Steve Moore, Product Manager at Ocean Signal, gave me a call about the issues we raised in an article on problems Phyllis and I had found with their MOB1 person overboard (POB) beacon.
(If you didn't read that article, please do so now, otherwise this one will make no sense to you.)
Here's what we discussed, along with a couple of other thoughts on water activation and AIS/PLB combo beacons.
Hi John,
Thanks for again a very important matter for sailors in general. As such I tried to share your Facebook notification about the MOB1 with the Dutch sailing forum “Zeilen”, which has more than 11,000 members, but they complain they cannot read it as being behind a paywall. Could you move this to the public part of your site?
Hi Roeland,
It would be great to get the word out to a greater sailing community, but before John considers his answer, why not suggest to the members that they join AAC for a great series on AIS MOB beacons that includes observations of common installation errors that might make their unit non-functional (and fixes). Not to mention all the other benefits which make the membership fee so worthwhile.
My best, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy
Hi Roeland,
First off, I published the original warning about these problems outside of the Paywall: https://www.morganscloud.com/2018/11/08/possible-auto-activation-failure-of-the-mob1-ais-person-overboard-beacon/
Second, how about doing as Dick suggests and encouraging members of that forum to join AAC so we can continue to do this kind of work. After all, at $2 a month, it’s hardly expensive?
The bottom line is that the above article, and all the other writing we have done on AIS beacons, represents over a month of work for Phyllis and I, so it is simply not practical to publish that work for free, particularly since our out of pocket expenses in running this site are climbing ever day and are about to take a big jump as we delegate much of the technical stuff we do now so we can spend yet more time on articles like the one above.
Bottom line, AAC is still only barely sustainable, and only stays publishing at all because Phyllis and I work at it for less than the minimum wage in most developed countries, so being asked to do yet more for less does not make us feel very happy.
All that said, with the new membership system we are working on we may be experimenting with different paywall options, including a certain number of free ones each month, but that will only stay in place if it generates more members. Or to put it rather harshly, we are not running a charity here since I would hardly call boat owners a deserving demographic for said endeavour.
Sorry to be so assertive in my answer, but it’s a subject I feel pretty strongly about.
I also advise that you consider supporting a path that makes this post public so that it may be shared. It would likely attract eye balls that have never visited AAC, which is an opportunity to increase your subscriber base. Cheers
Hi Sparky,
That sounds great in theory, but we have experimented for years and there is one thing that gets new members and one thing only: the Paywall. Appeals to support us simply don’t work.
And without a consistent stream of new members there will be no content as all, free or otherwise.
Added to the above, let me point out that we tried exactly what you are suggesting with the original post: https://www.morganscloud.com/2018/11/08/possible-auto-activation-failure-of-the-mob1-ais-person-overboard-beacon/
Result? Total bust on new members.
John, just adding a voice of support for the paywall. For anyone who has ever purchased or rented anything boat related, membership to the site is a bargain.
Hi Scott,
Thank you for the support, much appreciated.
Hi John,
Thanks for all your work on this.
Dick
Good morning John
I, like Dick, would like to thank you for following up on this issue. We just bought our (adult) kids the AIS/MOB units as they are both sailing offshore a lot. It gives me peace of mind knowing they would have a second chance in a MOB situation.
Bob
Hi Bob,
Thanks very much for the kind words. It’s always great to hear that people are acting on our work.
Ditto, John and Phyllis. I constantly beat the drum for your site as being not only the only one I pay for, but which constantly provides me with more and better information than it costs me. This sort of drill-down is necessary to fully understand, appreciate and choose new technologies for the rather select group of people who go out of sight of land, and your comments, preferences and reviews have played an increasing role in not only what I choose to buy, but how I organize and run our boat.
Hi John,
thank you very much for your work on this. When I read your article in November, I recognized my MOB1 (bought 2016) were lacking the cap. I informed my chandlery (AWN, Germany). They weren’t aware of the problem but promised to clarify it with their supplier. And so they did: last week I received the two missing caps!
Hi Ralf,
Really good to hear. Makes it all worth while.
Thank you John. Your thoroughness is second to none. AAC is the only worthwhile dialog available to sailing man.
We purchased and fitted two MOB1s to Spinlock deckvests and have suffered many false alarms – i.e. activations due to displacement of the clip inside a closed jackets. I had put them down to packing, but now realise that our units dont have, and indeed didn’t come with, the protective “armed” cap.
Shame on OceanSignal for failing to widely publicise this critical fix for earlier units! The only reference to the protective cap on their own website is buried in their revised user manual. Sadly they have no news item to highlight it and no top-line product shots showing the cap. Again: shame on OceanSignal.
I’ll be contacting them today.
Neil
L’escale, Portsmouth
Hi Neil,
You are right, not a good response from OS to the point that I fear that if they don’t get their act together on this it could do permeant and irreversible damage to the reputation of good products. The history of corporate silence on this kind of thing is not good.
I just bought a Ocean Signal EPRIB1 class 2.
I am returning it because the instructions printed on its surface are illegible. Even the battery expiration date is impossible to read. A combination of extremely small letters and very poor quality of printing is at fault. If Ocean Signal can overlook this basic need then what else have they overlooked?
If you provided a way for me to attach picture I would.
Hi Scott,
That is indeed a disturbing report. Please see our comment guidelines (#6) on how to share a picture in the comments: https://www.morganscloud.com/2013/11/10/aac-comment-guide-lines/
I’m in the market for an EPRIB since I plan on venturing beyond the sight of land this summer. After a search of the site, I couldn’t find any discussions regarding these devices. Is there a post I’m missing, or is that something that hasn’t been discussed yet?
As always, it’s a joy to be part of this community.
Hi Ben,
No, we have never done a piece on EPIRBS, other than to say repeatedly that any boat that goes offshore should have one. As far as I know they are all pretty good these days and anyway we are not really in the product comparison business. The best place for that kind of information is Practical Sailor Magazine. If you subscribe you get access to their searchable archives, well worth the price.
Thanks for the verification that I wasn’t missing some thing. I’m journeying about as far as I possibly can “offshore” in my area: crossing Lake Erie. But it’s a passage out of the sight of land and it only takes 25-30 knots of wind to cause some nasty waves on that puddle! After reading about them, I think I’ll be getting a PLB. It’s much cheaper, more portable and uses the same technology as an EPIRB. The floating version of the ACR ResQLink is the model I think would work for my application.
For what it’s worth, that was my conclusion, and I went with an older version of a ResQLink on Lake Ontario. Just remember that it’s important to file a sail plan (called a “float plan” in the States) with the Canadian Coast Guard (and to “close” it on arrival via cellphone or VHF) and to register the PLB with the correct federal registry, ideally with a third-party contact who can confirm your plans. Make sure it’s a PLB that is comfortable to wear, can attach securely to your PFD (which of course you must always wear for this scheme to work) and which broadcasts a GPS string as well as the 406 Mhz beacon. It’s a good choice for solo sailing the same way the AIS beacon is a good choice with more crew/beyond the reach of SAR resources.
Hi all,
Just as an aside, when talking with friends and acquaintances about joining AAC, if any resistance or griping about paying a fee: instead of arguing about how little the fee actually is in the real world, I tell them that they should join for a year and if they are unhappy with the benefits, I will reimburse them the years fee.
I have yet to take my wallet out for that reason.
My best, Dick Stevenson, s/v Alchemy
Hi Dick,
What a kind thing to do, thank you so much! And I’m glad it hasn’t cost you anything. Hopefully it never will.
Hi John, No worries. I was never worried, but it was just a way that occurred to me to get some with reservations over the hump, although for the life of me, I did not know why the hump exists: just that it did and was an obstacle.
My best, Dick
I can certainly understand why John could be/is disappointed if new members are not joining AAC. Now that we are new members of AAC, and see the value in the work done here, it is doubly puzzling. Just think of the froth & bubble that Patrons shell out for on Youtube, WAY more $$ each video than a YEARS subscription here, and it defies logic. Sorry John, the word about AAC has to spread, somehow.
Hi Rob,
Thanks for the kind words. Yes, it’s frustrating, particularly when compared as you have. Still, we are not giving up. We are just in the throws of planning a transfer to a new membership/paywall system that will let us experiment with more and different models that balance promoting out content with making joining desirable. We have high hopes for it.
That said, we also have reasonable expectations. The bottom line is that long form technical writing, no matter how valuable the information, is never going to yield the returns of video, but, as long as we can remain sustainable and as well as make proper provision for our older age, we are cool with that.
***I posted the information below to Sailing Anarchy and also contacted Ocean Signal
This was before someone referenced your site. In my case I felt the issue was a magnet coming dislodged from the triggering tab; but in my case also I did not have/was not supplied one of the clear plastic clips. I have one now. Thanks for all of this. There is now a reference to your articles in Sailing Anarchy for greater awareness.
I was testing the ability of my Spinlock Deck Vest to hold air.
I unzipped and manually inflated (because I didn’t want to waste a C02 cartridge). During inflation I saw the antenna of my MOB1 pop up (and thought shit what a dumba$$) as I forgot to about its automatic deployment with inflation. As I quickly went to disarm it I realized it never activated.
Normally when the grey plastic tab is pulled away, two small magnets on the backside of the tab are also pulled away and the device switches on. (internal magnetic switch I presume)
One of the small magnets that is glued to the backside of the grey plastic tab remained attached to the MOB1 so when the plastic tab was pulled away the device did not activate.
This sees like an incredibly rare events as the sweeping motion of the plastic tab should have dislodged the magnets anyway. Perhaps because I inflated manually and it happened very slowly…….
I am posting this to remind people with this device to be aware of how to manually activate it (the tiny red button); which is seen once the grey plastic tab pulls away. This also should trigger a DSC alarm, which unless you have gone to the added steps of programming in an MMSI number won’t happen. Only an AIS MOB alarm happens automatically.
The device is approximately 3 years old. The test function is perfectly normal. It has never been immersed. This MOB I installed myself (not a factory installed one from Spinlock); although I don’t think this would play any roll in the malfunction as the plastic tab was pulled away with inflation as it is designed.
Hi Chris,
Thanks for filling us in on that that. As you say, in a normal activation scenario this would probably not have happened, particularly if the clear plastic cap is in place, but it’s still good to know about. And thanks for the link on SA.
YAfter a great sail from Dublin to Belfast yesterday, we arrived at midnight in the pouring rain at our anchorage. While getting the snubber fitted my deckvest with MOB1 suddenly inflated. A great test of both, as far as I was concerned. My lume-on lights illuminated; the dsc on vhf started squawking; the chart plotter started beeping; and an MOB icon appeared on the screen. Everything worked just like it is supposed to. And I had just bought rearming kits, as the uml expiration date was looming, so no loss of that!
We figured out how to shut everything off (not immediately obvious) and took some moments to think about what would have happened in a real MOB. My one observation following is that the MOB1 as attached to the inflation tube did not seem as secure as I would perhaps like. I believe it could be possible to dislodge it while looking to access the whistle or sprayhood strap. Both are attached to the inflation tube as well. On rearming I have made sure that the MOB1 is below the whistle as I think it will be less likely to be inadvertently dislodged. I may also look at attaching an additional lanyard to ensure the MOB1 and vest stay together.
And even better, the next morning I spotted the clear plastic “Armed” cover at the bottom of the anchor locker!
Hi David,
Thanks very much for a very useful report. I’m going to make a note to check on the two points you raise.
Hi All,
We’ve owned six MOB1s since 2018 and 2019. They were initially fitted on Spinlock DeckVest 5D and now on Vito’s. I read all manuals and findings, spoke with OceanSignal, studied John’s posts with great attention as well as the comments, we test and train – but I continue to learn!
Following our last annual inspection of PFDs and associated equipment in November, I got in touch with OceanSignal to verify the state of the art and latest recommendations regarding the MOB1. I shared the details with John of what this latest annual exercise taught and reminded me; he suggested I posted as a comment. Here’s a summary:
1. OS’s recommended tape for self-activation
The tape with one loop and one flat end is the “preferred and current fitting option“.
2. MOB positioning and tape tightness
Like most, the bladder of a Spinlock PFD gets thinner around the neck. Make sure that the activation tape has maximum effect my locating the MOB1 as low as possible down the blow tube such that the tape will find itself across the largest bladder diameter available, rather than slipping to the narrower part. Tightness: the “lose enough for one finger but tight enough to prevent two fingers” guidelines sounds very approximate on paper, but is amazingly accurate in practice.
3. DSC matters – check it out
Be sure to activate the DSC option of the MOB1 if your country regulation allows it (the screen programming using OC’s online App is easy and works well). That was not allowed in France when I bought the units, but regulation changed and so I programmed all the MOB1’s to send a DSC Individual Alert to our fixed VHF’s MMSI.
During the extensive tests, it turns out my onboard AIS had failed in the three days since I had last sailed. DSC was the only alert I received, AIS failure is not theoretical. A MOB1 has two radio alert possibilities, best to use them both.
Another point in favour of DSC to me is that the way AIS MOB devices interject their messages into the otherwise organized stream of shared AIS exchanges could *theoretically* delay transmission, especially in more crowded areas (where the chances of rescue should be higher). I would expect DSC to be the first alert, and every second counts.
4. What is being transmitted
After less than 15s warm-up, the unit starts transmitting DSC and AIS, even though at that stage it has no valid GPS position: this raises the alarm so immediate action can be taken. It will continue to do so every minute or so. Once a valid GPS fix is obtained, AIS and DSC transmissions will continue every minute until the battery dies or the device is powered off.
Sorry for the long comment if it is all known to many of you, but I share hoping that it might help someone.
Stay safe,
JL
Hi Jean-Louis,
Great comment with lots of good and actionable information. I totally agree on DSC, although sadly we are, at least the last time I checked, in the dark ages here in Canada with that not allowed.