Jet or not to Jet

[ronski101]

I recently inherited a pair of Scuba Pro jet fins with spring straps and am wondering if they are as good as the more modern fins out there. They feel very heavy compared to my cheapy Tusas and are wider which may cause some interference problems during scissor kicking. I like to vary my kick depending upon what I am doing so some versatility capability would be nice. Do they float like my Tusas or if I lose one getting on the boat is it bye bye? Will the additional weight get me more tired quicker?
Any valid pros or cons out there especially in response to my above mentioned concerns would be appreciated.

 

[kidspot]

Jets are great Frog Kicking fins, but less great scissor kicking fins. I really like the weight of them as it lets me adjust my trim on the fly a bit. Pull feet closer to body and your center of gravity moves towards your head, push feet back and your center of gravity moves back. Just have to make sure you don't start with your center of gravity so far back that you are standing upright (move some weight to the camband or tank valve iow)

If you look thru the fin forum here on scubaboard you'll notice that Jets get very high reviews here, and are probably the suject of 25% of the threads eventually

Enjoy them and if you don't like 'em they will sell for a very nice price on Ebay (those spring straps add lots of value)

Aloha, Tim

 

[Wayward Son]

They sink, with or without springs.

I like Jets. Other people like other fins. Have to decide for yourself.

 

[ZzzKing]

They work better if you are in good shape. They work the calf muscles pretty hard and if you are not in shape or if you have bad knees or something, they may not be the best choice for you. They are excellent for control and for a lot of non-flutter type kicks. I find they work well for flutter kicks too but I don't do that one very much.

 

[TSandM]

If you primarily flutter kick, you may not like the Jets. They are a versatile fin and definitely make other kicks much easier, but at least I find that flutter kicking in them is hard work. Any time I revert to flutter, I very quickly go back to frog-kicking because it's more comfortable.

Jets are negative, and spring straps make them more so. But spring straps ROCK in terms of ease of getting fins on and off, and security while diving.

If you don't want the Jets after you dive them, they are extremely easy to sell.

 

[Thalassamania]

Jets are miserable fins. They hurt your calf, you can't flutter kick worth a damn and with those spring straps they're so heavy that you can never get your feet up out of the silt. Tell you what, I'll dispose of them for you if you want ... just pay me ten bucks.

 

[riguerin]

Jets are relics ! Their day has come and gone. If your's are size XL I'd be more than happy to dispose of them properly for you .... for FREE

sorry, Thal

 

[evil_xander]

They suck.

I could use another pair though, if they are XL, shipping is on me, ok?

 

[DiveMaven]

Try them out and decide. A friend of mine was intrigued by my Jets since they look kind of "techy", but when he tried them his first comment was "it's like having boards strapped to my feet!". I laughed and asked if he liked them or not. He decided to stick to his Apollo Bio Fins.

However, he doesn't frog kick only flutter kicks, so I couldn't really argue with him....but I still love my Jets (I'm a frog kicker).

 

[Scubakevdm]

I was, at one time anti-jet but open minded. I agreed to do a 30 day test of the jet fin and gradually, over the course of the test I leaned more and more towards the Jet fin. I posted periodically about it in this thread. I guess what I would reccomend id that if you give them a shot, give them a long enough one.