Good answers there. I like the idea of the air cartridge. They Heavy? The vest we sold were. I guess (Knock on wood) I haven’t needed one yet so I stick with what I got.
I know there are sections of the green or while floating a river that you have to have one on at all times, then I will look seriously at them.
my only concern on the co2 ones is how they activate.. some are water activated.. and in which case how much water does it take to activate.. some good splashing.. or half drowning.. second choice is manually activating.. in which case you have to be conscious.. what happens if you fall out and hit your hit and black out for a bit.. and then they have both.. water and manual.. the problem there is that they are really expensive …
so for now.. I am stuck with wally world..
MacFly
both options are very light and as you can see less restrictive and less bulky.. about half way thru a day on the water I found the vest started to close me in some.. felt like things had snugged up a bit if ya know what I mean..
MacFly
here is a third option I just found at walmart.. basically the same as the one I have but this has mesh shoulders and a fishing vest look in the front.. both are made by stearns (who makes waders etc as well correct ?)
MacFly
Yes they do. Nice stuff.
after I posted that comment I was thinking.. dang.. I have a pair of sterns breathables.. lol.. must be Friday or something like that… [:)]
MacFly 
I’ve been using one of the inflatable PFDs for about 10 years. Mine is made by Stearns. It’s very comfortable. You hardly know you have it on and there is only a single strap between your back and the seat back. Can’t feel it.
[inline bass.jpg]
(Yeah, I know… a blast from the past.)
**I’ve never been forced to use it in an emergency situation but I did pull the rip cord one time with it on just to see if the thing really worked. Believe me, it did! I think I told the story once before here but it has been awhile. The thing jumped instantly from flat to full. The trouble was I had put it on underneath the fishing vest I had been using. Instantly I felt like a stuffed sausage as it filled the limited space between the vest and me. (Note to self: “Don’t be that stupid ever again.”) **
The only downside in the aftermath was that it cost me 20 bucks or so to get another CO2 cartridge. BTW, the cartridges are very light. They tuck inside the thing so you don’t even know they are there. If you can swing the extra cost you may, as I do, never see the need to switch again. I wear mine all the time when I’m in the boat or tube.
That’s surely not to say that the more bulky models are any less effective or convenient if you just carry them rather than wear them.
z~
Joni,
I have a friend named, Bob with whom I flyfish all the time. When Bob and I were members of a flyfishing only club that had a lot of purists he used to slay the trout fishing chironomids under a small strike indicator. These “purists” jealous of his success started calling him “Bobber Bob”. As a joke his wife bought him one of those coolers in your picture. He dragged it alongside his float tube a couple of times but it leaked so he gave up on it.
Come to think of it it’s a wonder those purists didn’t start calling me “booby man” or something like that because I came across the concept of the “booby fly” and used it very successfully. While these guys were struggling to tie on #28 dries or nymphs I would catch half a dozen trout. When they asked what I was using and I showed them. They said that it should be “outlawed”.
Anyway even though I’m pretty sure you are joking about that cooler forget it and use something else.
God Bless,
Don
~Z~
I dont think I ever heard that story from you but it kind of funny…
I take it that yours is the manual activation.. if so have you ever had a problem with that littlel yellow tab getting in the way??
I know I keep looking at these and they run from about 60 on up to about 250…I dont mind investing.. especially with as clumsy as I can be on the shoreline (like up on rocks at waters edge.. or stepping around a tree about three feet up and right at waters edge)… hehe… but I cant see 250 plus for one..
MacFly
Was kidding 
With my boats I can haul a 50 gallon cooler[;)]
But it is generally a bag of jerky, a bottle of water and a can of Rock Star which is now the coffee flavored WAHOO!
But I do have a bobber hitch cover. The ff guys get a kick out of that one. Plus I have some really tiny red/white bobbers that were earrings that I have used before just to be a brat. If they called me boobie, I am 99% sure they wouldn’t be talking about a fly [fishon]
I have be accused of POWER BAIT before…what can I say, I like bright colored flies, he, he, he.
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~Z~
I dont think I ever heard that story from you but it kind of funny…
I take it that yours is the manual activation.. if so have you ever had a problem with that littlel yellow tab getting in the way??
I know I keep looking at these and they run from about 60 on up to about 250…I dont mind investing.. especially with as clumsy as I can be on the shoreline (like up on rocks at waters edge.. or stepping around a tree about three feet up and right at waters edge)… hehe… but I cant see 250 plus for one..
MacFly [/reply]
** Mac,**
**I think that story was told before you joined us. **
**Yes, it is manually operated. A little yellow handle on a string is imprinted with the words, “Jerk to inflate.” I just shove the tab inside the outer shell and it stays out of the way. As I said, I’ve only been stupid and pulled it once. I’m a quick learner. **
**It would be fun to sneak up on someone who had one of these and pull his ripcord. Then again, I’d probably have to pay for the cartridge or dodge lead. **
Mine also has a little tube on it for “manual inflation.” If the CO2 doesn’t deploy you can blow it up by mouth while you’re floating around in the water.
As I recall mine set me back about 70 dollars. I figure I’d pay at least that much for a comfortable night’s sleep in a motel and it surely beats having to swim in with my waders on. 7 bucks a year for 10 years isn’t too bad.
z~
Yep that was my mistake too!
oh its a funny story and I am sure that I would of remembered it if I had heard it before.. [:)]
..thanks for the info on the tab.. most that I have seen have an area to tuck that tab away.. but that leads to what happens if for some reason you cant pull that tab or tube… I know that is why they make them auto inflate.. but that leads to how much water does it take to activate it automatically.. Id hate to be in the middle of a day of tubing and find out a few splashes will activate it.. I checked the info on the websites but did not see anything that will tell me that..
..I figure you probably dont know the answer to that but I am curious if anyone does know.. or at least has an idea..
MacFly
MacFly
The automatic one work by having a pill that disentigrates when it gets into water. From what I have read it take about 5 seconds of submersion to make it inflate. Just splashing won’t do it. But if you drop it in the water and it sinks, then it would.
noobus…
thank you for that info.. from what you say it should be okay unless that tab is low.. in which case it could end up submerged while in a tube.. especially one that the user may not be completely out of the water…
MacFly
I saw that cooler at bishes RV ant saw MOJO writen all over it
I could put a couple of those coolers on my new Toon. How would that look having my Bud Light Balls just hanging there?
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I could put a couple of those coolers on my new Toon. How would that look having my Bud Light Balls just hanging there? [/reply]
add your speedos to that. [crazy]HMMMMMMM[crazy] Maybe I might not be able to come that way next year. Its sounding very frightening
you talking bout that new blue and white one…if so the how about one at each end of each toon.. that way you can float a variety.. hehehe bud, bud light, etc.. you could make a fortune selling it as you floated around the lake.. LOL..
MacFly
..that thought just sent a chill up and down my spine.. [crazy]
MacFly