I have expired SOLAS flares from life raft service places for free. Parachute, day/smoke, water color die, handheld etc. I have more than one of each of these plus old inner tubes to light on fire in case of total Armageddon. These are what I would expect to draw attention, not the wimpy USCG crapola.
However, a light that has a 60hr operating time, that anyone on the crew can use and not start a fire or burn themselves, and it never expires to meet regulations....a no brainer. Oh yes, the obvious as said...PLB, EPIRB, handheld VHF etc. On Wed, Jun 15, 2016 at 8:57 AM Michael Brown via CnC-List < cnc-list@cnc-list.com> wrote: > Good points. > > Unfortunately the advice I have received is that testing or practicing > with expired flares is > illegal, at least in Canada. I could imagine in a sudden distress > situation, particularly including > heavy wind and waves, that a crew member that has never fired or even > loaded a shotgun > style flare gun might not be an asset. > > I have added a floating GPS VHF-DSC handheld to the ditch bag to backup > the installed one. > They would be my first choice on Lake Ontario. > > Michael Brown > Windburn > C&C 30-1 > > > As a side comment to the SOS signals post, there are several dimensions to > be considered. One is between what is needed according to regulations and > what is really needed in a real life situation. We all know by now that the > gap between regulations and reality is only increasing. You need to have a > set of safety devices as required by the governing bodies but that doesn't > me mean they will do anything for you in a life-threatening situation. The > most publicized account of how useless most of the so called offshore > safety devices are can be found in the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race tragedy of > 1998. From jack-lines to tethers and lifejackets, to flares and even > life-rafts, major flaws and failures were reported. This was an event where > all major Australian SAR units off the east coast were in the air or > waterborne to assist, imagine that you are thousands of miles offshore on > your own, in need of help. > > In my opinion, we now should emply the best technology has to offer when > it comes to communication. The purpose of a light or a flare is to > communicate, to attract attention to our position, but it is an antiquated > product which produces very limited results. Many ships will pass by and > only pure luck will make them turn your way and offer help. The truth is > these ships power through the night on autopilot, with their crews glancing > on their AIS and radar screens once in a while, while the CPA and TCPA > alarms are set for big targets. A simple VHF call with a position could > save your life. > For me personally, I always take into account 2 priorities, first personal > survival, so I need water, food, first aid. Secondly, communication. A > PLB/AIS device and a hand-held VHF are worth more than all the flares you > can carry. If I were in northern waters I would choose a survival suit > equipped with a PLB over a liferaft. In the tropics, a good hypalon dinghy > will do, given that my EPIRB/PLB has been activated. > We spend thousands of dollars on safety equipment that not only sits there > idle and only needs to be replaced regularly, but it may even be useless in > a real case scenario. I was once fined by a young and over-zealous Coast > Guard officer for having a horse-shoe shaped lifebuoy instead of the > ring-shaped one. I went to Canadian Tire and bought a plastic ring the > following day, and passed by the Coast Guard to validate it. They said I > was legal at that point. However, only our son could get his body inside > the ring, none of us adults could have used it, but was perfectly legal. > Just a few thoughts on safety onboard. Use satellite beacons, and keep > your flares for the beach barbeque. > > > Sent from my iPad > > _______________________________________________ > > This list is supported by the generous donations of our members. If you > like what we do, please help us pay for our costs by donating. All > Contributions are greatly appreciated! >
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