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Hi -
I am just a little over a month away from my trip with my son (woohoo!), and went out today to find him a suitable lifejacket. I'm having two problems. Every life jacket I find is a Type III. I'd like to see if I can find him a Type II if I can, although if I found a Type III that I could feel some confidence about in fit and performance I'd be ok. He is 4' 8", (a meter and a half) tall. Weighs around 75 pounds (34 kg), lean kid with a wicked six pack for a stomach which he did not inherit from me....
He is falling between "Youth" and "adult S/M" for size, which is not helping. What I am finding is even ones that seem to fit him well will pull up to his ears at least when floating (I grab the shoulder part and pull them up to see what would happen in the water). Some of that is inevitable unless I find something with a crotch strap, which I really don't have the heart to do to him at age 11 and then say here, paddle with ripping you in half for five days, but I should be able to find something that fits him reasonably, is safe, comfortable to paddle with, doesn't weigh a ton (some are so doggone heavy), isn't black to absorb all those rays of sun, and doesn't cost eighty-seven bazillion dollars. Any recommendations?
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I use Salus PFDs for my kids. They fit well. They do have the groin strap, but that's hasn't been an issue. They are not the cheapest, but I personnally feel it is worth it when I am dealing with my kids' safety. Made in Canada as an added bonus.
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My 11 yr old wears his mom's pfd when we are out together. It's an older version of this one and seems to fit him well in medium. It's doesn't seem to pull up on him much at all. He is just over 5ft and about 110lb though. It might be worth checking out as well. My current pfd is the same in a large. When I paddle on my right the zipper for the breast mesh pocket rubs my left bicep causing some irritation but it looks like they may have changed that for his design. I recently order a Salus torrent pfd for myself. Having looked at a few the salus brand is my choice at this point for myself. But pricey. For the price the stolqhuist at mec seem pretty decent.
Last edited by Shayne74 (6/12/2016 4:23 pm)
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Thanks for the replies. I've spent some time looking at the NRS Vista and the Salus Nimbus (which is the model I think NorseScotsman means). I tried some adult small PFD's on him over the weekend for sizing and he was swimming in them. Opposite problem with many of the youth sizes though. Anyway - some good food for thought - thank you -
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Picked up my Salus torrent today . Haven't paddled with it yet but just at first glance the quality and features seem second to none. The fit and comfort is allot better than my current pfd. More to follow after I get a chance to paddle with it, but so far I'm very happy with my purchase.
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