Foot Heavy fin suggestions

[rongoodman]

Same problem here. Hollis F1's my all-time favorite = comfortable fin for BM but too damn heavy in SM. SlipStreams and DiveRites seem light enough but dont' fit my feet nearly as well. I emailed Nick Hollis and begged him to make the F1's in a lighter compound - he said they are "considering" it. Maybe if he hears from enough people they'll do it - I'd buy a pair in a second if they would only make it!

What about the Hollis F2s? I've never tried them and like my Slipstreams(and am glad to have acquired a back-up pair), but I read that the F2s are fairly neutral.

[fno]

You can probably fit a pair of those inflatables that kids wear on their arms over your feet. Inflate as needed!! Seriously, everyone is foot heavy until they train themselves to keep their legs and knees up off the bottom. Part of that is not trying to look upwards all the time. Look down and your legs will move up.

[vicp]

... Seriously, everyone is foot heavy until they train themselves to keep their legs and knees up off the bottom. ...

Yes, ... and No. Being in *weight* trim does make a big difference in how much effort is required to remain horizontal.

[divindoc]

What about the Hollis F2s? I've never tried them and like my Slipstreams(and am glad to have acquired a back-up pair), but I read that the F2s are fairly neutral.

Tried 'em at Madison. Without a doubt the most worthless fins for caves that I have ever tried. Zero propulsion. OTOH, they are light!

[skip]

Just take your heavy fins to a bandsaw. Start cutting off the tip, one inch at a time. Stop when they feel better, just don't cut into the foot pocket.

I actually did that. They got too short to be of much use before they got "better."

skip

[RN]

I started off with Jets years ago. They were way too heavy and I went with Dive Rites. I had issues with the new fins tearing and breaking and as much as I dive I couldn't have fins I couldn't rely on. I started searching and found SEAC fins. I have been diving the SEAC GP100s 4x4 for a year now and really like them a lot. They are a little heavier than DR fins, just as stiff, and a similar shape. After diving that style fin I just can't go back to the wider fins like the Jets of Slipstreams.

For full disclosure I am a SEAC dealer. I don't use all SEAC gear though. I only use SEAC gear that I like and has proven itself to be high quality and durable and works for the diving I do.

[phil_p]

Another idea: if you're diving backmount, try a "donut"-style BC to get more lift along your backside. When I dive, my legs also tend to drag. They're negative to begin with, and I have to dive a heavy pair of fins-- XL Turtles-- because I need the wide foot pocket. A couple of years ago, by way of improving trim, I switched from a standard wing to an Evolve at Danny Riordan's suggestion. While that wasn't a cheap fix, I haven't regretted it. One word of caution, though. Some people have told me that "donut" wings aren't good for multi-stage diving. According to these divers, "donut" wings make it difficult to selectively inflate one side of a wing to compensate for the uneven weighting created by staging. Since I've never dived more than one stage-- and that quite infrequently-- I wouldn't know. I've also heard that some of the newer designs for donut wings try to compensate for this with restrictions in the bladders -- but, again, I wouldn't know.

[PsychDiver]

I concur on the F2s; very light but very little propulsion. I took mine to Mexico for both salt and cave and they're a good travel fin but don't try to fight flow with them.

[scububa]

...One word of caution, though. Some people have told me that "donut" wings aren't good for multi-stage diving. According to these divers, "donut" wings make it difficult to selectively inflate one side of a wing to compensate for the uneven weighting created by staging. Since I've never dived more than one stage-- and that quite infrequently-- I wouldn't know. ...

My experience would say that it isn't a given. I have always dove an Oxycheq donut BM and it is an older wing. After several training dives, I whined about my 'Nemo like' trim/balance with multiple stages and my instructor said, "Why don't you just 'roll the bubble' to counter?" Since that point, I've never had another problem even on Great Lake trimix dives where I have bottom gas stage plus a couple of deco bottles with me the whole dive.

[Kelly Jessop]

A very popular fin quite a few years ago was Dacor Turboflex,which can be had on Ebay. They had the advantage of being short like a Jet fin,but rigid like a power fin,but very,very light weight.