Has anyone purchased a Nautilus Lifeline lately?

[Rob9876]

I recently bought one and took it for the first dive today, no leaks.

My only complaint would be about the silicone sleeve, fits tight, hard to get on, and harder to get off. I wonder how hard it would be to remove in an emergency. I would prefer a pouch or something you can easily access with gloves on.

Yeah, it's a bit of a pain, but I've had one for a few years and it keeps it in place and provides a little cushion for getting banged around on dive boats.

 

[O-ring]

They sell another pouch for it that might be more to your liking. I can't vouch for it since I have never used one.

 

[uncfnp]

I recently bought one and took it for the first dive today, no leaks.

My only complaint would be about the silicone sleeve, fits tight, hard to get on, and harder to get off. I wonder how hard it would be to remove in an emergency. I would prefer a pouch or something you can easily access with gloves on.

What is the purpose of the sleeve? Mine did not come with one.

 

[O-ring]

What is the purpose of the sleeve? Mine did not come with one.

Just guessing here based on my limited use of one - protection and mounting. There is a belt loop slot on the back of the silicone one and on the one I posted above. The one above also has a coily thing with a clip on it if you wanted to clip it to something to avoid dropping it.

 

[Dan]

I have no problem to take my gloves off and peel the silicone cover off with my fingers just like peeling an orange with finger nails.

I think the silicone pouch is to keep the latch from accidentally bump and unlatch (snap open the cap & flood the MRG) during entry to the water.

I put mine in BCD pocket and leash it to my waist D-ring together with PLB1, mirror, whistle and PLB1 shoulder mounting kit. So if I need to pull it out of the BCD pocket, I just unzip the BCD pocket and pull the leash out.

The shoulder mounting kit is good to have it handy as you don’t want to hold the PLB1 or MRG with hand while bobbing on the surface like a cork for 24 hours while waiting for rescuer to come.

 

[SharpDome]

@Dan Curious, who makes the shoulder mount for the PLB1? Do you have a link?

 

[Dan]

@Dan Curious, who makes the shoulder mount for the PLB1? Do you have a link?

It comes with PLB1.

 

[bensdive]

Hello, wife and I are looking at getting some sort of PLB type device, and specifically looking at the Nautilus Lifeline. The price is right, no subscription, no separate case, etc

Our pause is the reviews, which make it sound like there is a real issue with quality control. Lots of complaints about them flooding, not working, etc, and they are really not inexpensive if they flood after 6 dives. Could be that they may have had an issue for a period of time though, and got their act together, so I thought I would ask..

Has anyone bought one of these recently and had a good or bad experience they would be willing to share?

Thank

Mine failed after two years.They are only good if you want to chance them yearly. So you can get them replace but check them regularly so when you need them they still working.
All best Ben

 

[Pearlman]

I got the nautilus last year. The leaflet was so small with tiny print that I strained to read it and decided to insert batteries first and figure out how the thing works. Too late! I over-tightened one screw on the very first attempt! The fine print on the manual does mention the warning about the screws but who would have guessed in advance?!!

Now I cannot remove batteries and check-in the damn thing on domestic flights. Last year I argued for an hour with airport security to let me keep the Nautilus in my carry-on luggage but to no avail. I had to leave it behind in the local airlines office and collect it on the way back from the trip. Regulations say “Satellite and GPS” devices cannot be carried onboard in my country. But that was just their whim on that day. I was allowed to carry it onboard on an international flight after some explaining about what it does.

I am not sure why the engineering and design decisions were made by the product developers at Nautilus to supply it with such delicate watch like screws with threading that rubs out at the slightest extra turn. That for a device meant to be rugged to be operated in extreme conditions. Moreover while operating it there is a cap that has to be taken off to unfurl the antenna. It has no attachment point or retainer clip. Now imagine you are bobbing in 2-3 foot waves and decide to deploy it - You have to be very careful to tuck the tiny cap safely back into your pockets and not lose it. Adding the above mentioned reports of the leaks (again the weak screws likely not making the lid watertight and being the point of leak) - I think Nautilus has made a product of questionable value and utility due to some poor design choices and decision making.

 

[NW Dive Dawg]

Regulations say “Satellite and GPS” devices cannot be carried onboard in my country.

So no cell phones are allowed onboard?