Carbonteks Review

[oto_gc]

I just got these from Spain and tried them yesterday for the first time.

I got the Ochenta y cinco (85s) in a medium stiffness (comes in soft, medium, hard).

installation is done without screws, no holes in the blades, just a drop of glue in the corners and base of the pockets. the stiffness is a little more than I hope it would be, i'd say it's between the c4 30 and 40, closer to 40. So if you don't like stiff, i'd recommend going with the soft because they are long enough.

it's a whole different world going from cressis to these fins, I used them yesterday for 4 hrs straight and did not cramp, but I could feel they were there after a while, just need to get used to them. the performance is great, i felt like i had thrusters on my feet. wearing light weights, the descend was quick, almost too quick, they seemed like overkill for diving in 50-70'. the ascent, forget about it, I was at the surface before I realized I needed to breathe after 1:45 dives.

conclusions: great fin, but really intended for deep diving and strong legs, I'd say 60'+ minimum,

they are approx. 96cms installed, 83cm blade, 19cm wide

[seahunter49]

Thanks for the review. Are these carbon blades? It would seem obvious from the name, I just want to be sure.

[spear'nfool]

and how much were they

[oto_gc]

yes, these are 100% carbon, they do have a model that is carbon and fiber glass

$300 shipped, give or take a few depending on euro/dollar exchange rate.

[spear'nfool]

do you think they could be found anywhere in the US

[JosephJ]

what kind of glue did you use? $300 for carbon not bad.

[deepdown]

scubasworld has them.

[apnea_complex]

Thanks for the review, Oto!

I was actually just looking at purchasing a pair of these, but I need to upgrade my mono first. They look great!

[sciencemike]

I think Jon has his carbon mono up for sale. Its a HARD version.

Have you ever tried any other fins besides the cressi's.. If so how do they compare. Im looking for comparisons to C4's or even fibers.

[oto_gc]

no problem. I ended up re-doing the installation and was able to set the blades back into the pockets all the way, reducing overall length by 0.3 inch, why? they are long so I wanted to make sure they were as far back in there as possible. Based on my short experience with them is that they best suited for up and down diving in 60' or more, swiming on the surface can be hard since they are so long. I got medium stiff but if I could do it all over again, I'd even go with #1 soft, because they are so long less stiff is better.

I ended up getting a pair of the mattmimetics (also by carbontek), #1 soft, from a forum member that I plan to use in shallower diving, less than 60'. I haven't tried them yet but these blades have a very nice feel to them, the blade itself is 73cm x 21cm , whereas the 85 is 84cm x19cm.

it is also worth mentioning the installation takes a litle bit of work as they are thick at base unlike the C4s, they appear much stronger and more durable than the C4s. I have used C4s 30 and 40, cressis 2000s and I have to say these offer the greatest propulsion by far, especially when trying to close the distance on a fish once you're on the bottom.

the installation on carbontek blades is without screws, just a drop of loctite on tips and base of the pocket, let it cure for a few days, all set to go

I'll post a picture tomorrow showing all 3 fins, 85, mattmimetics, cressis.

[settingsteel]

good review man, the seem like some purdy tight fins...price seems right too!

[apnea_complex]

Originally Posted by sciencemike

I think Jon has his carbon mono up for sale. Its a HARD version.

Yeah, I don't like the idea of carbon monofins. They're just too fragile, and there's so much surface area, you would think they would break sooner. I mean, people already have problems with cracking there fiberglass monos.

Plus, I'm looking into the hyper design. I'm now stuck on either a Leaderfins hyper pro, or the glide. I've been told that some leaderfins are poorly built, and that the glides are more uncomfortable, but a better fin.

I'll probably get the Glide, but still use my nemo #2 for recreational dives.

Plus, a HARD mono would be a pain in the ass.