that it only takes a few minutes for the first effects of hypothermia (muscle weakness) to set in!.
 
We're luck on THATAWAY, we have Dr. Bob's Garhauer Davit (sp?) and life sling. We also have the Mustang Rescue Stick, a horseshoe device that you can throw a long way and inflates (like a life ring) when it hits the water. Have tested it (when the cylinder/inflator expired) and it works well. It can be thrown (even by an old fart like me) 100-150 feet.

Nevertheless, just ordered three of these. I'm sure some folks in my USCGAUX flotilla will take the ones I don't need off of my hands.

Charlie
 
Doryman":33hpsw3d said:
Hey, Brent -- I saw that also and am wondering what you and Dixie have worked out in case you are in the water and unable to assist her in getting you back on board?

Warren
Click to expand...

Warren, the swim ladder between the engines is a good option, as are the Permatrims on the engines that, with the trim/tilt motor, can bring anyone out of the water. Nevertheless, we have other options too, as, I hope, many do too.

Charlie
 
Warren, First things first. When the sling arrives we will begin to devise a recovery method. Between the engines and over the transom would be the preferred route. A pulley system from the radar arch to the transom between the swimstep hand rails may work.

I have on many occasions loaded a spike or even a large cow elk into the back of a Jeep CJ, with a ratchet come along, pulling off of the jeep roll bar. I don't weigh anywhere close to an elk.

The TomCat is much easier to reboard than a CD 22 or CD 25.
 
Hmmm,, never thought about using a come-along on the boat. Good idea. I have a Throw stick too, and like the idea. My inflatable suspender PFD's have a lifting harness on them, and have ideas for using my aft arch extension for a lifting point.

I figure on using the engines and their tilt feature to get a person aboard. Think a 40 is big enough to do that trick?

Harvey
SleepyC :moon

1_10_2012_from_Canon_961.thumb.jpg
 
One has to make the worst case scenario--that the person in the water cannot help, lift, climb etc to get aboard. Then devise the lifting system based on that. I have a couple of 6:1 block and tackle sets which we generally have used. The come along has a couple of disadvantages on the boat. Most have steel cables, and get "hooks" in the able. The cable can abraid, and the come along is relitatively slow in comparison to the block and tackle--but it is more powerful. The come along has to be operated from a specific place--a block and tackle can be fair lead to be used from many places on the boat. Thus you might pull, on the tackle--and then help to guild the person as you keep pulling on the tackle. Just things we have learned from our experiments.

Yes, a 40 hp would lift a person--but they have to get their feet on the cavitation plate, be in a position to roll in the boat, and have the leg strength to stand as being lifted--and hold on with hands. I have seen people die from hypothermia, even in S. Calif high 60's water along side the boat--when the crew could not get them fully aboard. It should not happen...
 
We carry a life sling attached to the transom bar. We also have a come-a-long with about 50ft of nylon rope instead of cable. We experimented at Lake Powell (warm water!) attaching it to the cross bar of the tall radar arch. The hook fit around that bar nicely and Patti was easily able to lift me up out of the water with it. Using the come-a-long by itself with its rope around my torso and hooked to itself worked but the 1/2" rope pinched into my chest painfully. In an emergency especially with clothes or a life jacket on I wouldn't care but otherwise ouch... That arrangement required the person in the water to be able to get the rope around themselves, tough in a real situation. We also experimented using one of the 40HP with me standing on the permatrim. That worked just fine and raised me up to where I could get on the swim step or into the transom well. We attached a grab bar to the side of the transom and put 2 " non-skid tape on it and the floor of the transom to make it easier to hold onto and climb up the transom. This next fall at Powell we will do a more complex man overboard drill with Patti throwing the life sling out, using the boat to bring it to me and attaching it to the come-a-long to get me out of the water.
 
I thought about something like that but decided against it because you have to hold the weight yourself all the time. I don't think Patti could pull my weight up. I've raised elk with one and it was no fun. You'd have to tie it off to help the overboard person. The come along is clunky but with the rope instead of wire rope is plenty long and ratchets so the person doing the raising can just step aside to rest or help one get aboard.
 
The Lifesling 5:1 pulley system has a jam cleat built-in which means you do not have to hold it or tie it off, but it is way more $$. It is actually not bad value if you price the parts separately.

If you do think of making one up then do NOT try to save by buying small diameter pulleys as you will lose most of the mechanical advantage in friction losses when it is under load. Also take care how you stow it so the lines don't twist or you will again lose to friction.

It works best if the person you are rescuing has a safety harness on but will work with anything you can hook it to in an emergency. We carry a couple of cheap harnesses just in case. We also have a long boarding ladder on the swim platform and two honking great BF135's if they want to go that way.

At a pinch we could probably also use the dinghy davit.

M
 
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