C. Andrews La Varre wrote:

Spent several hours googling. All the way from $229 British
automatic inflatables (very cool) and knockoffs (Mustang) to $120
Lotus variants, to $100 Extrasport to Sterns and WestMarine at
considerably less.

We're doing J-24s, Rhodes 19s, and a 10' dink, the last with a ten
year old young lady.

I tried on both Lotus and Extrasport at Team One and explored the
West Marine offerings (Stearns and below). I tend to prefer the
front zip Extrasport VolkVest, but am tempted by the higher priced
"Mystique". Noticed somewhere that Lotus has acquired some kind of
cult standing - why? It has buckles on the shoulders, while
Extrasport does not, yet another snag point while tacking...

Any comments / recommendations on the above for these applications?
The lady at Team One said it is pretty much a matter of taste, but I
have not yet acquired a taste... :-) Presumably the first thing is
that it will keep your head above water if you turn turtle...

The best life vest is the one that you *wear*. Any of them will keep you
afloat, so pick one that's comfortable and fashionable enough that you
will wear it all the time you're on the water. Like any piece of
apparall, you can go cheap or spend as much as you want. It's really a
matter of what you like and find comfortable - try them on and see. I
like a vest with a few pockets to keep sunscreen, whistle, etc. YMMV

Since you sail a dink, the auto inflatables (type V) are probably not
such a good idea. A type I is too cumbersome, and the type IIs are so
dorky looking that they should just be banned - those ridiculous orange
things probably do more to keep people from wearing PFDs than anything else.

//WAlt