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Fins


Fins are an essential piece of diving kit, with every diver having a personal preference to the style which suits them best. Some divers opt for the traditional 'jet fin' style, which are large and fairly rigid, where as some divers like the more modern style 'split fins' which offer less water restriction whilst improving the power ratio.

A jellyfish is faster and more graceful than you are without fins underwater. Fins transform you from a slow moving, limbs flailing, underwater creature into a true denizen of the deep. They enable you to dart about with speed, mobility and efficiency.

How do you choose the right scuba diving fin for you?

When you walk into your local dive shop, or look online, the sheer variety of diving fins can seem overwhelming.

Flex fins, split fins, force fins, closed heel, open heel, the list goes on and on.

When it comes down to it there are really only 2 basic types of scuba diving fins. All fins are just variations on either one of these themes.

Types of Scuba Fins

Paddle Fins

The most common type of fin used in diving. Paddle fins can be cheap or expensive depending on the style, make and model. Different features, like flex points, can add significantly to the price.

A paddle scuba fin offers good mobility and agility. Overall it's a great choice for any diver.

A downside to the paddle style fin it that it has the most resistance and requires big strong leg kicks, which can tire a diver out and result in more air consumption.

Features like flex or pivot points can alter how much effort it takes, and when it comes to buying these more expensive fins I would suggest trying before buying if possible. At lest do as much homework as possible before laying out the cash.

Split Fins

The split fin has a blade which is split in half down the middle. When a scuba diver kicks, the split blade acts like a propeller to push the diver forward.

Split fins require less effort to kick and are good for divers whose leg strength might not be very strong, or who prefer short flutter style kicking.

Some divers feel that split fins aren't as effective when diving in strong currents.

Other Features of Scuba Fins

It's the features that manufacturers add to their specific fin design that makes the price start to rise.

Go on any scuba forum, or anywhere divers are talking, and you'll hear debate for or against any particular design feature.

It's always a matter of individual comfort and preference combined with each divers particular style whether a certain type of fin 'works' for them or not.

Things to consider before buying scuba fins

Comfort

Are they comfortable? Comfort is paramount. Wear dive boots when trying on any fin you are considering to see how it feels.

Size

We recently read that zappos.com, a giant online shoe retailer, has a 30% return rate for improper fit, so the size question is not limited to swim fins. The question may be even more difficult with fins because a 'shoe' size is only part of the answer. The brand and type of neoprene boots you wear, particularly heavy soled or rock boots, will have as much effect on the selection of fin foot pocket as the shoe size. Some people, especially those with high arches, prefer a loose fit in their fin and others prefer a snug fit. Our recommendation is to make your 'best guess' following our size guides and rely upon The Scuba Doctor no hassles return policy.

Price

Any fin will get you through the water. High performance racing tires and cheap discount store tires both let a car roll.

Buy what you can afford, and upgrade when you can.

Open or Closed Heel

A closed heel fin is usually used for snorkeling, however if you are doing very easy dives with minimal equipment in warm water, you can definitely use them.

Otherwise an open heel used with a bootie is better for most scuba diving.

Traveler or Drifter

Do you travel a lot when you dive, moving from spot to spot, always swimming? If so a dive fin designed to help you cover a lot of distance easily would be best.

Leg Strength

If you have stronger legs you should be able to use a stiffer more robust fin, If that's what you want.

The 2 biggest considerations in our opinion are comfort and price.

There's a lot of debate over fins. This is more agile than that, this is harder to kick than that, this makes me move faster than that, blah blah blah.

Yes the different features do affect performance. But if a fin isn't comfortable your dive will suck. If it's too expensive, you'll be too broke to buy air to dive with.

Think about what type of diving you mostly do and make a checklist of what you are looking for in scuba fins.

Try out a few different styles. If you rent gear, ask the dive shop if they have different style fins available, or ask other divers if you can try theirs.

For more information about Fin features please read our advice on choosing the right Fins for you in our Trusted Advice section.

Then buy the best pair you can afford from The Scuba Doctor.



Specialty Store vs Big Box Store

Purchasing items online is fast becoming the norm for people these days. You can find almost anything you could think of just by Googling it on the Internet. Once you find what you are looking for, the next question is from which online store you should buy it. Should you go with the big box or the speciality online retailer? The Internet shopper is often drawn more toward the big name stores, but there are several drawbacks to relying on them for your purchase.

Knowledge

Big name stores often are lax in the knowledge of the equipment itself. This shows in the descriptions of their products which often consist of vague bullet points rather than full description of the features and the benefits. Those that do have descriptions often make the more knowledgeable diver/snorkeller wonder if the person who wrote it has ever even worn a pair of fins, or has had a snorkel in their mouth.

The speciality diving/snorkelling retailer, like The Scuba Doctor, knows the gear that they sell and realises that while some of their clientele are experienced divers/snorkellers, the bulk are beginners who have no idea of what they need, or how to use it. They focus on the product itself by giving you more in-depth descriptions which allow you to make a more educated decision.

They include articles that range from what equipment suits your needs, how to use and maintain it, and even information on places to go diving and snorkelling. A really good speciality retailer has size charts that don't leave you guessing at what they mean by small, medium or large and whether the sizing is male or female or if, in the case of fins, they accommodate wider foot sizes. In short, the speciality online stores focus on diving/snorkelling with content rich information.

Quality of Service

This is a high priority in your purchase decision making process. If you have a question on a product that is not answered in the product descriptions, or in the support articles found on the speciality online store, getting answers should not involve having to hunt for a way to get in touch with the retailer. Then when you do find the "how to" you should not have to get lost in the "press this button for" maze that is often associated with the big box online stores phone systems.

If you choose contact by email, the speciality online stores will usually be prompt in their reply, or at least acknowledge that your email has been received and they are either researching the question or directing it to the person who is most qualified to answer.

After Purchase Service is also a consideration. Questions always come up after you have purchased your product, whether it is shipping or how to attach the snorkel, a speciality retailer wants you to be happy and will often go to great lengths to make sure that you are satisfied by being there for you, rather than just being there.

We can with all honesty say that neither the big box or the speciality stores like to have product returned, but how they deal with it does affect whether you, the customer, will consider them for future purchases or even refer them to family and friends. Since the speciality folks realise that they deal in a niche industry customer satisfaction in all aspects of their business plays an extremely important role.

Quality of Products

All companies should have a certain sense of pride in the products they sell. While we agree with this, we have also found that brand name diving and snorkelling equipment sold at big box online versus speciality online stores can sometimes be comparing apples to oranges. Manufacturers who sell to the big guys often have to take short cuts in order to appease the price point that the big box stores are looking for. This can include using PVC instead of silicone, plastic lenses in masks rather than tempered glass and even the elimination of certain features of the product that can be considered desirable to the diver/snorkeller.

By now, you realise that we are in favour of the speciality online retailer, but much of what we have described above does come from personal experience in dealing with both. With that being said, we realise that it is ultimately up to you, as the decision maker to choose wisely.

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