Full foot fins: Excel vs. Superchannel

[Hasbi]

Hi mates!

I am trying to choose a full foot fin for snorkeling. Speed (also quick acceleration) and maneuverability are of most importance. I was thinking of getting a Mares Avanti Excel but the test in the following link really confused me:

18 New Fins | Scuba Diving Magazine

According to the test, Avanti Superchannel performed better than the Excel in all aspects. I may understand slalom course (superchannel seems to be softer and easier to react), but can it really beat Excel in terms of thrust and speed?

 

[David Wilson]

I can understand the importance of relative speed in an activity such as competitive finswimming, which involves racing against others in a swimming pool, but why is speed such an important criterion when snorkelling? Power, manoeuvrability and endurance tend to be more sought-after attributes of fins used in snorkelling, as is a good fit for your feet, in terms of length, breadth and height. Consider too the possibility that the fins in the review you mention may be designed more for scuba than snorkelling use.

 

[Hasbi]

It is about what you like to do while snorkeling. Sometimes I try my chance on deep dives (25-30 m), or follow a fish between narrow rocks at 5-6 m just for fun. In other words, I don't 'need' speed. I just 'enjoy' that kind of swimming and dives.

I like doing the same things even in scuba gear. Wandering around at constant speed is not my style

 

[lmorin]

I just bought a pair of superchannels. They are great because they are tomato red, at least at shallow depths:cool2:. Buy something inexpensive, IMHO.

 

[danvolker]

Hi mates!

I am trying to choose a full foot fin for snorkeling. Speed (also quick acceleration) and maneuverability are of most importance. I was thinking of getting a Mares Avanti Excel but the test in the following link really confused me:

18 New Fins | Scuba Diving Magazine

According to the test, Avanti Superchannel performed better than the Excel in all aspects. I may understand slalom course (superchannel seems to be softer and easier to react), but can it really beat Excel in terms of thrust and speed?

You need to dump the gargage pushed to scuba divers ( who don't know any better) and get real freediving fins...That means your choices are versions of Cressi Gara; Omer; C4's( the best by far, but really expensive); specialfins-the BW Special( SpecialFins Monofins & fins for Freediving,Spearfishing,UW Games) probably the best speed versus value of all freedive fins). If a fin is routinely sold to scuba divers, this means a large part of the market base is covered in so much "drag" with all their hanging consoles, flopping bags and anti-streamlining, that they will not really have much "sense" of what an efficient fin for high speed is. For a very slick freediver, you kick the fins I am talking about, and you can make a huge glide..and they can go much faster than scuba fins.....if you gear up DIR style for scuba, with a B/W and complete streamlined configuration, then the freedive fins I've mentioned will make a huge differnce to your scuba as well...When I scuba with my C4's, I can keep up with most scooter divers with ease.

Regards,
Dan V

 

[danvolker]

18 New Fins | Scuba Diving Magazine

The testing in this magazine is pathetic....it is essentially an extension of the advertising for each brand....once in a blue moon they may say something bad, but I don't recall this in the recent past, and if it did happen, it would probably be to a mfg that was no longer going to advertise. In this testing, they have the nerve to call one category the "Fastest Fins", yet they pick fins that are so pathetic, it should be obvious to you how corrupt this magazine is.
Real Freedive fins are much faster than what they choose, and stragely enough, the mfg's for the fast fins DO NOT ADVERTISE these fins in the magazine.

The only disclaimers to freedive fins are that you need more coordination to walk on the boat ( but you buy fins to swim with, not to walk) but this is easy for anyone with coordination; freedive fins require a little more coordination to kick properly--they use a much wider amplitude kick stroke, slower frequency, and you need to keep your kicks in a line( keep the fin kicking in a line where your feet do not bump in to each other).

Dan V

 

[Hasbi]

Thanks for the helpful reply Dan.

I know that these freedive fins you mention are speedy, but are they agile as well? Agility is as important as speed for me. That's why I gave the example of 'following fish between narrow rocks'.

Think that ı am an underwater rugby player (just an example for my diving and swimming style) where both speed and agility are important. Would you still recommend freedive fins?

 

[David Wilson]

Think that ı am an underwater rugby player (just an example for my diving and swimming style) where both speed and agility are important. Would you still recommend freedive fins?

Are you saying that you are an underwater rugby player, Hasbi? If so, why not try snorkelling with the fins you use when you're playing underwater rugby in the pool? The great thing about snorkelling is that there are neither prescriptions (you must do this) nor proscriptions (you must not do this) but simply descriptions (do what suits you) when it comes to the fins people use when snorkelling. When I visited La Jolla Cove, a great snorkelling spot in Southern California, a number of years ago, all kinds of fins were in use. Some people were wearing open-heel scuba-style fins, others open-heel bodysurfing fins, others long-bladed full-foot freediving fins, others traditional all-rubber full-foot standard-bladed fins. Although every kind of fin was represented there, the snorkellers all had one thing in common: they were having a wonderful time.

 

[danvolker]

Thanks for the helpful reply Dan.

I know that these freedive fins you mention are speedy, but are they agile as well? Agility is as important as speed for me. That's why I gave the example of 'following fish between narrow rocks'.

Think that ı am an underwater rugby player (just an example for my diving and swimming style) where both speed and agility are important. Would you still recommend freedive fins?

I think the agility is more a charicteristic of the diver, for the freedive fins....in other words, a good freediver will be able to fit between incredibly tight spaces in following a fish--remember, these fins began with serious spearfishing--agility is a big deal in stalking and hunting fish. I have used my C4's on macro photography dives with my wife, where I will use the fins to pull my feet up, backwards, spin me around 180 or 360 degrees, many maneuvers most divers with standard fins could not even imagine doing. I have used them even for cave diving, but because of the length, silting the ceiling is more likly with freedive fins than rockets, so for a serious cave, I would use rockets. But the freedive fins will do frog kick unbelievably well, pretty much any motion you want, there is a good way to do it.....but, much like snow skiing with longer racing skis, longer means a need for more coordiantion..but if you have it, you can attain much more with the longer versions of fins.
Dan V

 

[lmorin]

The testing in this magazine is pathetic....>>>>

You may be right, but in stating that opinion, you are denying the validity of their data. If you can demonstrate that the testing methods were in error, please do so. If you have some objective test results to the contrary, please post them. Many of us would really like to know whether any of the bells and whistles actually help or hinder.