So if I'm putting a life raft on top of a t-top and have radar, does the radar dome need to be mounted higher than the top of the raft

My raft is same height behind my radar.
So technically I have a blind spot on my radar but better behind than in front.
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Behind is fine
rafts are heavy make sure it's not a cheesy top
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ideally yes. You can accomplish this with a mast. That said mine is mounted behind the radar and it works fine. I would try it and if you have to raise it then do it. My 6 man raft is about 175#

You are all set Paul, just buy the Nomad! :rotf2:

I call first in line when she goes up for sale!

I don't like the idea of a blind spot at all. maybe a valise style raft would be a better option on a cc

Valise is easier for storage but these are MANUALLY deployed. I don't know if they are USCG approved for comm fishing. If you are thinking about tuna fishing you need an approved raft. I suggest you go to LRSE and talk to them. They know all the regs and have something like 28 rafts to choose from and they know all the details of each one. Also they need to be serviced every year and it is pricey. Generally the first year they let you skip but after that it is every year.


calling on my boat...funny you say that.... I am looking at moving up..I have 3 boats on my visit list this fall and once I decide I am going to sell her. I think it is time to go bigger but I don't want to go too big as I want to be able to run her by myself and I want very good economy with decent speed and loooong range. (36'ers mostly)

Also if you want the inside track my buddy is selling his mirage (2004). (he bought a new 38' custom pilot house rig that is insane! and will be ready this spring) and as such his mirage will be going on the block shortly.(like a couple weeks) His is L O A D E D. I mean really loaded. I have done numerous canyon trips in his rig. Has a lot more hours than mine but is packed with quality gear. ( big furuno ff, simrad everything else, several sat tv's, very good electronics ,offshore proven. full safety gear. Can run to hydro and back for an overnighter @ 28 and troll for 2 full days and burn < 110 gal. I know he has over 250K+ into it and will prob be looking for about 1/2 that. If you want I will let you know when it is officially for sale.

The blind spot will be very small.or you can just buy/make the radar bracket to raise it up a foot.
There's nothing that says you need a hard pack raft. only if you have one with solas A or B pack, then it must be in some sort of float free mount.like hydrostatic release etc...
Do not document it, or you'll be lumped into much stricter regs
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think I need to spend a day on the fishbucket, got to pick your brain a bit

The regs are a little convoluted IMO. The USCG says...
"Commercial Fishing
Vessels" and are subject to the fishing vessel safety regulations.
In addition, a vessel, 5 Net tons or more engaged in
commercial fishing, must be documented with the Coast
Guard and the Certificate of Documentation must be endorsed
for "Fishery".
Most vessels longer than 25 feet are five tons or more.

The regs are a little convoluted IMO. The USCG says...
"Commercial Fishing
Vessels" and are subject to the fishing vessel safety regulations.
In addition, a vessel, 5 Net tons or more engaged in
commercial fishing, must be documented with the Coast
Guard and the Certificate of Documentation must be endorsed
for "Fishery".
Most vessels longer than 25 feet are five tons or more.




As Mike pointed out different rules for being documented rather than state reg.
But lots of boat owners don't document when they are required also.

The regs are a little convoluted IMO. The USCG says...
"Commercial Fishing
Vessels" and are subject to the fishing vessel safety regulations.
In addition, a vessel, 5 Net tons or more engaged in
commercial fishing, must be documented with the Coast
Guard and the Certificate of Documentation must be endorsed
for "Fishery".
Most vessels longer than 25 feet are five tons or more.

was browsing the upv regs last night and read this.

Its not enforced and if you were to hire a professional surveyor to specifically calculate net tonnage, most boats would be way under.
very roughly* (LxBxD-:-100)x67=gross tonnage. and net tonnage is (Gross x.80) or 80% of gross.
So the coast guard "Says" most vessels over 25' will be 5 tons, but in reality not so much.

How do you think they get away with commercially fishing Canadian built boats? (like the "For2na") Canadian built boats can't be documented. They need to be state registered. They are surveyed and calculated for net tonnage (which is almost always lighter than 5 tons) and then state registered.

Its not enforced and if you were to hire a professional surveyor to specifically calculate net tonnage, most boats would be way under.
very roughly* (LxBxD-:-100)x67=gross tonnage. and net tonnage is (Gross x.80) or 80% of gross.
So the coast guard "Says" most vessels over 25' will be 5 tons, but in reality not so much.

How do you think they get away with commercially fishing Canadian built boats? (like the "For2na") Canadian built boats can't be documented. They need to be state registered. They are surveyed and calculated for net tonnage (which is almost always lighter than 5 tons) and then state registered.

Canadian boats can be documented but they can't be used for commercial fishing. But there is a loophole that some folks use to get them into the commercial fleet.

Like I said it is convoluted.
Technically net tonnage is an exact number, there should be no wiggle room in it. It is really based the volume of the cargo spaces of ships and is generally used in the figuring out of port duties. I don't think it has any place in sportfishing boats. However, when you hire an surveyor, it is kind of like hiring a sleazy lawyer...he knows what answer he is looking for before he even starts the calculation. And he chooses variables in the real equations to meet the requirement of the person paying his invoice. (technically a conflict of interest of sorts). Technically these variables are usually well defined on ship drawings and like i said there is no wiggle room, it is what it is.

It is not enforced just like all the other maritime and fisheries laws are not enforced..but that is the law. If you do the full real math, you will find out that modern 26' boat with a 9' beam is going to exceed 5 NT. They generally do a GT calc and take a percentage since 26' sportfish boats don't have traditional cargo spaces. In the end, lots of the numbers are fudged to get the answer you want.

I've taken a several NA grad courses and done this calc many times for real ships when I was younger. The problem I have is the general concept....Net tonnage is a hydrostatic term typically use for large ships, not 30' sportfish boats. IMO this is the wrong guideline to determine if a pleasure boat should be doc or not and then what safety rules. They lumped in commercial shipping along with pleasure boats who don't leave the country and don't cross oceans and just want to sell a couple of tuna fish per year.

Again, IMO what they ***should*** do is say: for boats < X':
if you plan to do ANYTHING commercially beyond 3 miles offshore you need the following gear:.......
if you plan to do ANYTHING recreationally beyond 3 miles offshore you need the following gear:.......

And that is it. Regs need to be simple and useful. You should not be able to position yourself in such a way as to avoid getting required safety gear.

In 2015 when the mandatory inspections take effect there will be no difference between state registered regs vs documented regs.
Everyone will be in the same category
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In 2015 when the mandatory inspections take effect there will be no difference between state registered regs vs documented regs.
Everyone will be in the same category
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Care to elaborate?

Care to elaborate?

"signed into law by the President on December 20, 2012, modified the law to require that dockside safety examinations must be completed at least once every 5 years (instead of 2 years), and that the first dockside exam of a vessel must be completed no later than October 15, 2015. " http://www.fishsafe.info/Notice%20of%20Revised%20CFVS%20Exam%20Requirement. pdf


"Establish parity with respect to equipment requirements for state-registered and federally-documented vessels operating beyond 3 nautical miles of the baseline."
http://www.fishsafe.info/Update%20on%20CFVS%20Requirements%20-%201Mar2013.pdf

Thats good IMO. That is the way it should be. I can't believe our government is doing something that makes sense.

I'll believe it when I see it.





QUOTE=thefishingfreak;1013288]"signed into law by the President on December 20, 2012, modified the law to require that dockside safety examinations must be completed at least once every 5 years (instead of 2 years), and that the first dockside exam of a vessel must be completed no later than October 15, 2015. " http://www.fishsafe.info/Notice%20of%20Revised%20CFVS%20Exam%20Requirement. pdf





"Establish parity with respect to equipment requirements for state-registered and federally-documented vessels operating beyond 3 nautical miles of the baseline."
http://www.fishsafe.info/Update%20on%20CFVS%20Requirements%20-%201Mar2013.pdf[/QUOTE]
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