DIR fins

[Ben_ca]

Just get some used Jets and be done with it... There's a ton of them out on Ebay or Craigslist.


ScubaPro Jet Fins X-Large / scuba pro / kirby morgan - eBay (item 260196435901 end time Jan-01-08 15:59:18 PST)

 

[meesier42]

OK, I'll bite. DO Force Fins fit the bill? I ask only becasue I plan on taking DIR-F very soon, but currently dive splits (and Flip Fins for boat dives) due to major injuries of my pelvis, hip, femur, knee and ankle. I understand the Force Fins ae a bit easier on the largs, but can you do ALL the required kicks in them?

absolutely you can do all of the required kicks. also any of the Standard Force Fin are great, recommend the Pro material or the Tan Delta material will meet all the requirements and some. and the standard strap is a webbing and well mine is over 10 years old and I don't know how many dives and they are fine, however the bungie strap kit that you can get, make donning and doffing easier.

although I would say the FF that best fit the needs of a DIR diver is the Original Material Excellerating FF. this is because they were designed for the frog kick they do wonderfully.

Problem, their not cheap
but you can get them here
Scuba diving gear Fins Force Fins at Scuba.com Page 2
although their specs are for the Tan Delta material, those are the standard fins.

 

[Jay Roy]

I understand the Force Fins ae a bit easier on the largs, but can you do ALL the required kicks in them?

I can't say for sure, as I have never tried them..But I doubt it..Just get the Jets..They work perfect...

 

[meesier42]

I can't say for sure, as I have never tried them..But I doubt it..Just get the Jets..They work perfect...

huh, why am I not surprised that someone who justifies his opinion by admiting that they have never tried them, follows it with a strong damning statement that "I doubt it"

If Jets worked so "perfectly" then please explain why other fins exist at all. Since Jets have been around since... well since the birth of Scuba, and if they were so perfect then why would anyone try and improve on perfection. Oh wait, maybe its because perfection doesn't exist, and the Jets are everything but perfect. Hence the reason that so many divers are moving to different newer fins that have been designed to create lift vice drag.

If you are going to form an opinion at least base it on something, other than "I doubt it". Talk to people that have EXTENSIVELY DIVE both styles and types. I had to dive Jets for well over 200 dives with my job, but finally dumped them in favor of my ForceFins. In the process I have used many other fins, including Mares Avanti Quattro, Dacor BlackTigers, Apollo Bios, Atomic Splits, and at least a dozen others. The only fins that I have tried that I even liked at all other than the ForceFin, were the Atomics and the Apollos. The Atomics I enjoyed until those panels started falling out and I dumped them for the Apollo's, which I later sold to a friend since I never used them.

robertarak- if you would like to hear from the people that dive the FF line, head over to the FF subforum and multiple people will be happy to backup my statement that FF's can accomplish ALL of the required kicking styles that DIR desires

 

[RonzoTheGreat]

I was told by a pretty reputable source, that aside from all of the points you are discussing on the various fins, the gentleman who made and runs the FF company can be reached on the phone directly and spoken to as a human ... (im not a FF diver as I use mares volo power and turtles pending on conditions and my legs) this being said, i will certainly consider them for this reason alone in future purchases ... how many of these other companies can say this?

 

[DeepSeaExplorer]

I was told by a pretty reputable source, that aside from all of the points you are discussing on the various fins, the gentleman who made and runs the FF company can be reached on the phone directly and spoken to as a human ... (im not a FF diver as I use mares volo power and turtles pending on conditions and my legs) this being said, i will certainly consider them for this reason alone in future purchases ... how many of these other companies can say this?

I understand what you're saying, but why would you need customer support for fins?

When given a choice of purchasing a fin that's simple, proven and reliable Vs a fin that requires customer support, I would go with the former.

 

[Lone Frogman]

don't be sucked into the turtles, jets or nothing mentality. Read that actualy requirement before you buy a set of fins. And there are lots of them out there that outperform the Jets and meet all the requirements.

I got sucked in to the Jets about 30 years ago still working good for me. Maybe some day when I grow up I'll buy some flip fins with spring straps . NOT

 

[wedivebc]

huh, why am I not surprised that someone who justifies his opinion by admiting that they have never tried them, follows it with a strong damning statement that "I doubt it"

OK well I am not DIR but I have tried force fins and I hated them. I borrowed some for a few weeks and did a dozen or so dives and could never get them to do anything but a reasonable flutter. They sucked at frog kick and stirred up all kinds of silt so I went back to my Turtles that I got sucked into buying about 8 years ago.

 

[wunat]

anyone have any suggestions where to buy a good set of DIR fins? (tec fins)

SP Jets are probably among the favourites. But then it doesn't have to be the Jets.

Would like to get a pair that have Spring Straps but I can get those separately if necessary.

Yeap, spring straps would make the fins (especially the Jets) very lovely. Got my from Spring-Straps.com

Again, it doesn't need to be Jets. But if you do like them, do look into other variations of the Jet-style fins such as Slipstream from OMS, Turtles, and etc. They have different buoyancy characteristics and sizing (which the Jets gets complained alot). Anyway, just make sure you stay away from split fins (at least that what I experience said so).

 

[David P]

Robert, a buddy of mine wears FF, he wasn't sure if he liked them or not untill he took them for a week live aboard. He really likes them except that after a dive they absolutely glue themselves to his feet and he simply cannot get them off by himself. Its to the point where he doesn't even try he knows he needs help breaking the seal. He says they are very comfy, and he feels you use different muscles with them.(?) If you want to try them I'll give him a call and I'm sure you can borrow them for a dive. One problem with them that I can see, we make fun of him and call him the Christmas elf, I tell him he should paint them either red or green... so take you pick, transformer, or Christmas elf.