Diving Fins

[lettemgo]

Been diving a couple times in shallow water. Not more than 25 ft. I dont like the fins I'm using. Gottem at boaters world. They give me cramps in my soles. would like to get some better ones. any suggestions.

[WreckDiver]

Topics' been beat to death. Do A Search

[richhermes]

http://www.spearboard.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1315

http://www.spearboard.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=3775

[jason33318]

i have sporasub dessault fins they seem to work for me i have not had any problems

[donmoore]

I would not call it totally beaten to death. First off forget snorkeling and become a freediver. Then get freediving equipment, which the most important of which is long blade fins. Next, might come a low volume mask for when you are going below 50 feet and need to equalize it.

The main problem with freediving fins, is most people have to order them, sight unseen. So I suggest you read and talk to as many people as possible. There just are not very many retail places that carry them. Most scuba shops don’t want the public to know about freediving. Why, because if you get into freediving, you don’t need tanks, regulators, air, BC, computers, etc.. They can’t stay in business unless they sell equipment and freedivers are not equipment intensive. A lot of freedivers are divemasters or at least scuba certified, that became tired of all the equipment and where turned on by physical and mental challenge freediving gives them.

In fin selection the biggest two questions, I think, are material and angle of fin. Material choices are: plastic or something with some snap (which is carbon or fiberglass). Plastic is by far the most inexpensive, tough and most common material. The only problem with plastic, is its slow rebound from flexing which means less propulsion. But this can be relative too, because compared to any scuba fin, be it split or what ever, long plastic fins give way more propulsion.

Carbon can be very high performance, but the disadvantage is the high cost and they are fragile. You don’t bang them around in the rocks, or throw weight belts, etc., on them while on the deck. Fiberglass is currently the rage, because it can give performance similar to carbon, but are much more durable. Their price is between carbon and plastic.

Angle of fin is the next issue and it has to do with how straight you can make your feet. Fins with angle have a downward bend right in front of the foot pocket. This enables people who cannot make their feet go straight with legs, the ability to make their fins straight with the legs. Almost all fins have some angle. The exception is some of the new fiberglass composite fins that are cut from sheets. Matrix, Waterways, Omer Bat fins are example of these fins. They are said to offer very good performance for those people with bendable feet. So far the only manufacture I know of that offers a fiberglass composite fin with angle is Sebak, www.sebakfins.net, with their Freediving Stereo Pro. I have a new unused pair waiting for my next trip.

All freediving plastic fins I have seen have angle. Picasso and Tigullio or two that I know have lots of angle. Omer and Cressi Sub are two with less angle. Those are the only four I have first hand knowledge about.

The other thing about these fins, is most are made to wear with neopreme socks. The foot pockets are made out of hard rubber. Picasso and Omer sizes, I think are adjusted, for wearing about a 3mm sock. I’m not sure about the other brands. If you want my recommendation for not knowing anymore about you than I do, I would say you can’t go wrong with Picasso Black Teams. I have never heard a bad word about them from anyone who has tried them. You can get them from for a good price, if shipping is not too much from www.diveinn.com.

Lettemgo, if your serious about getting into freediving spearfishing and lobster, I know a man in the Bahamas who would be an excellent resource. I sold him my kayak and he is one of those people who its just a joy to talk with. He and his wife are divemasters who got tired of scuba. He is in his mid 50’s, but you would never know it by talking to him. He hunts at 80 – 100 feet and regularly stays down more than 2 minutes at a time. PM or e-mail me and I will give you his e-mail.
don

[jason33318]

i agree definately invest in some freediving fins they make all the difference yes they are expensive but their worth it. if you look hard enough on the internet you can find them for a good price, also dive shops in areas where freediving is more popular might carry them.

[yonfuki]

the topic wasn't beatten to death until donmoore wrote a book about it....now it's been severely pounded.

[got lungs?]

lettemgo,
definitely check out the recent thread in Equipment section. i'm sure you already have. You will find some usefull info there, but i don't think you will want to go with the fins recommended on that thread. Since you mentioned your sole cramping i take it you don't swim much. the cramping was caused by a combo of muscle fatigue and dehydration. So many people don't stay hydrated when diving. ( Beer doesn't count:) ) this plays a major role especially when you are talking about swimming for hours on end. what kind of fins do you have? don't just go out and buy the stiffest fins. remember you want to enjoy yourself out there and be able to relax. isn't that the key to freediving? a lot of people jump into some stiff fins and hate them because diving becomes too much of a workout. i personally would continue using your fins (i'm assuming they are not total pieces of crap and that they are sized properly) untill you have built a good mental / endurance foundation then ask yourself these questions:

1 What kind of diving am i going to be doing: spearfishing for hours on end, freediving for an hour or two, fighting current, etc

2 what kind of physical shape am i in:L good shape, large, small, thin, etc

3 what are my goals: 50+, 100+ etc

after taking these things into consideration then you will be able to get some fins that can maximize your abilities. Good Luck

[WreckDiver]

No more fin questions, Just strap some wood to your feet - Go shoot some fish.:D

[yonfuki]

or sit around and watch "bugged" and "richhermes" avatars and get your keyboard all sticky.

[Spear Factor]

I have had a pair of cressi subs for about 8 years and they have been great. Worth every penny. I would not use anything but a long fin.

[Kasshia]

the cramping was caused by a combo of muscle fatigue and dehydration. Maybe, maybe not. My first bet would be the foot pockets are too narrow. letemgo, you want fins that fit just right even if it means shopping around and trying several makes and models. Too loose allows the fins to slop around causing blisters, too tight, even just a little tight, causes cramping in the feet. I have found that the Riffe Silent Hunters (O.ME.R Milleniums) fit me pretty well with just a pair of cotton athletic socks on under them, but I wish I the wife had gotten me the Pez Fuerte blades which are stiffer (O.ME.R. Millenium Competitors).

[RabiSpear]

Bro,
Go to leisurepro.com and order the Cressi HF2000 fins. They are $79 and are the best freedive fins this side of the OMER BAT series. You will never beat the price. I almost ordered two pairs. Need a soleless sock to go with them.

[JCACTION]

Anyone have an opinion of the mares quattros? I have been using them for years and they are long enought ( the full foot ones) and not as long as the freedive like esclapez and garras they keep me going pretty well

[richhermes]

I have the Quattros. I like them. No big noticeable difference over the planas, so I would not waste my $$. I just got the Quattros on Ebay for $30. I want a pair of Gara's.

[f94gator]

Cressi Gara 3000's, baby. Damn nice fins.

[kitefisherman]

I used the buckle up Quattros for over 5 years. I just bought the Gara 2000 HFs and took them to the Grounds for their maiden run last weekend. Before that I liked my Quattros, but now I can never go back and give up all that extra power that is at my disposal. The only negative is that the Garas are clumsy on the boat and dive platform because they're so long, but I'm sure that I'll get used to it soon.

[JCACTION]

That has been my only reservation from diving longfins rather than the quattros. I just think the longfins are clumsy on the boat but they suuuuuuure are nice in the water. I like the esclapez greens they are very nice fins

[J Ko]

I recently purchased a pair of Cressi Gara 2000s and love them. Hade a "normal lenght" fin before that and had real trouble keeping up with my two other friends. I also used alot more air trying to cover the same distance as them. Now with the new fins my air consumption is alot lower and I can cover alot more ground now. I agree they are clumsy on the boat and i usually don't put them on until I am on the platform for that reason.

I hear of one instance that one diver had while entering the water. He said one of his long blades actually split from the impact of him hittign the water using the giant stride method. Has anyone else ever heard of this happening?

[JCACTION]

Wow I have never heard that one before although if you look at the Riffe pez fins, they look pretty shoty and I could see them exploding on you!!!! Maybe they just had a bad batch.

I use the Garas for freediving but I would be thankful if Kitefisherman can reply, since you dove the quattros which I love and they are a little longer than the buckle ones I use the full foot. Was the improvement in speed that noticeable. Obviously you said you could not go back to them. If it is a dramatic improvement, I would star using my Garas no matter what, I always figured on scuba i might get tired faster so I have not tried. I guess the question is, do you have any more fatigue from the longer fins?

[Kasshia]

I used to use the Quattros for freedive hunting until the wife got me a pair of Riffe Silent Hunters. The first time I tried the Riffes both pair of the Quattros got relegate to gathering dust in loaner status. Huge difference. I do wish she had gotten me the stiffer blade Pez Fuertes, though. Here in the next few months I plan on getting a pair of the new O.ME.R. BAT 40 blades. Now that I have tried longblades I wouldn't hesitate to use them for SCUBA, if/when I get back into it.:)

I did take a pair of the Quattros back in the water for a short session after I had been using the Silent Hunters for a while. Bad move. I doubt what I think of those fins now can be printed in this forum.

[Prodigal Son]

Originally posted by JCACTION
Wow I have never heard that one before although if you look at the Riffe pez fins, they look pretty shoty and I could see them exploding on you!!!! Maybe they just had a bad batch...

I can see why you'd think that, but the Riffe/Omer Silent Hunters are fairly sturdy fins. I did a beach dive in 2-4 ft surf on very rocky shore with a long shallow surfline. I thought for sure my fins would crack from the beating they took, but they held up real well. My only complaint about the fins are that they are heavy and have a high rubber backing on the heel. The rubber backing keeps digging into my right achilles tendon, causing an ulcer on the skin. I'm going to try using 3mm booties (rather than 1.5mm) to see if that will get rid of this problem. AS soon as my fins do crack, I really want to get the Matrix fiberglass composite fin blades. They're very light and have great snap to them.

[DaKahuna]

Does anyone have any info on how different manufacturers foot pockets fit. I have been told that some seem either under or over sized, or may be narrower or wider. I think I need a somewhat narrower foot pocket, although I do plan on wearing neo booties often - Cali water is fairly cold.
Thanks!