Gumby Suits
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If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
Sailor of Fortune
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whether they do or don't , its a really good idea to have them
ksanders
Moderator Emeritus
We carried gumby suits for years.
Then i realized that we could not even get into the stupid life raft once we put the gumby suits on. We could not do much of anything except jump overboard.
We now have Mustang cold weather work suits. This is what my son wore as a crew member on a USCG motor lifeboat out of Coos Bay Oregon.
We hope we neve need them but the work suits give us significant protection suring our summer cruising season and the ability to actually do things like deploy the liferaft, gather people and materials needed, operate EPRIB's etc...
Sailor of Fortune
Guru
Gumby suits aren't easy to get into... We drill with them and you have to be able lt get into them in 1 minute... their are trick to get into them that quick. Not sur cold wx suits are the same, (I know they aren't) but you decide whats appropriate for your situation. The fact that you are even considering them, means your taking this seriously. Good stuff
Alaskan Sea-Duction
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We have them. They are equipped with PLBs.
A TFer here gave me a tip. They are a PIA to get into, but I was told to slip trash bags over your feet/shoes to ease this issue.
The key is to practice putting them on. Not sure but I think 45 seconds as the standard to get them on.
They also need to be inspected.
A TFer here gave me a tip. They are a PIA to get into, but I was told to slip trash bags over your feet/shoes to ease this issue.
The key is to practice putting them on. Not sure but I think 45 seconds as the standard to get them on.
They also need to be inspected.
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Comodave
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The plastic grocery bags do work very well to get into the gumbys and also the cold suits mentioned above. We used to keep 2 bags in our Mustang suits. It makes all the difference in getting into them. Also keep a PLB attached to them.
BruceK
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But, you have to admit how attractive they are.
Though hopefully, only to rescuers.
psneeld
Guru
While I too have carried USCG issued survival gear in all sorts of shapes and fashions through the years...
The internal test results have shown immersion suits to be protective for hours, usually all that's necessary for rescue by USCG helos.....
Gumby suits can provide protection for days.
Till the USCG came up with dry suits for aircrews...the standard was a shortie wetsuit underneath another wetsuit or the mustang immersion suit. It allowed flexibility and comfort till donning the immersion suit was necessary and added many hours to the effectiveness to immersion suits that require tight water entry points to pereent flushing by cold water regularly.
The internal test results have shown immersion suits to be protective for hours, usually all that's necessary for rescue by USCG helos.....
Gumby suits can provide protection for days.
Till the USCG came up with dry suits for aircrews...the standard was a shortie wetsuit underneath another wetsuit or the mustang immersion suit. It allowed flexibility and comfort till donning the immersion suit was necessary and added many hours to the effectiveness to immersion suits that require tight water entry points to pereent flushing by cold water regularly.
Sailor of Fortune
Guru
Those rescue swimmers in Alaska and other cold water places earned their pay...Couldn't even imagine. I'm sure it was a big gulp when they exited your helo...
Alaskan Sea-Duction
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psneeld
Guru
It usually was a big gulp for everyone, every time the helo took off...especially before the (sorta) twin engine helos.
But I have gotta hand it to the rescue swimmers, a rare kind of bravery for sure.
To have their trust is a feeling I put above almost everything else in life.
Hippocampus
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Would not just look at Mustang. Hansen, Stearns, crewsaver and others make excellent stuff. Often as good or better and at less cost.
ksanders
Moderator Emeritus
Mustang doesn't have the most user friendly site, can you provide a link to your specific choice?
Thank you.
Here you go
https://mustangsurvival.com/collect...ll-and-worksuit-ms2175?variant=31240043462701
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Thanks Kevin.
Ventana
Senior Member
I think this really depends on your plans. If you are going from WA up the inside passage to SE Alaska and back via the normal routes, you really don’t need them. Make a very loose plan of what you will do if the boat sinks, then go take your trip and have fun. We usually towed our inflatable, and figured if the boat sank we would get into it and head to shore. Gumby suits are expensive, take up a lot of space, and you will never use them. Same with a life raft.
If you are headed offshore where you couldn’t get the inflatable back to shore then my opinion would change. If you want to spend money on safety gear get an EPIRB.
If you are headed offshore where you couldn’t get the inflatable back to shore then my opinion would change. If you want to spend money on safety gear get an EPIRB.
Sailor of Fortune
Guru
I don't think its an "either gumby suit,or EPIRB"....Prior to becoming mandatory on commercial boats, there was liablity on owners not providing suits for their crewmembers.. Cold water survival is tricky.... If all goes well, crew has time to get in the skiff. Thats the perfect world scenario.....
Alaskan Sea-Duction
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A few years back there was a 50-80 foot yacht making its way from Kodiak to SEAK when they were hit by a rouge wave. Flooded the engine room and electrical system. It sank within minutes.
When the USCG arrived, everyone had a gumby suit and a life raft. USCG called it a "perfect" rescue. Why? The captain conducted multiple training sessions on donning the gumby suit and operations of the life raft. Saved their lives.
When the USCG arrived, everyone had a gumby suit and a life raft. USCG called it a "perfect" rescue. Why? The captain conducted multiple training sessions on donning the gumby suit and operations of the life raft. Saved their lives.
john-o
Veteran Member
Gumby suits... Quick story
My outfit was scheduled for survival training at Eglin AFB, in the mid 60's.Since we were a rapid deployment unit, transport over oceans was common. Well sir.... we were given these survival suits .... or gumby suits as they're
called here, and the picture in one of the postings looks similar to what we had to climb into.
Ok, we get into one of these getups, get dropped off a CH 46, hit the water, pop back up again out of the water like a jack in the box, then inflate a one man raft... paddle over to a 21 man lift raft... built for six. As time goes on, one after another decides.. hey, I gotta relieve some boldly liquid. Now here's where things really get interesting. Some general assigned to the department fun and jolly activities, designed a portion of this suit to accommodate a guy needing to ... you know. So, I undo that portion of the suit, after sitting in cold water for about 8 hours, only to unravel about 6 feet of tubbing. Now I really appreciated to pre-thought of my manly presence, but it got me, and 21 other guys, trying to knee on the outer edge of this life raft, unravel this tubing, trying to fit a 1 inch... you know, into the tubing and finish what we each started. I, and about a dozen other guys,
lost our balance, trying to manage this joke, and ... splash.
We also found plugs.. just in case the raft got a puncture in it, which it did, about 4 times, from the gadgets attached to the suits. For those of you so fortunate to suit up in one of these things, then pile into a raft with other people, you're about to test you tolerance to the little personality traits, quirks, and behavior patterns of other people. Think I'm
kidding.... just wait till someone says.... " Excuse me, I gotta .... you know."
My outfit was scheduled for survival training at Eglin AFB, in the mid 60's.Since we were a rapid deployment unit, transport over oceans was common. Well sir.... we were given these survival suits .... or gumby suits as they're
called here, and the picture in one of the postings looks similar to what we had to climb into.
Ok, we get into one of these getups, get dropped off a CH 46, hit the water, pop back up again out of the water like a jack in the box, then inflate a one man raft... paddle over to a 21 man lift raft... built for six. As time goes on, one after another decides.. hey, I gotta relieve some boldly liquid. Now here's where things really get interesting. Some general assigned to the department fun and jolly activities, designed a portion of this suit to accommodate a guy needing to ... you know. So, I undo that portion of the suit, after sitting in cold water for about 8 hours, only to unravel about 6 feet of tubbing. Now I really appreciated to pre-thought of my manly presence, but it got me, and 21 other guys, trying to knee on the outer edge of this life raft, unravel this tubing, trying to fit a 1 inch... you know, into the tubing and finish what we each started. I, and about a dozen other guys,
lost our balance, trying to manage this joke, and ... splash.
We also found plugs.. just in case the raft got a puncture in it, which it did, about 4 times, from the gadgets attached to the suits. For those of you so fortunate to suit up in one of these things, then pile into a raft with other people, you're about to test you tolerance to the little personality traits, quirks, and behavior patterns of other people. Think I'm
kidding.... just wait till someone says.... " Excuse me, I gotta .... you know."
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Peregrinator
Member
4 years ago we had three yacht club members bringing a new to them boat from Bellingham down to Portland Oregon. They had a boat fire and in the middle of the Strait of Junan de Fuca. They spent 20 minutes in their Gumbi suits. I suspect they would not be here today without those suits.
