Bluewater Gear: Nine Life Rafts Reviewed
 Gretchen Thor |
| Switlik MD-3 International Offshore |
Switlik MD-3 International Offshore: The Switlik six-person raft is built to both ISO and ISAF standards and came packed in a valise with lots of handholds that made moving the 97-pound package more manageable. When inflated, the octagonal-shaped Switlik has ample entrances on two sides and clear observation windows on two other sides. There's a fold-down fabric ramp, with web steps below, in front of one entrance and a web ladder at the other entrance. When boarding from the boat, the Switlik's main opening can be easily held in front of the lifeline gate because the painter attaches to a triangular bridle anchored to either side of the boarding ramp. However, when a swimmer enters the raft from the water while the raft is still tethered to the boat, this bridle gets in the way and makes it difficult for the person in the water to get a knee in place on the ramp. We found that good handholds made the second entrance an effective alternative for a swimmer. Inside, we found the canopy was well supported and had good headroom, and both entrances featured zippers to seal out the elements.
 Gretchen Thor |
| Viking RescYou |
Viking RescYou: Viking supplied two six-person rafts for our comparison, a standard model and a self-righting model; both are built to ISO and ISAF standards. The square-shaped RescYou standard raft was packed in a valise and weighs 77 pounds. Inflated, the tent-shaped canopy has one large opening whose flap can be sealed with a heavy-duty zipper; there's an observation port/hood opposite for watchkeeping. At the entrance, there's a rubber inflatable step with a webbing step that hangs beneath it. We found that this arrangement worked well when boarding from the water. The painter attaches to one corner of the raft, however, so we couldn't hold the entrance square-on to the opening in the lifelines. The buoyancy tubes on both Vikings are made of two layers of natural rubber with a nylon core, which produces a tough, abrasion-resistant material. Inside both the rafts, the ladderlike handholds, made of webbing, can be untied and moved out of the way. We found well-secured gear bags in these rafts, with sea anchors lashed to them so the drogues could be found and deployed quickly after boarding, if needed. Moreover, Viking uses improved Icelandic-style drogues that have lines on their bridles so they can't become tangled if they spin in the waves.
 Gretchen Thor |
| Viking RescYou Pro |
Viking RescYou Pro: The six-person self-righting raft we inflated came packed in a canister, which helped to make it one of the heavier we launched. The self-righting Pro model, rectangular in shape, has pointed ends that help increase buoyancy, and a well-supported arched canopy. Inflated, it has two large openings that can be sealed tight by flaps with heavy zippers. Like the standard RescYou, the Pro has an inflatable inner floor. All of the rafts we looked at rely on ballast bags that hang below the raft for stability. On several of them, it took two or three people leaning on one side to tip them over, but neither Viking could be tipped without a swimmer in the water to manually empty the ballast bags. Once up-ended, the Pro righted itself unassisted immediately, thanks to the large tubes that support the canopy.
