pescador775
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Slipper fin is just another name for FF fin. Sorry for any confusion.
Open heel or full foot
- Thread starter lizto
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NudeDiver
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anzac65
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I think maybe that must be like wearing-in new shoes. I've yet to see an instructor or dive guide in Cayman wearing open heel fins, and they obviously dive several times a day, several days a week, every week.....
There is also the issue of walking on decks with things like weigths, tanks, etc around. I'd rather make contact with one with a boot on than in bare feet! Also full foots may be fine for beach diving as long as the sands not too hot, you know what you are stepping on at all times, and there is nothing sharp sticking up when you wade in.
scubafanatic
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.....walking about on a tossing/heaving and wet/slippery boat deck, in bare feet, with heavyBC/tank on one's back is a recipe for disaster !
visibilityunlimited
Contributor
Open Heel aka Strap fins with booties are my personal choice whether boat or shore diving. These tootsies are important to me and any protection I can offer them from stepping on something or having an errant weight hit them is good enough for me. Also the fact that I have more Fred Flinstone feet may also play a part in my choice. A wider foot with higher arches just ends up cramping up my foot when I wear full foot (closed heel, slipper) fins.
David Wilson
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A picture paints a thousand words...
Full-foot fins can be, and are, worn with protective footwear. It's a myth that they can only be worn barefoot. Many people wear them with socks, booties or boots to avoid blisters. Full-foot Bio fins are indeed sized, and designed, to be worn with booties. You just have to make sure you try on full-foot fins over the protective footwear to verify that they are sized correctly.
Over the decades, fashion, custom and practice have played a role in determining whether open-heel or full-foot fins were used. Full-foot fins were invented in Europe and have always had a following there, particularly around the Mediterranean. They're also popular in Japan. At one time, Cressi of Italy manufactured full-foot "Unisuit fins" with gigantic foot pockets to accommodate drysuit boots.
There may be a national preference for open-heel fins in the United States. When Scubapro marketed Jet Fins, invented by Georges Beuchat of France, they only sold an open-heel version of the fins, while the French originals also came in a full-foot design. There's no obligation to follow the crowd, however, and I fully intend to continue using what I've worn since the 1960s, my closed-heel fins with protective footwear, here in the UK when I go snorkelling in the North Sea, because they're so comfortable and provide me with all the power, endurance and manoeuvrability I need.
Full-foot fins can be, and are, worn with protective footwear. It's a myth that they can only be worn barefoot. Many people wear them with socks, booties or boots to avoid blisters. Full-foot Bio fins are indeed sized, and designed, to be worn with booties. You just have to make sure you try on full-foot fins over the protective footwear to verify that they are sized correctly.
Over the decades, fashion, custom and practice have played a role in determining whether open-heel or full-foot fins were used. Full-foot fins were invented in Europe and have always had a following there, particularly around the Mediterranean. They're also popular in Japan. At one time, Cressi of Italy manufactured full-foot "Unisuit fins" with gigantic foot pockets to accommodate drysuit boots.
There may be a national preference for open-heel fins in the United States. When Scubapro marketed Jet Fins, invented by Georges Beuchat of France, they only sold an open-heel version of the fins, while the French originals also came in a full-foot design. There's no obligation to follow the crowd, however, and I fully intend to continue using what I've worn since the 1960s, my closed-heel fins with protective footwear, here in the UK when I go snorkelling in the North Sea, because they're so comfortable and provide me with all the power, endurance and manoeuvrability I need.
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