There are alternatives to life rafts: Look at: http://www.ovatek.com/index2.html This is a fiberglass rescue pod The Ovatek 4 is a 4 person pod which is 6'9" long, by 51"wide and 44" high.Weight 250 lbs. The Cost is about $5600. The Ovatek 7 is a 7 person pod 9' 3 long, 51" wide and 54" high, weight 400 lbs. Over the life of a raft the cost is less for the fiberglass pod. Over the 20 year life expectancy of the pod, the cost is half that of a life raft. There was an interesting discussion this and life rafts in Trawler World List, May 2002: http://lists.samurai.com/pipermail/trawlers-and-trawlering/2002-May/046968.html I also did an extended post near the end of the thread--follow the links on down. (see below) Please read (I know Milt has read these) "Survive the Savage Sea" by Dougal Robertson, (a 37 day saga of survival in a raft before EPIRBs) and "The Proving Ground" by Brude Knecht plus: http://www.equipped.com/sydney-hobart/Volume%2011.htm the account of the 1998 Sydney to Hobart race and Brief of Evidence involving safety equiptment. Certainly the size of the raft, the material of the raft, the floor (double/inflatable/drop stitch) Inflatable canopy, double tube etc. are extremely important. For years the Givens raft seemed to be the best for stability--but then there was an issue of improper packing for the Givens. These issues have been resolved--and the Givens remains an excellent choice. I certainly agree that some of the newer rafts are not as well built as they once were. The Switlik six man SOLAS raft would also be high on my short list of life rafts. Equally important with the raft, is the protection in its case, annual inspection and repacking. Also the ditch kit beyond what is in the raft is extremely important. I have never had to use a life raft. I have seen rafts which were not properly packed and inspected be useless after a year or so under the tropical sun in a fiberglass pod. We did not always have life rafts. I give my reasons and alternatives in the above mentioned post: http://lists.samurai.com/pipermail/trawlers-and-trawlering/2002-May/046968.html If you read this post, you will see that I am playing a bit of the devil's adovcate--in stating some of the negatives of a Pod. But on the other hand, it is a very substantial craft and safer than many life rafts. Items which seemed important to us--(and if I was making a passage in a boat which would carry a pod, these items could be placed in the pod ahead of time, they were kept in our abandon ship craft-)- 10 gallons of water, plus a watermaker in the abandon ship setup. We also had a water proof bag, with a second EPIRB, extra SOLAS Parachute 50 mm flares, first aid kit, space blankets, survival suits, some light weight extra clothes, vitamines, sealed rations, paper and pencil, copies of ships and personal papers, including passports, Extra batteries, strobe lights, radar reflector, fishing gear, and in one abandon ship kit a small ham radio and dipole antenna. Ease of getting into a raft during a storm is important. Also remember that there are many instances where people abandoned perfectly good boats, which went on to float for as much as several years. If possiable stay with the boat. Much of this is beyond the question of what is the best raft--but a point to begin a discussion of the entire subject of abandon ship and rafts. Bob Austin