Ditching the Splits: What now?

[00wabbit]

I could have written that list in those exact words.

Faced with the need for lighter fins myself, I picked up a pair of Mares Avanti Quattro Plus. I have not used them a great deal yet, but I am happy with them so far. Right now I am using the Hollis F1s with a dry suit and the Mares with a wet suit. I may switch to the Mares for dry suit while side mount--I am too new in that to be sure.

If you are still considering the Jets, I have a pair of XL with spring straps I can give you for a really good price.

Guess I've been soaking up the Scubaboard hive mind a little too long But seriously, there is a reason people start to gravitate towards certain gear in certain situations.


I also have the mares avanti quattro plus. Go ahead and use them for sidemount. They are great. Really nice power on the frog kick and you can get a back kick out of them pretty well too. They are a little floppy though on the back kick that's why I'm moving to Dive Rite XTs.

 

[cdemith]

OMS Slipstreams are still my favorite, but I guess they're currently not available.

^^What he said.

They are currently not available (unless you are XXL).

I have been searching for new fins too. It is funny how many times in these forums the Slipstream is suggested, even though they have been out of production for awhile. After having seen a pair in person, I know that is what I want. Of course they are not available now, at least in XL.

I have tried eBay, Craigslist, random searches for all iterations of OMS Slipstream Scuba fin. It has now become very frustrating. I even ordered a pair on omsdive.com. That was just a cruel joke. After a couple of calls to OMS in which nobody answered, the number is now disconnected.

Hopefully with DUI buying OMS we can get these fins into production again.

BTW, if anyone out there has a pair of Slipstreams in XL that they want to get rid of, please let me know.

 

[chillyinCanada]

Yes TS&M, thanks for catching that. I had intended to put that caveat in my post.

 

[bc214]

Hey man. I'm still new, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I also got a set of slits with my OW class. Twin jets to be precise. After a while I got the idea that I needed paddles because the splits felt sloppy in the water while doing the frog kick or helicopter. I picked up the dive rites and love them. After using the Hollis f1 and the jet fins, the dive rites are lighter and less negative. Overall they are really nice.

I got a terrific price on a pair of lx dive rites, only to find out that they were just a tad loose on me, so I bought the larges. So now I'm sitting here with both.

If you have a need for xl dive rite fins, I would be happy to pass on the savings to you after subtracting a couple of dives worth of use in freshwater from the price. I have no room for an extra set of identical fins at my house.

Good luck with whatever you choose, and enjoy the precision of straight fins, I know it was pretty awesome for me.


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[BBeall]

Hey man. I'm still new, so take what I say with a grain of salt. I also got a set of slits with my OW class. Twin jets to be precise. After a while I got the idea that I needed paddles because the splits felt sloppy in the water while doing the frog kick or helicopter. I picked up the dive rites and love them. After using the Hollis f1 and the jet fins, the dive rites are lighter and less negative. Overall they are really nice.

I got a terrific price on a pair of lx dive rites, only to find out that they were just a tad loose on me, so I bought the larges. So now I'm sitting here with both.

If you have a need for xl dive rite fins, I would be happy to pass on the savings to you after subtracting a couple of dives worth of use in freshwater from the price. I have no room for an extra set of identical fins at my house.

Good luck with whatever you choose, and enjoy the precision of straight fins, I know it was pretty awesome for me.


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What size shoe do you wear/what mm boot did you try these with? I might be interested!

 

[bc214]

I wear 3mm low booties or 5mm booties with a minimal sole and size 11.5. They fit like a glove with some of the thicker sole boots, and I would imagine would be great with my 11.5 or larger with a thicker sole boot. Also, anything 12 and over with pretty much any boot.

I'm going with large so that I can get away with my super thin boots.


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[BBeall]

Yeah I would have to go with a Large too probably. I wear a 10.5 with usually a 3 or 5 mm boot. That's a shame because I'm really interested in trying a pair of the Dive Rites! I'll let you know if I find anyone who fits the bill for your XL fins though.

 

[DeputyDan]

I use the open heel Mares Avanti Quattro with the Mares 5 mm trilastic dive boots.

The boots are excellent for Bonaire, but I use them pretty much everywhere.

This is my fourth set of fins in 12 years - and is the only one I would purchase again.

 

[bc214]

Yeah I would have to go with a Large too probably. I wear a 10.5 with usually a 3 or 5 mm boot. That's a shame because I'm really interested in trying a pair of the Dive Rites! I'll let you know if I find anyone who fits the bill for your XL fins though.

Cool man. Good luck with it. I would definitely NOT recommend the XL's to you with a 10.5. Still, the dive rite's have been awesome, so if you find a set of large ones, snatch them up.

 

[fnfalman]

Scubapro Seawing Nova. Nuff said.