Floatation Suits

[Endeavour]

http://www.sundridge.co.uk/Survivor.htm

I have one of these and think its great when its cold, but it does restrict movement.

[BogMonster]

Originally Posted by OceanEco

I use them daily. They are good but definately not waterproof. They tend to leak through the zipper area when it is really rough(buckets of water) even though there is flap that covers the zipper.

As they get older and the sun breaks down the fabric they tend to leak a little more.

You have way more mobility in the 2 piece compared to the 1 piece and they both stay as dry as each other.

All in all they are pretty good

That's OK, I am mostly a fair weather sailor anyway, I don't tend to go out when it is tipping down with rain and I prefer to stay reasonably dry from salt water too, it isn't warm enough here to get drenched on a regular basis.

I mainly want something to keep the biting wind chill off (S Atlantic water temps are low year round because we don't have a Gulf Stream - and it shows when you have been out on the water for a while!!) and protect against the odd shower or driving error and it seems ideal for that.

[al40]

Originally Posted by BogMonster

Found this thread on a search.... and looking at one of these

http://www.uk-fishing-tackle.co.uk/p...FQjnlAodghT41A

seems to be a very good deal so I have just ordered one, has anybody got this exact type, any views? It has to be better than jeans, a fleece and a waterproof jacket anyway

It also says it meets the standard for an immersion suit so I figure it should be pretty warm.

We've been really pleased with ours. As mentioned they do restrict movement a bit. They are indeed really warm (that was one of our main reasons for buying them). We use the boat all year round and it's definately made winter cruising a lot more comfortable.

So far they haven't let any water in but I believe you can get fladen waterproofing spray specifically for these suits if the do start to leak a bit.

The extra safety factor of the immersion suit also has to be good!

Highly recommended, you won't be dissapointed!

[BogMonster]

Originally Posted by BogMonster

Found this thread on a search.... and looking at one of these

http://www.uk-fishing-tackle.co.uk/p...FQjnlAodghT41A

seems to be a very good deal so I have just ordered one, has anybody got this exact type, any views? It has to be better than jeans, a fleece and a waterproof jacket anyway

It also says it meets the standard for an immersion suit so I figure it should be pretty warm.

Well I have got my Fladen one piece suit from UK F T now and tried it out for the first time yesterday. It's got to be the warmest thing I have ever worn. Bear in mind that yesterday the air temp was about 2 or 3 degrees C, the water temp is probably only a degree or two higher than that at this time of year, and there was about 20kt of wind. Normally in those conditions if bundled up with a fleece, waterproof jacket and waterproof trousers etc I'd be starting to feel the cold after about half an hour on the water and after an hour it's definitely time for a hot bath.

I was out for nearly two hours yesterday wearing normal clothes under the suit (jeans and a fleece top) and apart from just starting to be aware of the tips of my toes (which were in thick hiking socks and wellies) I was still snug as a bug, in fact if anything a little too warm, even coming back towards the harbour at 20kt into a strong head wind which is normally the bit that kills me. I had the Save Phace covering my face and the insulated hood pulled down tight over that and the neck of the suit goes up underneath, probably looked like a bug eyed luminous alien but damn it was warm. I could have stayed out all afternoon as well but had other things to do. It is only slightly restrictive to movement - I decided not to attempt boarding in it (to get into the boat when launching, I back the trailer into the water leaving the vehicle on dry land, and then walk down the trailer drawbar and climb in over the bow which is a bit dodgy at the best of times) - but no problems in any other movement in the boat.

Fantastic thing, good price and definitely recommended

Which leads me to the next question - does anybody know a cheap supplier for just the jacket part of the two-piece suit, preferably the black option? I reckon it would be a fantastic thing to have just as a warm coat for use on dry land and given that the whole suit only cost me £77 landed in the Falklands, it should be fairly cheap too...

UKFT don't seem to do the two piece suits but ages ago I downloaded a PDF from somewhere (can't remember where) and it shows the two piece ones being available as separate parts and in less luminous colours which would be better for everyday use!

Edited to add that since I ordered it they DO now seem to do the 2 pc suits but if anybody knows of a supplier that does just the jacket at a good price I'd still like to know, cheers

[ukft]

Hi Folks

Ian, the manager at UKFT here (working on a Sunday, not good news!) - I've had a couple of people visit from your site today and ask questions so thought I'd pop by and introduce myself (ourselves).

All is pretty much said above - we do have the Fladen 2 piece suits though on the site (someone said we didn't!).

Any questions of floaties don't hesitate to contact us - we supply a lot of Fladen suits all over the country and there are not many questions that will stump us (I am sure someone can think of one though!)

Whilst I was posting this the person above caught an edit so we crossed over on the 2piece issue. With regards to Jackets I'll be honest and tell you it's a no brainer. The trade price for just a jacket and for a combo is only a couple of quid different - obviously Fladen are looking to supply them in sets only I suspect. I'd always plum (and have always advised) customers to take a 2 piece instead of replacing one half and keeping the other for spares. You might find a jacket lurking on eBay or something which a shop has lost the other half of or something, but retail you'd struggle in all honesty!

Trousers are cheaper to replace, but jackets - always recommend a new suit.

Ian, Manager
www.uk-fishing-tackle.co.uk

[Tims Osprey]

Have had a fladen for 1 season which i use for winter cod fishing on the Bristol channel, nice and warm and dry but the trousers have split in some places on the scenes, most likely salt water being the cause, good all round suit but will not be buying another. I Like the Penn suits, nice and stylish, warm, dry and not too restricting, thats the suit i'm getting for the coming winter whether being on the shore beachcasting or on the rib down tiding


http://www.torbayfishing.com/reviews...ation-suit.htm

[ukft]

Hi Tim

Seriously not likely to be salt water at the seams - it would defeat the point of an immersion suit for sea wear. If it has split on the stitching it's most likely a manufacturing defect which wants returning to fladen. We've not had many back though for that defect - in fact - bizarrely the only one I can recall that was split was where a customer cut the box open with a stanley knife (despite the labels) and went through the leg of the suit - clearly slashed with a blade, despite protests!

Ian

[codprawn]

Talking about flotation suits this could be the thing of the future

http://rib.net/forum/showthread.php?t=21008

[Tims Osprey]

Yer, its a great suit the fladen, i'm not knocking it, kept me warm as toast while i was stood there on the banks of the Severn in wind, rain, snow and freezing fog while fishing, in all fairness i did get the trousers muddy quite often and i think that must of contributed to the wear and tare.

[BogMonster]

Originally Posted by ukft

Hi Folks

Ian, the manager at UKFT here (working on a Sunday, not good news!) - I've had a couple of people visit from your site today and ask questions so thought I'd pop by and introduce myself (ourselves).

All is pretty much said above - we do have the Fladen 2 piece suits though on the site (someone said we didn't!).

Any questions of floaties don't hesitate to contact us - we supply a lot of Fladen suits all over the country and there are not many questions that will stump us (I am sure someone can think of one though!)

Whilst I was posting this the person above caught an edit so we crossed over on the 2piece issue. With regards to Jackets I'll be honest and tell you it's a no brainer. The trade price for just a jacket and for a combo is only a couple of quid different - obviously Fladen are looking to supply them in sets only I suspect. I'd always plum (and have always advised) customers to take a 2 piece instead of replacing one half and keeping the other for spares. You might find a jacket lurking on eBay or something which a shop has lost the other half of or something, but retail you'd struggle in all honesty!

Trousers are cheaper to replace, but jackets - always recommend a new suit.

Ian, Manager
www.uk-fishing-tackle.co.uk

Ian,

Sorry, you didn't have the 2pc ones at the time I originally ordered mine but I see the site has been updated since then. Was kind of hoping that buying just a jacket would be cheaper than buying another whole suit but I guess not then

cheers

Stephen

[ukft]

Hi Stephen

In truth it's just not viable - if you split a set of trousers you are looking at £35 for a replacement pair or thereabouts (somewhere near reasonable) but for a replacement jacket the best price is in the sixties, and frankly I'd have to be honest and just say you might as well grab the trousers with it for what is essentially going to be a tenner or less.

The trade pricing on these is such that buying a pair of trousers and a jacket separately is much much more expensive than buying a suit. We could split suits I supposed but frankly that leaves us in a position with odd jackets and trousers kicking about which to be honest you get that few requests for you'd probably end up shifting at cost or less.

Sorry I cannot be more help BUT in our experience we find it best to be up-front about such things.