Mako Comp FG fins

[The Jewish Assassin]

Hey, anyone try the new Mako FG fins? I recently tried Carbon and was VERY impressed with how much better they were than plastic (Black Teams). I would be using Picasso pockets.

[JRT]

I love my medium stiffness mako fg fins. I also upgraded from black teams. At first I thought that they were a little stiff but after a couple days diving I couldn't fell a difference.

[The Jewish Assassin]

Originally Posted by JRT

I love my medium stiffness mako fg fins. I also upgraded from black teams. At first I thought that they were a little stiff but after a couple days diving I couldn't fell a difference.

So maybe the Med/Soft would be best? The black teams are really stiff and I would like to soften up a bit for long dives. Before anyone says "You just need to get used to them," I have dove with them for about 2 years now and a FII instructor has said that my kicking is off because of the stiffness.

[ezcompany]

isn't fiberglass different from carbon?

[The Jewish Assassin]

Originally Posted by ezcompany10

isn't fiberglass different from carbon?

Yes. Though it is much more similar to CF than plastic (both CF and FG are fibers with resin). Can anyone comment on FG vs CF?

[Dino Spadoni]

I have the Mako FG medium stiffness fins. They are faster and more efficent than my omer millinium platic blade fins. I too thought they may be a little too stiff, but my instructor noticed I wasn't kicking right. I am now trying to kick from my hips instead of just my legs and they seem alot better. I have only 2 dives on them so far. I am in dive tourniment this coming weekend and will let you know more.

[Blue Man]

I asked someone about the Mako FG fins and I thought they recommended the soft. Sorry, can't remember the details.

[byronq]

From what I've heard, they do tend to run a bit stiff. Brian Pucella hit 70 meters, or 230 ft with those fins at this year's vertical blue- an incredible achievement! Without a monofin, no less!

Here's the post from William Trubridge/Vertical Blue:
http://www.facebook.com/verticalblue...06049199435327

[Trimbandit]

Originally Posted by The Jewish Assassin

So maybe the Med/Soft would be best? The black teams are really stiff and I would like to soften up a bit for long dives. Before anyone says "You just need to get used to them," I have dove with them for about 2 years now and a FII instructor has said that my kicking is off because of the stiffness.

I think a lot of people use fins that are too stiff. Just because you can push a stiff fin, doesn't mean that it is efficient to do so.

[Erik Sun]

Originally Posted by The Jewish Assassin

Yes. Though it is much more similar to CF than plastic (both CF and FG are fibers with resin). Can anyone comment on FG vs CF?

Hi Jewish Assassin,

We have been selling Fiberglass and Carbon fins for SPIERRE brand used by Trevor Hutton (2x World Freediving Record Holder, Jaco Blignaut - 5x SA National Champion, Tommy Botha -11x SA National Champion and the SA National team. My former partner in Sumora Craig Heslop is a 30M hunter and regularly hunts in 40M and now uses the fins, too (he's on the national team).

We've had a number of satisfied customers go from high-end fiberglass fins and other Carbon blades to the SPIERRE Carbons and the mention that they're done searching for blades, noting that the difference was "lighter, with more responsive kicking" (snap-back to original).

I feel qualified to answer your question not because I sell it, but because I have used every stiffness from soft to extra hard including the FG Monofin and Carbon Monofin. Both in the pool and in the ocean, paired with either a Picasso footpocket for the bi-fins or a FINIS footpocket for the Monofin.

I have also used other leading fiberglass brands such as Edge and DiveR which is another subject.

After using the two materials, I don't think it's fair to compare.
If you do the research, there are a lot of companies out there, but there are some that use shortcuts in their glass and their carbon. They will mix it with other cheaper elements. This is why our Pure Carbon blades are 100% Carbon Fiber, with no fiberglass components. A Pure Carbon fin will provide maximum thrust, more responsive kicking...but also a higher price tag. At the World Meet, the divers had a chance to try other competitors' gear and see what each team uses, and the South African team (sponsored by SPIERRE) came back fin-less as the other world meet members bought their fins from them.

This is not to say Fiberglass fins don't have a place. Personally I think they are good on rocks, shore-diving, and can be more durable than CF.

When you go from Plastic to FG you will feel the upgrade, just as you will when moving from FG to Carbon. When you go from CF down to FG you will feel like you're pushing water with a heavier paddle, so to speak.

If you crawl on a lot of rocks and throw your weightbelt on your fins accidentally every day you may want to go FG but if you do boat diving and take care of your gear (and price is not so big an issue), then CF is the best fin material.

Your ankles will tire less, your quads won't feel it as much, and you will go farther and dive deeper.

Other things to consider other than simply "glass or Carbon fiber" are the dimensions of the fins which can have a large impact on your diving. If you find yourself doing a lot of up-down then you may want some long-fins. If you want more maneuverability below and on the surface when fighting a fish you may want to have a shorter fin.

The way the SPIERRE Fins are designed is they're long and wide, but not TOO long. They are one of the wider fins I have seen at 80 x 22cm and a 24 degree angle, though SPIERRE will build you a custom pair to your length/width dimension and stiffness based on your diving and weight, etc at no additional charge if you want, or you can have an Off-the shelf. (you just have to wait).
The reason for the 80cm length x 22cm width is in SA they have some large fish where they need torque to fight the fish and get up to the surface. There are a number of videos of Jaco blignaut shooting fish at 30+ meters.
They're also designed for maneuverability, where you may find some others are too long, or too short, and not maneuverable.

Good luck with your decision on the material, and also don't forget to take into consideration dimensions of the fin and the size of the fin-rails which can also affect maneuverability and overall fin-performance.

[mochosla]

I have the Mako FB soft blades and love them. I had the medium ones before but they were too stiff for me.

[ezcompany]

very interesting! i have the omer millenium plastic blades. dino, what do you mean by faster?

[Roger23043]

Carbon fiber fins are near indestructible. Fiberglass is heavier. The big difference is price. The best bang for your buck IMHO = Fiberglass. I forgot where I read that fiberglass is more efficient in spring back but you feel the weight difference in your kick......I found it....http://forums.deeperblue.com/monofin...bon-fibre.html

[The Jewish Assassin]

Originally Posted by byronq

From what I've heard, they do tend to run a bit stiff. Brian Pucella hit 70 meters, or 230 ft with those fins at this year's vertical blue- an incredible achievement! Without a monofin, no less!

Here's the post from William Trubridge/Vertical Blue:
http://www.facebook.com/verticalblue...06049199435327

Sounds like a good testament to the fin's ability. Thanks!

Originally Posted by EEZerik

Hi Jewish Assassin,

We have been selling Fiberglass and Carbon fins for SPIERRE brand used by Trevor Hutton (2x World Freediving Record Holder, Jaco Blignaut - 5x SA National Champion, Tommy Botha -11x SA National Champion and the SA National team. My former partner in Sumora Craig Heslop is a 30M hunter and regularly hunts in 40M and now uses the fins, too (he's on the national team).

We've had a number of satisfied customers go from high-end fiberglass fins and other Carbon blades to the SPIERRE Carbons and the mention that they're done searching for blades, noting that the difference was "lighter, with more responsive kicking" (snap-back to original).

I feel qualified to answer your question not because I sell it, but because I have used every stiffness from soft to extra hard including the FG Monofin and Carbon Monofin. Both in the pool and in the ocean, paired with either a Picasso footpocket for the bi-fins or a FINIS footpocket for the Monofin.

I have also used other leading fiberglass brands such as Edge and DiveR which is another subject.

After using the two materials, I don't think it's fair to compare.
If you do the research, there are a lot of companies out there, but there are some that use shortcuts in their glass and their carbon. They will mix it with other cheaper elements. This is why our Pure Carbon blades are 100% Carbon Fiber, with no fiberglass components. A Pure Carbon fin will provide maximum thrust, more responsive kicking...but also a higher price tag. At the World Meet, the divers had a chance to try other competitors' gear and see what each team uses, and the South African team (sponsored by SPIERRE) came back fin-less as the other world meet members bought their fins from them.

This is not to say Fiberglass fins don't have a place. Personally I think they are good on rocks, shore-diving, and can be more durable than CF.

When you go from Plastic to FG you will feel the upgrade, just as you will when moving from FG to Carbon. When you go from CF down to FG you will feel like you're pushing water with a heavier paddle, so to speak.

If you crawl on a lot of rocks and throw your weightbelt on your fins accidentally every day you may want to go FG but if you do boat diving and take care of your gear (and price is not so big an issue), then CF is the best fin material.

Your ankles will tire less, your quads won't feel it as much, and you will go farther and dive deeper.

Other things to consider other than simply "glass or Carbon fiber" are the dimensions of the fins which can have a large impact on your diving. If you find yourself doing a lot of up-down then you may want some long-fins. If you want more maneuverability below and on the surface when fighting a fish you may want to have a shorter fin.

The way the SPIERRE Fins are designed is they're long and wide, but not TOO long. They are one of the wider fins I have seen at 80 x 22cm and a 24 degree angle, though SPIERRE will build you a custom pair to your length/width dimension and stiffness based on your diving and weight, etc at no additional charge if you want, or you can have an Off-the shelf. (you just have to wait).
The reason for the 80cm length x 22cm width is in SA they have some large fish where they need torque to fight the fish and get up to the surface. There are a number of videos of Jaco blignaut shooting fish at 30+ meters.
They're also designed for maneuverability, where you may find some others are too long, or too short, and not maneuverable.

Good luck with your decision on the material, and also don't forget to take into consideration dimensions of the fin and the size of the fin-rails which can also affect maneuverability and overall fin-performance.

Wow, thank you for the detailed response! FG would be a better option for me as I am pretty rough with my gear. I am not a very deep diver and want to be more comfortable at the surface and cruising the water 15-40ft down. As for size, I don't know if I am able to make that decision. I guess a shorter fin would be optimal but my main consideration is price. I usually beach dive and there is a moderate chance of losing fins so keeping them as cheap as possible while gaining performance is my main goal.

Originally Posted by mochosla

I have the Mako FB soft blades and love them. I had the medium ones before but they were too stiff for me.

Thanks! Looks like mediums are out

Originally Posted by Roger23043

Carbon fiber fins are near indestructible. Fiberglass is heavier. The big difference is price. The best bang for your buck IMHO = Fiberglass. I forgot where I read that fiberglass is more efficient in spring back but you feel the weight difference in your kick.

CF isn't indestructible. My friends cracked from a weight belt being dropped on them (something I do to my plastics all the time).

[Sasha]

Originally Posted by byronq

From what I've heard, they do tend to run a bit stiff. Brian Pucella hit 70 meters, or 230 ft with those fins at this year's vertical blue- an incredible achievement! Without a monofin, no less!

Here's the post from William Trubridge/Vertical Blue:
http://www.facebook.com/verticalblue...06049199435327

One of my friends/trainer Leo muraoka made 75m with bi-fins last Sunday with FG fins he made himself. They are really soft. A soft #1 stiffness equivalent. His PB is 86m. How he does it I don't know. You can fold his fins back into a U shape. He's not into carbon, swears by FG. I've used 20fathoms, and C4's on the lines to 50m. The FG gave me more of a load up than the carbons, but for me were a lot heavier. Hunting I prefer carbons cuz of the weight