Fins recommendation for current

[DivingLuketw]

The big requirement for current is a fin that is easy enough to kick that you never need to stop kicking to rest. In current you need to keep kicking to not lose ground.

I am an ex-competitive swimmer and can kick very fast, but switching to a fin with a somewhat smaller blade made a big difference for me. A more flexible blade might help as well, but super flexible is not always good for frog kick

No frog kick seems alright for her, she doesn’t frog kick at all

 

[DivingLuketw]

So, the not so obvious answer... Let her swim first! There is nothing more tiresome than trying to catch up with someone that outswims you. It is not fun. It feels horrible. It is just plain terrible on foot, on skis, in a kayak, SRT climbing, bicykling, swimming AND diving. Put her first. Most likely she will relax, and being relaxed, her finning technique will be better. Keep the slowest diver first. Better for all!

Great idea, I’ll definitely consult with my coach next time we dive.

 

[lowwall]

Horses for courses.

Frog kick is good for minimum effort low speed swims. It is not good for sustained higher speeds.

The stiffness and short length of Jet fins means you can get water moving with small foot movements. This is good for precise control and initial acceleration. But these same characteristics limit their efficiency at higher speeds.

In other words, ignore the cave divers advice. The fins that work best for their environment is less than optimal for dealing with current in open water. For that you want longer and more flexible (up to a certain point) fins or one of the oddball types which were specifically engineered around the hydrodynamics of the flutter kick. The last type includes the best split fins and Force Fins.

All that said... Her Gull Super Mews are certainly just as capable of dealing with current as any other open water fin except for the pure freediving fins. So it may well be a leg strength issue. The best way to strengthen them is to take the fins in a pool and swim with them. She'll need to keep her feet underwater so either do the laps underwater or swim on her back.

Or look for a fin that doesn't require quite as much strength. I have a pair of Force Fin Pros and they can move me reasonably fast for a moderate effort.

One last trick if your type of diving allows it is to switch to a fullfoot fin. They are inherently more efficient than bootie fins. My Mares Superchannel fullfoots are the fastest fins I own.

 

[DeepSeaExplorer]

Dude, FL cave divers spend more time swimming into the current than probably any other type of diving, using a frog kick and carrying extra gear.

 

[lexvil]

I’ve found standard Sherwood Triton fins great in current, longish for scuba fins but blade action like a freedive fin, the fin also works very well for a frog kick. The pro model is exceptional for frog kick but pretty stiff making flutter kicks difficult.

Zeagle recon is a very nice all arounder, easy powerful flutter and frog, these have supplanted jets for me.

there are a lot of variables in fin selection and trying as many as possible before buying isn’t easy but worth the effort.

 

[lowwall]

Dude, FL cave divers spend more time swimming into the current than probably any other type of diving, using a frog kick and carrying extra gear.

There are currents and there are currents. Also from what I understand, cave divers take pride in their ability to stay out of the worst of the flow.

For several years in the '00s and '10s, Scuba Diving magazine published instrumented fin tests. These were serious efforts with multiple divers over multiple days measuring both peak thrust and top speed. While the results varied somewhat within each class of fin, there were some clear conclusions. That includes fullfoot fins being considerably faster than bootie fins, flutter kick being faster than frog, longer fins faster than shorter.

One interesting finding was that top speed and peak thrust was very highly correlated. There's a common belief that fins like Seawing Novas or Bio-Fin splits are fast, but don't have the thrust to move tech rigs through the water or to push through a current. This is nonsense. After a few kicks, they will push any diver in any rig more efficiently than paddle fins. Where they come up short for technical diving is in initial acceleration, which also means the ability to make small movements cleanly, and the fact that you need to flutter kick to get the most out of them. But divers like the OP's wife don't care about that, they are looking for efficiency in open water.

The ultimate answer to open water efficiency is freediving fins, but you do have to deal with the physical size of the things both above and under the water.

 

[Jcp2]

The ultimate answer to open water efficiency is freediving fins, but you do have to deal with the physical size of the things both above and under the water.

Several of the PVD guides used long free diving fins, including the photographer guide with me at BHB. No problems for him in 10 feet of water looking for tiny things for me to see. It just takes some practice.

 

[Bom]

Bio fins is one of a good choice (with adj new finning technic) if not frog kick and requires less leg power than quattro. I had no problem pulling my wife thru the current with bio fins (with much less fatigue than quattro or dr xt). She used floppy volo power fins and has never been success at the current.

However, only new fins is not a magic. New fins combining with adjusting new posture, new stramline, a little more leg excercise and studying how to cut thru the current, will definitely help.

 

[Bob Evans]

I've been wanting to try force fins with a while but was reluctant to spend the money on a new pair without trying them after reading some of the comments here about them. I got a pair use on EBAY for 50 sterling, Force fin pro with bungee. After 3 weeks using them they are the best swimming fin I ever owned. Small and powerful in current, with no calf strain. When I put them on first I found them odd compared to other fins as it's like you don't have fins on when you're stopped but when you want to swim they sure drive you through the water.
P.S. Anyone with a new pair that wants to get rid of them, size large, I have an immaculate canister light without a scratch I'll swap.

After 40 years now that is a nice comment. We do offer a money back if not happy. We rarely see a return. Just received another 7% price increase. So sad to see supply problems and labor issues here in America. But we did have our bet month since 911. Mostly military orders. Thank you Bob Evans

 

[Akimbo]

Or should I just tell her to hit the gym more often?

As a husband of many years, this is probably the most dangerous suggestion ever written on ScubaBoard. My advice, avoid diving in currents.