Pains and Wessex RB6 Epirb battery replacement saga

[davo]

What a pain. My Epirb was due for a battery replacement so I emailed Pains and Wessex. No response. I eventually found another company which now handles these Epirbs so I emailed them. No luck but they gave me the right company which is Chemring.

I tried to contact them but I only got a reply after a week.

Now to the details. The company is in Victoria and me in Brisbane. They want $60 just for postage! The first battery is a free change but if you don't have the receipt then it's $220! I bought mine through a group purchase when I was in the Brisbane Sportfishing club and I am not sure where the receipt is???

The other options are just as bad. My advice is get a GME. I will be.

[Pazz01]

Hey Mate

We were in the same boat before Christmas but still had the receipt. Ended up turfing the old one and buying a new one with 10 year battery (no need to change after 5) for $250 up here in Cairns. The only way to go.

Pazz

[timddo]

Davo

I went through the same exercise 1 week ago. I had the receipt but one of the seal stickers had faded( there are so many conditions attached to them not stated when we originally purchased the unit) . I ended buying a new one with GPS for $290 delivered from them.

The replacement battery way would have taken 5-6 weeks to do and would have cost me $60 + $12 freight to them.

The way i see it now is. Get the one with the longest battery life. Mine is dated April 2014 and will expire in April 2024 ( Other brands only offer 5-6 years with free battery replacements + conditions apply). After this, i will turf it and buy a new one.

[davo]

What brand has the longest battery life?

[timddo]

Kti safety alert 10 year battery gps model or $220 non gps

[chocolatemoose]

yeah jsut go kti. they are better in every department. and gme have lost a bit of my confidence after a recall on their epirbs

[Chimo]

Hi CM

What recall???

C
C

[Owen]

yeah jsut go kti. they are better in every department. and gme have lost a bit of my confidence after a recall on their epirbs

Just as a matter of interest, how does one determine the relative performance or quality of an EPIRB ?
All we can do is push the test button and hope it works when the time comes.

I went through the same issue with my pains Wessex and was all set to buy a gme , but after hearing of the Clayton's recall I bought another PW with a 10 yr battery.
At less than $50/yr for a piece of electronics that spends its life in a salt water environment, I'd rather turf it then bet my life on the electronics being good for a second term,



Cheers
Owen


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[chocolatemoose]

http://www.recalls.gov.au/content/in...itemId/1054163

[SatNav]

1. The GME recall was not handled very well at all considering the importance of these devices.

[chocolatemoose]

especially as it only came to gme's light when an irish court found the death of 3 men in ireland was the result of one gmes epirb
...to clarify.. gme didnt murder anyone

[SatNav]

1. The Ireland incident might have raised the issue (again) but what has followed regarding this recall and/or notification has been very poorly communicated otherwise there would not be question re "What recall". This recall has not been widely communicated at all.

2. And as for the Ireland incident then the obvious question would also be why the reported faulire of 4 Epirbs in 2010 was not acted upon in 2010?

3. If there are still users of GME Epirb's out there who are totally unaware of this issue then questions do need to be asked.

[davo]

Interesting. Looks like it's a KTI.

[chocolatemoose]

voted davo.
im in the game and......hmm. mixed feelings. i almost exclusivly use GME arials. they are brilliant. their radios?. arh well. they are ok. they are price point stuff .... but yeah gmes.. hmmm.