F2 Fins

[EladLending]

Hi everyone. I'm new to this forum, and also new to Hollis F1's. I dive mainly in the Gulf of Eilat/Aqaba. My old Mares fins finally broke beyond repair, so I'm in the market for fins. I tried Mantas once. Then I tried Hollis F1's. I kind of liked the Manta's but they're definitely not what I'm used to. The F1's are impressive, but my calves ached after one dive. I fear that as an older (56) diver who's not as fit as he once was, the F1 might be a little too much fin for me. On the other hand, it might just be a question of getting used to them. I'm beginning to realize that choosing the right fin is a really big deal. Maybe the F2's are a compromise between the very soft Manta's and the very heavy and powerful F1's. What should I do? Can somebody help me make sense of it all?

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Shalom and welcome to Scubaboard. I have been diving the F-1's since Jan of 2008 when I got one of the prototype pairs to test. I had previously used Rockets, Oceanic V-12's, and the old Aqualung Blades. The F-1's were somewhere between the stiffness and power of the rockets, the softness of the Blades (which are a very responsive fin if you don't try to power them too much), and the less stress on my knees and ankles of the V-12 splits. So for over 4 years now the F-1's have been my fin. In the beginning they seemed to be a bit of overkill and needed some effort to dive when I tried to use them like my other fins. The F-1's work best for me with a frog or modified frog. Trying to power them with a scissor kick of std flutter will cause my legs to burn after a while. But the good news is that unless you are always diving in high current or trying to win a race there is no need to do this. Diving is about relaxing and going along slowly enjoying the site. Once I eased up on them they eased up on me. Big time. I'd suggest trying to reduce the effort you put into them and let the fin do the work. Try and kick and glide style of swimming and using a frog, modified frog, or modified flutter with short easy strokes. If you are cramping up or getting aching calves trying to keep up with a buddy or DM, THE PROBLEM IS NOT THE FIN, it is the buddy or the DM! The slowest diver sets the pace. Yesterday we did 2 lake dives of 50 minutes in duration each on average and to day I did a pond inspection. Using the F-1 and my style of kicking my legs feel fine, I never felt like I was working hard, and no one was waiting for me. Give the fins a chance and try not to power kick them. Use gentle even strokes and relax. It's not a race and as you get a "feel" for the fin you'll know what strokes work best and take the least effort and when you can kick the hell out of them and expect a little burn to get somewhere fast. But I have found that like splits, over kicking the fin will usually get you nowhere fast as they don't have a chance to really work they way they are designed.

 

[w ripley]

My F2s showed up (watched the UPS driver put them on the porch, but then they were stolen before I could finish with what I was doing and take them off the front porch. Oh Well, city life.) As you know if you've read my posts in this thread, I'm very much dissatisfied that Hollis has retooled the Manta Rays without so much as a heads-up to the diving community. SO, I'm not going to order another pair until I read a couple of test drives from those of you who didn't have your F2s stolen.

I hope your reports are positive, as would really like to use the F2 in caves. My F1s will remain my fin for everything else.

Thanks.

 

[EladLending]

Are the F2's available in Israel? Specifically at the Deep-Siam Dive Center in Eilat? I want only one pair of fins. I purchased the F1's after trying Mantarays. I liked the Mantarays, but they were very different from the old-fashioned Mares paddles that I was using, so I gave them back. But now I'm finding that the F1's are too much fin for me. My calves cramp up. I'm used to kicking a long slow scissors kick or frog kick. In short I want to try the F2's with the idea of exchanging the F1's for them. But if they're not available to me, I may take the Manta's, because I've already paid the money, and I can't hack the F1's, excellent though they may be. Ariel Auslander, one of the owners of Deep Siam, is waiting for an email from you guys at Hollis one this particular matter, but I thought I'd chip in my 2 cents anyway. So, can you get them down to Deep Siam in Eilat?

 

[buddhasummer]

Are the F2's available in Israel? Specifically at the Deep-Siam Dive Center in Eilat? I want only one pair of fins. I purchased the F1's after trying Mantarays. I liked the Mantarays, but they were very different from the old-fashioned Mares paddles that I was using, so I gave them back. But now I'm finding that the F1's are too much fin for me. My calves cramp up. I'm used to kicking a long slow scissors kick or frog kick. In short I want to try the F2's with the idea of exchanging the F1's for them. But if they're not available to me, I may take the Manta's, because I've already paid the money, and I can't hack the F1's, excellent though they may be. Ariel Auslander, one of the owners of Deep Siam, is waiting for an email from you guys at Hollis one this particular matter, but I thought I'd chip in my 2 cents anyway. So, can you get them down to Deep Siam in Eilat?

Try contacting Nick direct: nhollis@hollisgear.com

 

[EladLending]

Buddhasummer, thanks. I contacted Nick by email, and he wrote back. Hoping to see the F2's and the Mantarays side by side.

 

[EladLending]

Dove today with the F1's. I must admit that I probably jumped to a hasty conclusion when I declared that the F1's were too much fin for me! I hadn't dove in 9 months when I wrote that, and my new never-used F1's were sitting forlornly in my closet. I had no problem today with the F1's (only my second dive with them!); in fact, I enjoyed them immensely, probably because Jim Lapenta, in his post, reminded me of some nearly forgotten things. I dove easily mostly using my favored long slow scissors kick. I may yet buy a set of F2's, but I'm going to stick with the F1's! They are great fins!

 

[buddhasummer]

Dove today with the F1's. I must admit that I probably jumped to a hasty conclusion when I declared that the F1's were too much fin for me! I hadn't dove in 9 months when I wrote that, and my new never-used F1's were sitting forlornly in my closet. I had no problem today with the F1's (only my second dive with them!); in fact, I enjoyed them immensely, probably because Jim Lapenta, in his post, reminded me of some nearly forgotten things. I dove easily mostly using my favored long slow scissors kick. I may yet buy a set of F2's, but I'm going to stick with the F1's! They are great fins!

Nice. I like a happy ending. Id love some F1s but unfortunately my feet are too small am hoping when I finally get a drysuit I can re visit them.

 

[smorneau]

I have been diving a pair of F1's for a year with my dry suit and love them. I am am looking for a travel fin to dive wet in. I see someone posted the weight of the F2's but how about the length of a pair of Xl's? How is the foot pocket compared to the F1's? The XXL is perfect for my size 12 dry suit boots, but I need something smaller when diving wet.

Sent from my Nexus S using Tapatalk 2

 

[EladLending]

Granted I've never used a dry suit, but I don't understand what difference that would make concerning one's choice of fins. Would someone (maybe smorneau) please explain it to me?