Trying to understand the difference between models

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Rob9000

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Scuba Instructor
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I have been through the FF web site and called there to get a better understanding of which model is right for me. The bigger your profile in the water, the stiffer and/or bigger fin they recommend. So for a dry suit diver who is a big guy, they recommend the Extra FF. The Pro model is adaptable to more scuba divers in general. What gets me is according to the Navy test info on the FF site, the regular FF is more productive, with efficiency declining as you go up in fin size and stiffness. I understand that with a larger profile underwater, you need more to push against to overcome the drag, but it seems the more you get away from the original FF design and flexibility, the more FF looses its advantage when compared to other brands and types of fins....and as you move away from the original FF, the prices start going up quite a bit. So, let's say I go for the Pro model....will I be able to get enough umph out of them to push myself against a current while in a dry suit? The Extra FF (even in the standard material...not the even more expensive tan delta material) is out of my price range.
 
I have a few buddies who are drysuit divers who use FF Pros. A few are over 6'0 and 200 lbs. I myself, while preferring to dive wet am 6'3 and weigh 240, and I exclusively use FF Pros now, and have for the past 4 years, even in current, and don't seem to have any problems keeping up with my non-FF buddies. Do you have any LDS that might rent a pair? Mine has a few pair in their rental dept, and suggest people try them a few times before they buy a pair.
Good luck,
C-Dawg
 
I prefer a really stiff fin, I use the Extra Force Tan Deltas or the new Military SD-1 which is much more flexible although I really like the feel of them. I used to dive the Pro's wet and found them to be a perfect fit for rec scuba. I am 220lbs and 6'1" and was a competitive swimmer for years.

The Navy testing was done in a flume tank and done with no tank, wetsuit etc. and at very high swimming rates. the test goes up to 50.4meters/min, but it is highly unlikely that you will ever swim that fast, not even all of the test subjects were able to get that. You are much more likely to stay in the <40 meter/min rates while you are diving. Reading those charts are decieving, the point of the chart is to show that the FF where as good as the best fins on the market, not really to show that they are better, because as you can see the difference between the best and the worst on that chart is really quite small, remember that the 2 fins (neither of which were turtles, rockets, or jets) that were charted against the FF were the most effiecent fins on the market.

Who did you talk with at FF?
But I would recommend staying with the FF original or the Pros. Once you have dove them for a while, you may want to switch up to one of the more advanced blades, but I am sure that you will find that the Originals/Pros will met your expectations for pretty much every dive that you make from now on.
 
I have dived with them all and you won't go wrong with the Pros.
That being said, if you pay the money and buy the military SD-1 it has the new foot pocket that can adjust from a 3mm wetsuit boot to a dry suit. If you travel a lot that will save you down the road. I did use my pros while teaching here in Alaska yesterday. With my xxl Pros they fit over my drysuit like a glove and putting them on is really easy.
 
First of all, the Pro Model will give you everything you need. It is our number one seller to Special Forces, and they can be pushing pretty heavy loads. Bob came up with the Extra Line when technical diving became a trend, circa, mid 1990&#8217;s. At Force Fin they called the technical divers bumble bees because they had so much gear, they should not have been able to swim. Bob felt that these guys needed a pile driver, so he designed a higher load Force Fin, and that is what the Extra Force Fin is. The next generation of this fin is Excellerating, which is my current preference.

I dove Original Force Fins for years and was very satisfied with them in most conditions, but when I started diving heavier gear. &#8211; I am much more comfortable with the Excellerating Force Fin. Most divers, even in a drysuit are recreational. They are best suited for the Original or Pro Model Force Fins. They don&#8217;t need all the extra finnage, but if you need it we have it with the Extra Line fins.


I would have to say the main difference between the PROS and the Extra Force is high gear versus low gear. The Pros will be the high gear fin and the Extra Force will be the low gear fin. It takes more energy to push the extra force, but it has more thrust per stroke. 18 wheel trucks pushing heavy loads versus sports cars that use less fuel.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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