Using Split fins in Strong Current!

[wunat]

I think spit fins are a gimmick..

I have heard many said this also. But I also heard of people finding the fin as efficient, if not better than the paddle fins. I made some research on the difference when deciding which type of fin to buy for my girlfriend as a present. The fact that the two types of in has different technologies to cutting through water and so the leg kicks will need to be different. According to my understanding, when fighting currents with split fins, one should make smaller and frequent kicks while paddle fins will be more efficient and effective with strong and wide kicks.

I hope this information would be useful. To bad I don't have the chance to try any split fins in order to experience the difference.

More than happy to have you guys share your experiences to see if my understanding is right or not.

BTW, if anyone would be interested in getting full-foot split fins, you should take a look at Oceanic's Vortex V6. Yeap, it's what I got for my girlfriend.

 

[ronrosa]

Serious on that... Put money where the mouth is?? Order up a pair of Bio Fins from me... I'll give you 30 days - no questions asked to return them for a full refund if you don't think they are better than your solid fins... If they were a gimmick, would I offer that??

How's that for confidence? You'll love 'em.

I dive warm water and found the change from open heel to full foot fins dramatic.

Are they that much better than solid full foot fins too ?

 

[Randy43068]

It's hard for me to visualize how the split fin could work better at moving water. It seems that the solid fin will displace, or push more water than a split fin can with the same energy input. However, I have an open mind and am willing to give the split fin a try.

As an "older" guy at 48, I've seen quite a few gimmicks, or trends come and go.

R.

I have heard many said this also. But I also heard of people finding the fin as efficient, if not better than the paddle fins. I made some research on the difference when deciding which type of fin to buy for my girlfriend as a present. The fact that the two types of in has different technologies to cutting through water and so the leg kicks will need to be different. According to my understanding, when fighting currents with split fins, one should make smaller and frequent kicks while paddle fins will be more efficient and effective with strong and wide kicks.

I hope this information would be useful. To bad I don't have the chance to try any split fins in order to experience the difference.

More than happy to have you guys share your experiences to see if my understanding is right or not.

BTW, if anyone would be interested in getting full-foot split fins, you should take a look at Oceanic's Vortex V6. Yeap, it's what I got for my girlfriend.

 

[Nemrod]

"I dive warm water and found the change from open heel to full foot fins dramatic.
Are they that much better than solid full foot fins too ?"

Yes, I relearned that lesson several times in my diving life. I am pretty sure that Apollo makes a full foot split fin. I am probably in the market for some myself sooner or latter. Not entirely sold on the split thing myself, look and see attitude towards it. N

 

[scubatoys]

I am pretty sure that Apollo makes a full foot split fin. I am probably in the market for some myself sooner or latter. Not entirely sold on the split thing myself, look and see attitude towards it. N

Yes, Apollo does make a Full Foot Split Fin - careful of the sizing on these... a small is barefoot size 9, as in Japan, people wear booties for warmth when using full foot fins, and with a size small, you could be around a size 6 with booties to equal about a 9 without.

 

[Wolverine]

:06: I thought the Volo Power is a Mares paddle fin?

Actually, the design is more akin to the split then the paddle. The middle portion of the fin flaps quite a bit (like the splits) reducing resistance when it moves through the water (like a split), unlike the Planar Avantis, which is quite stiff in the middle. I discovered that small flutter kicks move me through the water very quickly without the equivalent strain on the calves and thighs.

 

[ronrosa]

"I dive warm water and found the change from open heel to full foot fins dramatic.
Are they that much better than solid full foot fins too ?"

Yes, I relearned that lesson several times in my diving life. I am pretty sure that Apollo makes a full foot split fin. I am probably in the market for some myself sooner or latter. Not entirely sold on the split thing myself, look and see attitude towards it. N

Let's assume the open heel split performs better for most people than the open heel paddle. What about the open heel split compared to the full foot paddle ? Or, the full foot split compared to the full foot paddle ?

Full foot paddles are very reasonble priced and for warm water boat divers, they work great.

I haven't tried any split fins, but am curious.

 

[Nemrod]

Ron, I cannot answer your question because no one has actually ever tested this stuff in a scientific or engineering based method. It is all BS. People like what they like for whatever reasons, some good and some bad and I so dislike open back fins that I would chew saw dust than use them. I suspect that any fin will perform better as a full foot but that is just a guess on my part. I don't entirely buy the paddle theory of operation. I blieve that a fin partially flies through the water creating a positive pressure on the aft side and a negative pressure on the forward. You have probably heard that bumblebees cannot fly from an engineering standpoint but that is not true, they operate at a different Reynolds number than an aircraft wing and they depend on vortex lift. I believe that fins produce a vortices as well that augement the thrust and in that case a split fin might produce two such votices or a stronger one. Until someone actually puts these things in a hydro tunnel and measures all this then that is my best guess. N

 

[Vie]

Actually, the design is more akin to the split then the paddle. The middle portion of the fin flaps quite a bit (like the splits) reducing resistance when it moves through the water (like a split), unlike the Planar Avantis, which is quite stiff in the middle.

IMO the Mares Volo/Dacor Tiger are not split fins simply because they do not have splits in the middle and do not move in the same manner as split fins in the water. They are more like pivoting paddle fins. See “New Paddle Fins” in Rodale’s Scuba Diving (June 2001, pp.73-77).

 

[Wolverine]

IMO the Mares Volo/Dacor Tiger are not split fins simply because they do not have splits in the middle and do not move in the same manner as split fins in the water. They are more like pivoting paddle fins. See “New Paddle Fins” in Rodale’s Scuba Diving (June 2001, pp.73-77).

I stand corrected

So that means I still like the paddle fins (albeit the pivoting kind)