Mares, Omer, Cressi fins and more...time to check out some gear.

I have been fortunate that up until now I haven't had to spend any money on gear, simply because I was able to use all my scuba gear for my freediving. There are some restrictions in using scuba gear of which one is the wetsuits being allot stiffer than specialised freediving wetsuits. One piece of equipment if felt I needed to get was  freediving fins, as on my last open water dive I really struggled to get to the depths I wanted to and it seemed as if I was wasting unnecessary energy on finning. So my research began on what Bi-Fins would suit me best.

 Scuba vs freediving fins.

Although I did make inquiries into going straight for a mono fin, the practicality and limitations from a training and overall field of use perspective made me decide to start with a pair on Bi-fins.

After allot of research and reading, I ended up going for the Mares Razer Medium stifness (which is the grey blade, the stiffer blade is the black blade). You can do alot of research online, but I just could bring myself to order online. When buying something that needs to fit properly like a fin, it is invaluable to go in store to fit them. Even after I had been in store I did more research until I was satisfied that this was the fin for me.

What caught my eye in the " Mares Razor" was the following:

Clip to remove blade.

• The foot-pocket was a perfect fit, meaning I didn't have to where a sock of any kind. (the less gear the better)
• The blade is removable, meaning if you want to change to a carbon fibre blade or simply replace a blade you can easily remove from the foot-pocket. (Just remove the two screws and two clips and the blade can be removed)
• Because the blade is removable, you have the option to keep the foot pocket and try various blade stiffnesses as you go.

The Cressi Gara and Omer Millenium fins also impressed me. The Omer fins also have removable blades where the Cressi Gara fins have fixed blades. Meaning what you have is what you keep. Cressi does not sell blades individually, so if you break a blade you have to buy a full set.

Foot-pocket showing screws to remove blade.

During my research I was in touch with Pierre Liebenberg from Spierre to get info on the Pure Carbon blades, but once again being based in Durban made it difficult to fit the foot-pockets. I will most definitely opt for carbon blades later on, but that will be when I hit the deeper dives. Also I didn't want to pool train with carbon blades.

Foot-pocket

I can definitely say that finding a set of fins is purely about the fit. Do your research online, but be sure to visit a store near you to see them first. What works for one person may not for the next.