Split fin hate?

[Eric Sedletzky]

One more sympathetic factor in the makeup of SB (I say this as a rec.-only diver with no professional or tech. training) is some divers may prefer to advocate for gear choices that can 'grow with you' into other niches in diving.

The big majority of divers never take a technical diving course, but if you start out with a BP/W setup, you'll already be familiar with a BC choice that works for recreational diving and can grow into tech. diving (though you might prefer having a separate rig for some of your diving - such as doubles, etc...). Or a dive computer that's tech. capable, not only rec.-capable.

So if they think splits are a poor choice for the kind of tight quarters precision diving I read tec. divers speak of, they may prefer paddle fins, figuring if you decide to switch to frog kicking, or do some light penetration, or simply want to avoid silting the bottom when finning along near it, starting with paddle fins might save you making an extra purchase later.

But if splits are a better fit for who you are and how you dive, go for it. Similarly, some people would rather just put on a jacket BCD and dive than be confronted with the flurry of choices informed shopping for a modular BP/W setup requires.

How many people are signed up on scubaboard? And out of those how many actually contribute?
And how many certified divers are there in the world? How many are active divers?
Where are they all, because they certainly aren’t here.
If you look at the skew of scubaboard and then look at the ACTUAL real world of scubadiving, they are two separate universes.

 

[gassed]

Getting way off topic now;
To be fair, I've been on Scuba Board for 10 years and only have 90ish posts. This has been my first visit to this forum. Mostly it has been trips reviews, answering questions about locations I have actual experience with, etc.
I would guess that most users just read and probably just the areas/forums they are currently interested. Much like myself, once I had fins, who cares what else is out there. Mine are paid for (well I won my splitfins) and they work so who cares. So I never looked at the equipment sections of Scubaboard. I only ventured to this realm because I am getting into more specialized aspects of the activity (Yes, I don't call it a "sport", that's a whole other discussion ....). I was looking at the current recommendations for tech/sidemount specific fins and noticed the "hate" for splits. Otherwise I would still be a ghost here.
I would guess the vast majority of ScubaBoard users just read and don't contribute. Probably just read just before or after a dive trip or vacation. Those users may only dive once a year or less as life is in the way. I dive quite a bit but it is just one of my hobbies. When the weather is better and I am riding moto I seldom visit the board. But when it's too hot to go outside, or a new training/skill is coming up, or a trip is on the horizon, I'm back here and lurking around. I'd say I am probably more active than the vast majority of users and I am no where near as active as many of the users who have responded to this post.
Looking at the post numbers by the users and their responses seen in this particular forum, this is a much more ScubaBoard dedicate bunch that you see in travel areas. Glad you guys are here to keep it rolling but you are probably not the "normal" user/account holder.
Just 2cents from the outside.

 

[NW Dive Dawg]

I would guess the vast majority of ScubaBoard users just read and don't contribute.

Part of the reason for that might be that a lot of folks don't want to catch a bunch of flack from the self appointed gods of scuba.

To get back on topic....I really don't think there is really a majority of "hate" here on SB against split fins. I think there's just a group that think they know everything.... and they post a LOT..... so may seem to some of the "readers" like they know what their talking about. And then there are the lemmings who just believe whatever they hear on the internet...

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Scubaboard is certainly entertaining at times and can also be used as an important tool for rallying divers to specific causes etc. I probably spend way too much time here and should be doing other things, but….
What’s important for people to remember is these online forums aren’t always reality. People need to get out and visually see what’s happening in the world of diving and not rely completely on sites like this for their gospel. Go into shops and talk to people, step outside and breathe some fresh air, so to speak. If someone relied solely on scubaboard for everything scuba they would have a very narrow view of what reality is. It’s a long dark tunnel with no side windows and could form potentially toxic opinions on situations you never experienced first hand. In other words “group think”. Just be careful.
The whole split fin controversy, the jacket BC controversy, and all the other controversies that are normal food for discussions here, normal divers wouldn’t know or care because they don’t camp on scuba internet boards, and you know what? they are happy! Some here say they are head buriers but the reality is they have great fun diving and do not have nearly as much mental baggage as some of these pent up miserable characters I’ve noticed here. Everybody’s an expert, right?
Being an internet personality has become a sport in itself and I feel is separating itself, and maybe even damaging any actual benefit to the real world of diving.
Just be careful what you read and what you believe.
BTW, there is nothing wrong with split fins.

 

[blueeyes_austin]

Been diving my Tusa X Pert full foot fins since 2005. Get some funny looks sometimes but I love them. So light and I've gotten to the point where I can kick with my ankles twisted a bit and scull the individual splits which I find useful for photography. Generally use them frog kicking and I dive pretty slow but they've been fine in some pretty serious current in places like the Maldives and in a few instances where I wanted to move really fast really quickly (like vectoring in on a dolphin pod).

I also have a pair of open Splits that are fine but I only use them for shore diving and they don't feel nearly as part of me as the full foots.