FINS, FINS, and more FINS!!! Help!

[keller34]

I have been searching and searching, reading and reading, Comparing this to that, and that to this. My eyes are bleeding and I have not made up my mind yet.

I am looking for a good fin that will not break the bank and last. I have been looking at Slingshots, Force Fins, and a multitude of others.

I have not looked at any kind of split fins.

I used to use a pair of Jets but lost one and well it was time to replace them after 20+ years.

I will be swimming in current at times( little to moderate), I am looking at the possibility of cave in the future( a year or so away), I am looking for something easy on the legs but can power it if I need to but don't have enough stamina yet to keep it up for longer than 3-5 minutes(working on that but I am kinda lazy).

I know that I will get a ton of different opinions and a lot of them I have read from the forums here and elsewhere. But very few say how and what kind of diving they will be doing. 98% of my Diving will be central to south Florida, Mostly SHORE dives with a 400 yards swim at times( was doing it in the JETs and had to rest on the surface for a bit before dropping), then on to wrecks in a few months.

So with all this being said I was looking to keep it below $150. I have called around to a few stores but none had a pair that I could try out and that really sucks! Does anyone have a good idea what I can use or should I just go with another pair of Jets? If anyone around tampa has any fins I could try in a pool let me know, I would love to try before I buy.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

I have been searching and searching, reading and reading, Comparing this to that, and that to this. My eyes are bleeding and I have not made up my mind yet.

I am looking for a good fin that will not break the bank and last. I have been looking at Slingshots, Force Fins, and a multitude of others.

I have not looked at any kind of split fins.

I used to use a pair of Jets but lost one and well it was time to replace them after 20+ years.

I will be swimming in current at times( little to moderate), I am looking at the possibility of cave in the future( a year or so away), I am looking for something easy on the legs but can power it if I need to but don't have enough stamina yet to keep it up for longer than 3-5 minutes(working on that but I am kinda lazy).

I know that I will get a ton of different opinions and a lot of them I have read from the forums here and elsewhere. But very few say how and what kind of diving they will be doing. 98% of my Diving will be central to south Florida, Mostly SHORE dives with a 400 yards swim at times( was doing it in the JETs and had to rest on the surface for a bit before dropping), then on to wrecks in a few months.

So with all this being said I was looking to keep it below $150. I have called around to a few stores but none had a pair that I could try out and that really sucks! Does anyone have a good idea what I can use or should I just go with another pair of Jets? If anyone around tampa has any fins I could try in a pool let me know, I would love to try before I buy.

I would recommend freedive fins. The long ones. If you are swimmng 1/4 mile out and 1/4 mile back... then you really need to get a good fin. I think your best bet would be a pair of soft fiberglass freedive fins, strong, efficient and easy to kick... but they will probably run $200 or more. you can get plastic polymer freedive fins for less than $100 if you look around..

 

[tbone1004]

jet fins are what they are for a reason, but they take very powerful legs to move through the water. Nothing, literally nothing, kicks like a jet fin *their clones are included in that, OMS Slipstream, HOG Tech 2 is almost there, Hollis F1 etc*. I use jet fins, but I stay in shape, and my legs can kick them. There is a reason they are the preferred fin for the military rescue swimmers and the rest of the dive teams. The freedive fins are good, but very unweildy and you can't backkick with them.

The DiveRite fins are a bit easier to kick, come with spring straps, and are very popular in cave country, especially with sidemount guys that tend to be leg heavy.
Cave Adventurers - Dive Rite EXP Fins with SS Spring Straps - Marianna, Florida USA - Never Undersold!

They're really nice fins, just not big enough of a foot pocket for me otherwise I would have a pair.

 

[keller34]

Swimming the 1/4 mile out and back does not happen often but a 200-300 yard does a lot. The freedive fins are out because of possible cave and also I do back fin a lot. I am going to call around for the DR fins and see if anyone has a pair to try.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

Swimming the 1/4 mile out and back does not happen often but a 200-300 yard does a lot. The freedive fins are out because of possible cave and also I do back fin a lot. I am going to call around for the DR fins and see if anyone has a pair to try.

I personally have very little need to swim backwards and I don't cave dive.. I think these would be a second choice if you want to deal with dive boots and heel straps and buckles and things to catch fishing line on your feet....


Mares Avanti Quattro Plus Adjustable Spring Strap Fins 410003 with reviews at scuba.com

 

[fbk]

You don't want freediving fins in caves. There is a reason Jet fins and the like are popular, because they work. There isn't a size of Jet that fits me properly so I use F1's. Other fins like the Dive Rites and Quattro's are just as popular for the same reason. Fins don't need to be complicated, most of the multicoloured space age polymer crap with gimmicky features like hinges and splits are just that IMO. The only thing that really matters is that they fit and are comfortable and suit what you are doing, ie not too long and floppy if you are thinking about doing caves in future.

 

[keller34]

I saw the F1's and read about them. So far the choice looks to be Jets, F1, DR, and Quattro's. I like the Yellow tip of the BATs.

What about the Hollis F2? Has anyone used those?

 

[tbone1004]

Bats are very heavy in the foot so keep that in mind. Quattros are my pool fins because they don't have the thrust of the jet fins. Diverite fins should be fairly abundant down there, pretty easy to find someone who has them.

 

[roll_tide_daniel]

I have Jets, and just simply got tired of the cramps and fatigue associated with them. I got some used Mares Volos and they have been fine. I also picked up a pair of Force Fin Pro's at a local thrift store here on the cheap. I have only done 2 dives & some pool work with them and I absolutely loved them. No cramps and REALLY easy to kick in & you can motor with them. I know the reviews are very mixed on them here, but I really enjoyed using them. If you kick out on your back, they're very easy to surface swim with. They do however suck to snorkel with.

That said, I'm a very new diver, so take my input with that in mind. I don't purport to be an expert, so YMMV.

 

[tbone1004]

For sale: Atomic mask, Hollis & Dive-Rite fins, Halcyon 21W HID

no idea what your foot size is, but I know there's other threads with them FS used