thinking of buying new fins

[meesier42]

ForceFins are small, powerful, light. perfect for travelling

 

[buddhasummer]

fifty bucks in scubastore, but how small is small? -- their smallest size is not that tiny. Other than that, I like mine too.

I'm a 6.5 and used the XS Accels, the foot pockets are not as small as the sizing would suggest, I'm a 5mm boot and still had some lateral movement. I did change the strap out to a Mares bungee strap and that did help them fit a little better than the silicone strap. I ended up selling them as found in any moderate current they weren't that flash.

 

[outofofficebrb]

Hello,

I think it might be time to let go of my 90s fins with duct tape and replace.I have no idea what is the latest? I need booties to wear with my current fins but are no booties & fins what is used nowadays? I only dive/snorkel in tropics on vacation so not often and travel with a large backpack so the less weight the better. Can anyone recommend a brand of fins that are travel friendly and suitable for small feet? Thanks if you can reply.

Hi!

Cold or tropical, I still use the same boots and fins, local or travel. I like not having to worry about another pair of shoes to and from the dive boat and it's always more comfortable to me to go the bootie route. They're also good for shore dives. I have the Mares Avanti Quattro + fins that are pretty stiff that I love but they're not the lightest dive fins to travel with. I travel with them anyway because I love them so much. I wanted to respond to address the boot question you had, that's all. Good luck!

 

[buddhasummer]

I used to be a bit obsessed about light travel gear but found it was often a negative compromise. Now I travel with what I use locally, steel plate and DR XTs and pack less non dive gear. I found the the Quattro Plus in small to be surprisingly light as compared to many other fins I've owned, I also found them to be a little "twisty" I sold mine. I've found the XTs to be a near perfect fin for the diving I do. The only time I don't wear them is diving dry when I switch to the heavier Mares Power Planas which I also like a lot.

 

[stuartv]

If you don't need open heel, many people like freediving fins (that practically all come in full foot). The ones with detachable blades may fit in a backpack. You could PM @MAKO Spearguns and ask how long their blades are.

My Mako Competition FreeDiver fins are my absolute favorite fins for warm water, open water diving. Super powerful and they still work well for technical kicks. And they're pretty inexpensive.

For flying with them, I disassemble the blades from the foot pockets, to get the length down. The blades by themselves are very thin and flat (crossways - they do have a bend at the end where they insert into the foot pocket) so they stack easily.

Competition Freediver Fins | MAKO Spearguns

I use them with some neoprene socks. I even did shore dives in Hawaii with them, including in some moderate surf in a rocky shore area. I don't have them, but Mako does now have a version of their neoprene socks with a Kevlar sole, just for that kind of thing.

 

[ronscuba]

Stuart, do you have the Mako fins with plastic or fiberglass blades ?

I just got a pair with plastic blades. Will try them out in Cozumel in a month.

My leaderfins fibeglass blades cracked right at the bend point. I re-installed them in a different set of footpockets so they sit deeper in the footpocket and drilled them away from the crack.

I got the Mako plastics because I am worried the fiberglass fins might totally break even after my repair attempt. Will be interested to see the comparison.

 

[stuartv]

Stuart, do you have the Mako fins with plastic or fiberglass blades ?

I just got a pair with plastic blades. Will try them out in Cozumel in a month.

My leaderfins fibeglass blades cracked right at the bend point. I re-installed them in a different set of footpockets so they sit deeper in the footpocket and drilled them away from the crack.

I got the Mako plastics because I am worried the fiberglass fins might totally break even after my repair attempt. Will be interested to see the comparison.

I have the exact ones I linked to. That page says:

"these bent blades are made of a revolutionary new composition of 10% fiberglass + 90% borealis,"

I don't know what borealis is, but I'm guessing some kind of plastic.

I can't say I have used mine a lot. Somewhere around 20 dives. Most of my diving is cold water or diving to wrecks. I don't use the freediver fins on wreck dives as they are so long and I think that could be a problem if I go inside. But, in south FL and in Hawaii, they were awesome.

 

[andy2667]

+ 1 for freediving fins in particular for power, efficiency, handling strong current. It it suitable for most of the kicking techniques and diving environments except for wreck penetration or very confimed spaces.

It is good for flutter kick (powerful, efficient), and no problem for doing helicopter kicks, frog kicks, sisor kickss but need to get used to for doing backward kicks because of the long blade.

I ugraded my Seawing to Mares Advanti Quattro. No comparison. The quattro is more powerful and can do better in technical kicks. Then uogrades ro freediving fins in my recent Maldives trip. Again no comparison and will never go back. The freediving fins is far more wfdicient more powerful and much faster! I consumed consitently less air, move faster, and much easier in handling current.

3 of the 4 DMs in my liveaboard trips are using freediving long fins. There are good reasons for this.

However, if there is no need for handling strong current and compactness & light weight is essential, Mares Suoerchannel fullfoot is also a good choice.

I prefer plastic freediving fins to fiber ones because diving crews in kiveanoard may not be that careful for handling fiber fins which are fragile in comparison.

Hope this help