ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

Looks great, feels great. I am extremely happy with this PFD. I borrowed a cheap bargain store PFD recently from a friend because I had accidentally arrived at the water without mine. That lasted all of 2 minutes. I don't know how anyone could enjoy a day on the water actually wearing something like that. The Astral was quite a bit more money, obviously, but if you plan to do any boating/paddling that you will be wearing a PDF (and not just have it on board as required) the comfort is well worth the price!

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

As a guy 'blessed' with his grandfathers genetics, no amount of reasonable exercise or healthy eating (wife is a dietitian) seems to get rid of my spare tire even though I am 'only' in my late 30s.

So, when kayaking I have issues with both the back (seat) and the front (gut). I've gone through quite a few PFDs (lawn sales, gifts, etc.) for kayaking, but was trying to stay around $100 for my own purchases.

I ended up trying the V-Eight in the Foxboro store and actually sat in a kayak in the store. It was highly adjustable and the 1/2 back style cleared the seat back easily. The "short" front also cleared my other issue. I suppose it could ride lower, but it does not have to. With the adjustable and padded shoulder straps, you can set the front as low or as high as you want.

There is not much for way of pockets, but what would one expect with a micro-vest. There is one 4-slit tie-down and one mesh pocket. The pocket is snap with a loop for lashing/clipping stuff in and it could hold a camera or other small goods. I had a 12oz soda (plastic) and it did not get in the way of paddling at all.

A GREAT buy. Well worth what I paid.

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

I hate getting hot in my PFD and tend not to wear it at all during the summer. The V-8's ventilation system really works. Plus the cut is great too. It feels very form-fitting, doesn't ride up, the back fits well with the kayak seat, etc. Couldn't be happier.

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

as someone with less than limited swimming abilities a good pfd was needed, i researched forever before buying my kayak and this seemed like a decent opt. for me because my body produces alot of heat and in warm weather it sucks lol. i have gone on a few 4-6 hr river/lake paddles with absolutely no discomfort or overheating, it breathes SOO well and it stays in place even in water i love it!!

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

NOT GOOD FOR MY NEEDS.

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

I purchased this PFD because the construction definitely felt like it allowed better air circulation than the other, less expensive model I tried on. Used it in a kayak for about an hour on a calm lake on a humid 75F day and it was not hot at all.
What I didn't like was the thickness of the flotation which pressed into my kidney area when leaning against the seatback. In hindsight I should have gone somewhere else and bought one with a thinner flotation material that extended further down towards my tailbone so I had a more uniform surface on the back section. Although it appears to be a high quality product, you really don't need to spend this much for casual paddling.

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

LIKES:
Modern fabric & design.
Orange color choice... great for rescue(and matches my kayak!). It has the olive-green accents and I can see it's a pretty cool, understated design color.
Cool air-flow technology I thought was gimmicky, but I actually do stay cool, so hat off to Astral.
Chest-friendly contoured foam at front.
Open-sided design allows unrestriced paddling and torso movement.
Very quick-drying... nice for pack-up after a day out.
DISLIKES:
Ride-up: I am short-torsoed (short between waist and shoulders), and I find that the high-back rides up in the water (but not on the kayak; it's out of the way until I submerge). There's a cooling mesh panel from waist-strap to foam-panel at back, and in the water this panel gives the foam the slack it needs to ride high and hit me in the back of the head if I try to swim face-forward. I can happily back-stroke, or bob about vertically. Solution to "head banging" is to tighten the upper set of side-buckles REALLY tight, then it stays down, but the side straps start to bite in & chest feels restricted. A longer torso would work better for this vest. Guys, no problem. Girls with regular or long torso, no problem. Girls with short torso, you'll love it until you need to swim in it. Overall, the pros outweigh the cons, and I don't regret the purchase.
Zipper: Has anyone else had issues getting the zipper up? I have to loosen the side-straps and squeeze the two foam front-panels flush together while pulling on the zipper. I would definitely struggle to put this on in the water.

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

We started Kayaking this summer, and the "old" PFD was like 2 blocks of foam. This was recommended by fellow kayakers, and makes a huge difference in my comfort, when out there in the summer heat. [...]

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

I bought this vest 2-years ago when I bought my first kayak. I have since bought 2 more kayaks and have bought 2 more of these vests because I like them so much. The vest has lots of adjustment ability so can fit people of differnt sizes. I bought a mediem/large and have been able to adjust it to fit a petite woman (5'2" and 115 lbs) as well as a 6'3" 200lb man. The foam panels in the vest are made in several pieces (where other vests are one piece) so it conforms more easily to the shape of your body and does not feel so bulky. There is lots of ventilation so it is not hot. A GREAT vest for Kayaking!

Comments about ASTRAL BUOYANCY V-Eight Life Vest:

I took a 70 mile canoe trip and loved this PFD it was extremely comfortable and not bulky.