Self-righting bags on personal boats

[InlandAlex]

Hi All,

Not looking to install one, just curious and though it would be a good topic for discussion.

What are the feasible pros/cons and practicalities of self-righting bags on anything other than a commercial rescue/police/military RIB.

Also:
Anyone got one?
How much more expensive are inversion proofed engines than normal?

[Brian]

I once spoke to Dag Pike about this subject.
He asked me, about RNLI boats fitted with them, how many times they had been used in anger?
The answer was never. In practice sessions, yes, but never in a "real" event.

[SixtyNorth]

Did they manage to right this one or was it washed ashore?

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=r0DGkBdGTmM

[Poly]

Originally Posted by InlandAlex

What are the feasible pros/cons and practicalities of self-righting bags on anything other than a commercial rescue/police/military RIB.



Also:

Anyone got one?

How much more expensive are inversion proofed engines than normal?

I don’t recall anyone here who has one for purely leisure use. It’s an extra bit of kit to maintain (bag to inspect/repair, gas cylinder to look after, system to inspect/test). It also has to be on an aframe strong enough to cope with the forces involved and as you rightly point out minimal value without post immersion restart engines.

The conditions necessary to flip a rib big enough to need a bag mean any sane leisure user has gone home, or is cautiously trying to get home - not blasting through waves. I don’t like to rely on the lifeboat but if I ever do capsize a rib my first priority would be calling for help not getting it back up - the chances of doing it in a location where you don’t get blown onto shore/rocks before you get a chance, here nobody is injured, where you actually get the engine etc back running and are able to limp home proud not to have put out a mayday are pretty small. They may make sense if you operate somewhere where help is far away (or you are the help).

As far as I recall no leisure user here has capsized a rib whilst driving it in a sensible manner.

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Poly

I don’t recall anyone here who has one for purely leisure use. It’s an extra bit of kit to maintain (bag to inspect/repair, gas cylinder to look after, system to inspect/test). It also has to be on an aframe strong enough to cope with the forces involved and as you rightly point out minimal value without post immersion restart engines.

The conditions necessary to flip a rib big enough to need a bag mean any sane leisure user has gone home, or is cautiously trying to get home - not blasting through waves. I don’t like to rely on the lifeboat but if I ever do capsize a rib my first priority would be calling for help not getting it back up - the chances of doing it in a location where you don’t get blown onto shore/rocks before you get a chance, here nobody is injured, where you actually get the engine etc back running and are able to limp home proud not to have put out a mayday are pretty small. They may make sense if you operate somewhere where help is far away (or you are the help).

As far as I recall no leisure user here has capsized a rib whilst driving it in a sensible manner.

I recall one being for sale on here a couple of years ago. I think someone had bought a second hand commercial boat & had stripped it off.
I think NER have one on their latest acquisition, but it came with the package I believe.
IF, you did have one, how would you practice deployment? Unless you had some serious infrastructure like the RNLI have to flip it over, it would only ever get used in anger; that’s the wrong time to find out you don’t know what to do.

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

I recall one being for sale on here a couple of years ago. I think someone had bought a second hand commercial boat & had stripped it off.
I think NER have one on their latest acquisition, but it came with the package I believe.
IF, you did have one, how would you practice deployment? Unless you had some serious infrastructure like the RNLI have to flip it over, it would only ever get used in anger; that’s the wrong time to find out you don’t know what to do.

Here you go
Autorotation bag free to good home.....
http://www.rib.net/forum/showthread.php?t=80079

[Poly]

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

IF, you did have one, how would you practice deployment? Unless you had some serious infrastructure like the RNLI have to flip it over, it would only ever get used in anger; that’s the wrong time to find out you don’t know what to do.

You just get MattH to go out with you!

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Poly

You just get MattH to go out with you!

Hmmm[emoji848]