What kind of fin?

[meesier42]

Magazines such as that are rarely unbiased, regardless of the sport or topic, but more on the line of the 'advertiser bias' IMO.

I completely agree that these magazines are not truly unbiased, since theu survive based on advertising dollars. But this review was for once at least a vain attempt at a quantitative analysis. But I would guess that at least 90% of the information that you will find on these boards is purely opinion and bias. And I am not saying that I am not guilty of this as well, afterall this is a discussion board of opinions. Its the blind following of other opinions that gets to me, ecspecially when it is a completely unqualified opinion.

eg. "I have done 4 dives with SP Jets and love them"
well that's great that you like them, but what do you like about them? what have you compared them to? what conditions have you used them in? why do they work peticularly good for you? why is that you have such a strong opinion for them after a scant 4 dives? these are the questions that I and the OP would really like answered.


My reviews:
Jets and Rockets
expirience -approx 150 dives, mostly temperate to warm water
likes- short and stiff fin, this allowed good manueverability and backing
dislikes- surface swimming is terrible, strain on knees and calves, low top speed,
Jets foot pocket too small for me (13-14 wide foot), Rockets had much better size pocket for me.
Overall- not the fin for me

Apollo Bio v Atomic Split
expirience- about 50 dives with Atomic, about 5 with Bio Fin
likes- FAST fins, very comfortable to do many dives in a day with
dislikes- very LONG fins,
Atomics (clear with blue panels) had the panels start to fall out after about 1.5 years of on and off use in Hawaii,
Replaced with Bios, which felt similar enough that I don't seperate them from the Atomics, but sold them to a friend as was exclusively using my ForceFins at this point
Overall- Atomic- durability was terrible, but both fins were very enjoyable fins to dive and worked well for freediving, they don't scull as well as the other fins

Mares Black Tiger (no longer sold, but look similar to Volo)- well I am not going to really talk about these as they were terrible, they flexed completely away on downstroke and did not return to shape fast enough to provide any real thrust, back kick was stiff which strained my hamstrings. I didn't enjoy these at all and dumped them quickly. I don't know about the Volo, as I have never used them.

Quattro Power (full foot version of Avanti Quattro)-
expirience- ~30 dives, all warm Carribean waters
likes- great paddle fin, easy to manuever and had lots of speed, although I felt like I was working I felt like I was getting a lot out of it.
dislikes- cramping in my arches


ForceFins
expirience - over 200 dives, from warm (barefoot) to 37F, no drysuit expirience yet,
models used extensively: ForceFin Pro, Extra Force Tan Delta, SD-1 Military

Most expirience with Extra Force Tan Deltas
likes- very, very FAST and powerful, look cool as h#ll, adjustable mid dive for more or less power. Only fin that I have worked with that I can swim sideways with, making camera positioning much easier.
dislikes- for most recreational diving they are too much fin. I would not recommend this fin to most divers for this reason. as you really need to be a competetive swimmer to make this things really shine, stick with the Original Polyurethane if you go for the Extra Force.

FF Pros-
likes- great all around fin, seem floppy compared to Xtra Tan Deltas, but still provide enough speed and thrust to do everything that I have ever wanted
Dislikes- well, I can't think of any

SD-1 miltary
likes- easy kicking with lots of umph, very manueverable and pack flat. most comfortable fin I have used.
dislikes - again, haven't found anything I don't like

 

[kiltdiver]

my fiance loves the sp jets. me, personally love my dive rites. but thats my personal preferance. the best thing to suggest is to find a lds that has a wide veriety and a pool and try them all out to see what your personal preferance is.

 

[wunat]

Fin preference are pretty subjective. I love my Jets. You might not like them. There is no better way to know than try them out for yourself. Try to borrow a few different types. Also, this first pair of fin won't necessary be your last pair. I went through 3 different types of fin before I settle with Jets. Hope you will find yours soon.

 

[Footslogger]

I want to buy fins since i am new to diving.But there are so many that i dont know wich one might be a good fin with a respectful price.......???

======================================

Depends a great deal on the type of diving you will be doing and to some degree ...your overall leg strength.

That said, I would suggest you give Force Fins some consideration. They are laughed/scoffed at by many and they do look a bit peculiar when compared with more traditional designs ...but they WORK.

I converted to Force Fins a couple years ago and will never go back to a rigid, long blade design.

I bought my 31 year old daughter a pair of "Pink" (yeah ...she's a "girly-girl") Force Fins this past year and now she's hooked as well. She is 5'4 and about 120lbs and has been diving since she was 12. She is not an overly strong swimmer and finds that the Force Fin delivers all the power and control she needs.

 

[ZzzKing]

I completely agree that these magazines are not truly unbiased, since theu survive based on advertising dollars. But this review was for once at least a vain attempt at a quantitative analysis. But I would guess that at least 90% of the information that you will find on these boards is purely opinion and bias. And I am not saying that I am not guilty of this as well, afterall this is a discussion board of opinions. Its the blind following of other opinions that gets to me, ecspecially when it is a completely unqualified opinion.

eg. "I have done 4 dives with SP Jets and love them"
well that's great that you like them, but what do you like about them? what have you compared them to? what conditions have you used them in? why do they work peticularly good for you? why is that you have such a strong opinion for them after a scant 4 dives? these are the questions that I and the OP would really like answered.


My reviews:
Jets and Rockets
expirience -approx 150 dives, mostly temperate to warm water
likes- short and stiff fin, this allowed good manueverability and backing
dislikes- surface swimming is terrible, strain on knees and calves, low top speed,
Jets foot pocket too small for me (13-14 wide foot), Rockets had much better size pocket for me.
Overall- not the fin for me

Apollo Bio v Atomic Split
expirience- about 50 dives with Atomic, about 5 with Bio Fin
likes- FAST fins, very comfortable to do many dives in a day with
dislikes- very LONG fins,
Atomics (clear with blue panels) had the panels start to fall out after about 1.5 years of on and off use in Hawaii,
Replaced with Bios, which felt similar enough that I don't seperate them from the Atomics, but sold them to a friend as was exclusively using my ForceFins at this point
Overall- Atomic- durability was terrible, but both fins were very enjoyable fins to dive and worked well for freediving, they don't scull as well as the other fins

Mares Black Tiger (no longer sold, but look similar to Volo)- well I am not going to really talk about these as they were terrible, they flexed completely away on downstroke and did not return to shape fast enough to provide any real thrust, back kick was stiff which strained my hamstrings. I didn't enjoy these at all and dumped them quickly. I don't know about the Volo, as I have never used them.

Quattro Power (full foot version of Avanti Quattro)-
expirience- ~30 dives, all warm Carribean waters
likes- great paddle fin, easy to manuever and had lots of speed, although I felt like I was working I felt like I was getting a lot out of it.
dislikes- cramping in my arches


ForceFins
expirience - over 200 dives, from warm (barefoot) to 37F, no drysuit expirience yet,
models used extensively: ForceFin Pro, Extra Force Tan Delta, SD-1 Military

Most expirience with Extra Force Tan Deltas
likes- very, very FAST and powerful, look cool as h#ll, adjustable mid dive for more or less power. Only fin that I have worked with that I can swim sideways with, making camera positioning much easier.
dislikes- for most recreational diving they are too much fin. I would not recommend this fin to most divers for this reason. as you really need to be a competetive swimmer to make this things really shine, stick with the Original Polyurethane if you go for the Extra Force.

FF Pros-
likes- great all around fin, seem floppy compared to Xtra Tan Deltas, but still provide enough speed and thrust to do everything that I have ever wanted
Dislikes- well, I can't think of any

SD-1 miltary
likes- easy kicking with lots of umph, very manueverable and pack flat. most comfortable fin I have used.
dislikes - again, haven't found anything I don't like

Something I never really understood is the emphasis placed on speed in these fin threads. Since you mentioned it several times, maybe you could explain why you think it's so important. I don't really do any competitive speed diving myself. My goal when diving is to go only as fast as necessary, under control, and disturb as little of the undersea environment as possible.

 

[Gale68]

Something I never really understood is the emphasis placed on speed in these fin threads. Since you mentioned it several times, maybe you could explain why you think it's so important. I don't really do any competitive speed diving myself. My goal when diving is to go only as fast as necessary, under control, and disturb as little of the undersea environment as possible.

I don't know if speed is the same thing as power, but when I consider why I value "speed" in my Force Fins, it's mainly in being able to swim against a current effectively. The only other time speed really comes into play for me is when I have to cover a long distance to get back to the boat at the end of a dive.

FWIW

Gale

 

[meesier42]

well, your right, I rarely want or need to go fast. Just when you need it, simply some fins can't do it. And when you shore dive in Hawaii where currents can go from 0 to 4 knots in the blink of an eye, you need to know that your fins will get you home. Then there are the tech guys, and often speed and thrust are related, so a fast fin will also be able to provide the thrust needed to push drysuits, stage bottles, etc very well. The more important thing is not truly speed but the work of achieving speed. Fast fins are able to acheive speed easier which often means that at normal speeds you will have a very low work load and thus reduced air consumption.

and to be honest, speed is a subjective measure of fins that most divers are fimilar with and can test for themselves without any fancy equipment.

 

[UncleJoes]

well, your right, I rarely want or need to go fast. Just when you need it, simply some fins can't do it. And when you shore dive in Hawaii where currents can go from 0 to 4 knots in the blink of an eye, you need to know that your fins will get you home. Then there are the tech guys, and often speed and thrust are related, so a fast fin will also be able to provide the thrust needed to push drysuits, stage bottles, etc very well. The more important thing is not truly speed but the work of achieving speed. Fast fins are able to acheive speed easier which often means that at normal speeds you will have a very low work load and thus reduced air consumption.

and to be honest, speed is a subjective measure of fins that most divers are fimilar with and can test for themselves without any fancy equipment.

Kudos here, But back to your previous post where you blasted the DACOR Black Tigers.
Have you ever tried the MARES Volos? They are incredibly Agile, Versitile, and Efficient. The only down- side in my opinion would be in a Ripping current (their thrust capacity peaks) You can theoretically Out swim your fins. I say Teoretically because I've never spoken to anyone who has experienced this.

 

[ZzzKing]

I don't know if speed is the same thing as power, but when I consider why I value "speed" in my Force Fins, it's mainly in being able to swim against a current effectively. The only other time speed really comes into play for me is when I have to cover a long distance to get back to the boat at the end of a dive.

FWIW

Gale

I totally agree with the need for power when necessary. My experience has been limited to paddle fins and they have always had ample power for my needs. When I first started diving I would get cramps in my lower legs but as my finning technique improved and my swim muscles got in shape that all went away. I've never been unable to catch a runaway "buddy" due to lack of speed but I don't go fast if I don't have to. I've also never been blown downstream by current with paddle fins. Again, they seem to have plenty of power to handle it. Of course I've never dove in a 4 knot current either.

 

[meesier42]

as I said, I have never tried the volos, just said that Black Tigers LOOKED similar to volos. I apologize for quoting the wrong company, I haven't seen those fins in at least 5 years, but that is no excuse. I definately remember the problem of "Out Swimming Your Fins" as I was consistently doing it. I remember that pivot point for me simply became a hinge which provided absolutely no thrust at all.