Astral

Indus Personal Flotation Device

Could have been so great (the pocket is awful)

I was thrilled when I bought this, a high float option from astral! I'd been using the green jacket for years and appreciated the extra security of the high float for bigger water. I've used this pfd for a whole season before choosing to write this review. The good; the foam on this pfd is well engineered and doesn't feel any bulkier than my green jacket. As to be expected the jacket is constructed very well and the material and workmanship is excellent. The bad; I truly loathe the pocket system on the front. In my green jacket clamshell I could fit a bar, rescue cpr mask, chapstick, sunscreen, frame tool and my dang phone if I wanted. Yes it was bulky, but if I didn't fill it up with nonsense it was slim. This pocket is so small you can't fit half of what you could in the clam shell and since it only has a tiny access you're always fishing blindly with two fingers for whatever tiny items you managed to squeeze in there. The sideways zipper is a travesty in itself, forget to zip it, or have it come unzipped when pulling yourself into a raft or paddling and all you stuff just falls out. Finally my biggest issue/concern is one the green jacket shares. The knife placement. For a kayaker it's ergonomic and out of the way, but for a raft guide it's downright dangerous, when you rescue a swimmer you pull them in on top of you and if your knife is mounted in the supplied location it hits them in the teeth. So you can opt for a folding rescue knife that you can fumble blindly for in the terrible pocket or you can do what I've seen most that guides do and zip tie your knife out of the way on a shoulder strap. I feel like this pfd was supposed to be a great opportunity to refine the small imperfections with the green jacket and instead you guys didn't address it's one biggest issue, (knife placement) and went and messed with a universally loved feature that wasn't broken (clamshell pocket). Also I'd like to point out that I use (and love) the integrated throw rope that it's marketed with and that single item creates more bulk in the PFD than anything that could ever fit in the clamshell pocket, so what were you really saving us from? As I sit here gearing up for my first river trip of the season I was reminded to write this review when looking at my old tired green jacket and considering taking it because of how much of a let down the Indus was. And I write this review not out of spite or anger, but out of longing and sadness for a product that could have been. If there is any chance that a PFD could be created that uses the high float foam arrangement of the Indus, the clamshell pocket from the green jacket, and had a mount for a river knife that perhaps was up towards the shoulder and maybe had a flap of stiff fabric to protect the rescued swimmer and maybe reduce possible entanglement issues it would be the holy grail of pfd's that I hoped the Indus was going to be. I truly enjoy many products from astral and I'm in full support of the gear you make, some items I have bought again and again. But I feel the mark was truly missed with the Indus.

Indus PFD

For such a high float PFD, it fits like a glove! Looks great and it's an essential piece of kit that just keeps giving - Astral, you've knocked it out of the park...

Best PFD for kayakers

Best PFD on the market. As a curvy female I was worried about the comfort but it feels so natural paddling in this vest. On a nasty swim this thing got me to the surface fast and made swimming to shore easier. It doesn’t affect my ability to roll at all and I love the storage. Astral set a new standard with this jacket!

Amazing PFD - Indus Tested

I just got back from a 30 day trip to Pakistan that culminated in paddling the Rondu Gorge of the Indus. With 20 days on the water and a whole crew of four using the Astral Indus PFD, I got a really good for how this PFD works in the context it was designed for - class five big water paddling. I personally took three swims in the Indus. Two of the swims were relatively expected with large holes and a crew of safety at the bottom. I was stoked to have the extra flotation and it was noticeable when as soon as I flushed out of the hole I was quick to the surface and able to get to shore with the help of the safety crew. I did however have one swim that was unexpected and scary. In a rushed attempt to set safety for a friend, I seal launched into the water and quickly was pushed into an undercut on shore in my boat, alone and with the rest of my crew up at the top of the rapid I was forced to swim after multiple attempts to get upright in the undercut. I flushed when I swam but was then pushed into a siphon on shore. Here I believe the Indus PFD really helped me to self rescue. As compared to other swims I have encountered in the Astral Greenjacket and other notable pfd's from Kokatat, where even when swimming you are seriously at the mercy of the river. I found that in this specific and dangerous situation, the floatation from the Indus PFD actually held me up on the surface - I caught my breath and was able to get oriented in time to see that I could actually pull and climb out of there without getting pushed from the force of the water under the rocks where my fate would have been different. This is not a glory story, but an honest testament to this PFD used in the river it was designed for - a river with consequences. A big thanks to Astral for designing a PFD that will continue to support the safe progression of the sport.

Great PFD but...

I would have given the indus a 5 star rating but my only complaint for this new PFD is the access zip to the pocket and the pocket itself. One of the things I loved about the green jacket was that big front pocket with different spots to separate your items in the pocket. I've always carried a simple pin kit in my front pocket i.e prussics, sling and caribinars also ear plugs and a knife. Never been a big fan of the external mounted knives as I've found that they tend to be a snag point and also can easily fall out. I love the extra buoyancy and the overall fit feels very similar to the green jacket. If it was up to me I'd suggest the green jacket 2.0 (same jacket more buoyancy)

Living the extra floatation

The extra floatation has been great for teaching river rescue and I haven't noticed the extra bulk when kayaking. The zipper pocket no lt near as good as the classic clam shell. It is still new so I am finding hard to keep tight enough. I think once it is worked on some more the straps and foam will not be as ridged and slippery

Almost perfect. Upgrade from the Green Jacket.

Great jacket, but there is no pocket organization.

Too small!

Familiarity:

I've used it once or twice and have initial impressions

Size Bought:

L/XL

Great purchase experience from Backcountry! Astral WAY undersized these vests. If you typically need M/L size up. Reached out to Astral customer service. That was useless…

First pull over vest

This was my first pullover vest. Took a little getting used to, but once I had worn it for a couple of days on my most recent multi-day trip I liked it a lot. Super comfortable and feels very secure. All of the pockets and fittings are thoughtfully placed. Flotation was great, tested it out with a swim from camp one afternoon. Great vest overall.

Great PFD

Very comfortable for long hours in the kayak. Does not ride up in the water!!! I know some people complained about lack of the clamshell pocket but for me this storage configuration is perfect. Pocket easily takes my iPhone Pro - knife pocket security takes my folder ( as a side bonus you can use your knife clip to hook the skirt out of the way when on land)