Mor-Fins

[vlaardac]

I won a set of Mor-fins at DEMA and I believe they are the Pro style. To me they look like a Force Fin with a fish tail. I promised the owners that I would place something on the dive board about these fins. I finally got them in the pool for some testing and I was semi impressed with them. They do have thrust with very little leg stress. To me they are similar to the Apollo Split fin in that they are a very soft fin, but there is a different kick needed to use the Mor-fin. I found that I have to relax my ankles and use short quick kicks (similar to a whipping motion) to get the Mor-fin to work. I am not sure I could hold up that type of kick for very long but maybe others could. If you are looking for a fin that has high thrust, this is not your fin. Maybe they have a stiffer fin that would produce more thrust? If you are looking for a fin that is very gentle on your legs, this may be the fin for you.

I was able to time these fins in our pool and found that you have to be totally streamed lined to get the best thrust. I was able to swim 50 ft in 16 seconds using the Mor-fin. As a comparison I can swim 50 ft in 12 seconds with a ScubaPro Jet fin.

I'm an Aerospace Engineer along with being a PADI Instructor and Tech Diver, and I have tested several fins and read many papers dealing with fin functionality. Through all my research I have been able to get a grasp on how the various fins function and what I keep finding out is that there is a lot of miss-information on dive gear performance on the market. A lot of the bad information starts from the manufacturer who obviously wants to sell their product. Even the magazines will present the bad information to sell the product. So the consumer never gets the real deal, and ultimately will depend on divers that have tried out the product. While I was at DEMA every manufacture was telling me their fin was the best on the market and they have data to back it up or their fin was in testing. I do wish them all well but buyer-beware from there. So after getting off my soap box what I have found is that with a hard fin, like a Jet fin, some people just don't have the leg strength to move them initially, but come to enjoy them with training and practice. I have found that most beginner students will do better with a fin like the Apollo Split fin. The kick is easy to master and does not require tons of leg strength. I have also tried out the Apollo Pro which is 30% stiffer and they are to stiff for me. In seconds they go after my calf muscles and I need some time for rest. As for the Mor-Fin (which is the real reason that I started this) I would put this fin in the same category as the Apollo Split fin, but it uses a different kick, does not provide as much thrust, but is gentle on your legs. I think the Mor-fin has their place in the dive industry but not on my feet. The last item to overcome is your friends, they instantly named them, Dork fish fins, and they are on your feet

 

[Bob Evans]

Vlaardac, to me they look like my Patented Rip Force design with a add tuna tail. To be honest I tried that tuna tail years ago. I have been tempted to post a picture of this prototype. The Rip Force is get for body surfing. I discovered during the design process of the Rip Force that the water spills 180 degrees off to the sides. The Rip Force is where I came up with water channeling devices which turned into the Whiskers. The United States Patent office has turned into a revenue generator granting patents that are not unique.

 

[castanagajt]

I won a set of Mor-fins at DEMA and I believe they are the Pro style. To me they look like a Force Fin with a fish tail. I promised the owners that I would place something on the dive board about these fins. I finally got them in the pool for some testing and I was semi impressed with them. They do have thrust with very little leg stress. To me they are similar to the Apollo Split fin in that they are a very soft fin, but there is a different kick needed to use the Mor-fin. I found that I have to relax my ankles and use short quick kicks (similar to a whipping motion) to get the Mor-fin to work. I am not sure I could hold up that type of kick for very long but maybe others could. If you are looking for a fin that has high thrust, this is not your fin. Maybe they have a stiffer fin that would produce more thrust? If you are looking for a fin that is very gentle on your legs, this may be the fin for you.

I was able to time these fins in our pool and found that you have to be totally streamed lined to get the best thrust. I was able to swim 50 ft in 16 seconds using the Mor-fin. As a comparison I can swim 50 ft in 12 seconds with a ScubaPro Jet fin.

I'm an Aerospace Engineer along with being a PADI Instructor and Tech Diver, and I have tested several fins and read many papers dealing with fin functionality. Through all my research I have been able to get a grasp on how the various fins function and what I keep finding out is that there is a lot of miss-information on dive gear performance on the market. A lot of the bad information starts from the manufacturer who obviously wants to sell their product. Even the magazines will present the bad information to sell the product. So the consumer never gets the real deal, and ultimately will depend on divers that have tried out the product. While I was at DEMA every manufacture was telling me their fin was the best on the market and they have data to back it up or their fin was in testing. I do wish them all well but buyer-beware from there. So after getting off my soap box what I have found is that with a hard fin, like a Jet fin, some people just don't have the leg strength to move them initially, but come to enjoy them with training and practice. I have found that most beginner students will do better with a fin like the Apollo Split fin. The kick is easy to master and does not require tons of leg strength. I have also tried out the Apollo Pro which is 30% stiffer and they are to stiff for me. In seconds they go after my calf muscles and I need some time for rest. As for the Mor-Fin (which is the real reason that I started this) I would put this fin in the same category as the Apollo Split fin, but it uses a different kick, does not provide as much thrust, but is gentle on your legs. I think the Mor-fin has their place in the dive industry but not on my feet. The last item to overcome is your friends, they instantly named them, Dork fish fins, and they are on your feet

Great review, very thorough and I like that you listed a comparison along with the product that has been tested.

 

[Deep Thinker]

Vlaardac, thank you for trying the fins and doing a thoughtful post. I'm the owner and patent holder for the fins. Let me suggest that you might want to try them again so that you learn how to use them to their best unique effect.

First, you were not using Pro Power Delfins because we only had one pair of them at the show for demonstration purposes and did not sell or give any away. You may have had a Power Delfin. What color was it? If it was black, it was most likely a Natural Delfin. If it was any size but large it was absolutely a Natural Delfin. The fins do have different stiffness, but when you start using hydrofoils, you are in a new paradigm and stiffness is a paddle feature more than one for hydrofoils.

Your time with the fins is really slow. Probably due to poor technique. I would expect your time for 50 feet to be more like 11 seconds. That is my time for that distance and I'm 62. But then I know how to use the fins.

If you'd like to learn the proper technique, just sit on the side of the pool and do a quick march step in place while your feet are relaxed. Try letting your ankles relax, but notice when the fins start taking on the correct angle of attack for the hydrofoil shaped blade and tail fin. It will start generating thrust with just the slightest movement compared to other fins. After you do this for a while, you'll get the feeling of letting the fins do the work of generating the thrust that you need to move fast enough to get the time that you were looking for. You already have the fins, you really should give it a few minutes and see if they won't work the way that I'm describing them.

These fins are like air plane wings. They are patented true foil shapes making them the only fins with true hydrofoils (water - foils). Like any wing, you can use it as a paddle, but it won't work as well as it does as a foil shape at the right angle of attack. If you take the time to learn how to use the fins at the right angle of attack, you'll probably get a whole new impression of them.