Vintage diving...what was it like?

[diverdoug1]

Thanks, but I am looking for the orange rubber fins.

 

[David Wilson]

Thanks, but I am looking for the orange rubber fins.

(Euro)balco Sprint fins are sold by swimgear retailers in Germany and Scandinavia, e.g.:
Aqua Sphere (Germany)
Schwimm Shop Online Shop für Flossen Schwimmen Rettungsschwimmen Triathlon Wasserball Orientierungstauchen Unterwasserugby - Gummiflossen sprint rubberfins rubber fins with stronger finblade Gummiflossen rubberfins russian rubber fins finswimming fin
Essenuoto (Finland)
Balco Sprint räpylät -

Orange rubber full-foot fins are much more easily obtained in continental Europe than in the United States, where I see you are based. Below are a couple of examples of other models available east of the Atlantic:
Tanga (Made in Malaysia)

Flippers Pair £ 11.61 - Sport-Thieme.co.uk
Francis Falcon (Made in Italy)

Flossen - Vollgummiflossen - Schwimmsport Steiner

If you're reluctant to order from abroad, your options are much more restricted if you are set on orange as your fin colour. If so, consider American swim retailer WBHSwim's offering below:

ALLSWIM.COM - Training Aids - Leggs & Feet

If you're prepared to consider another colour of fins, then you might try the light blue American-made variety from Oceanways, which are modelled on Cressi Rondines from the early 1970s:

Amazon.com: Oceanways Aquapro Full Foot Rubber Fins: Sports & Outdoors

Hope there's some food for thought here!

 

[mksmith713]

I love threads like this.
I dive in Fla and with the exception of Jan & Feb, I dive with no exposure protection whatsoever and only 3/2 full then.
I dive a BP/W setup but feel like I could dive sans BC if I could pop a rock or 2 in my pockets to ditch at depth.
Currently, I add a puff of air when I get to around 60 feet or so just to keep me off the bottom.
That would be an ideal place to ditch the rocks......same results.

Other than the surface swim being hairy, being forever away from the boat (most dives are drift dives here), I think I could go vintage.
I'm already diving 40 year old regs.

 

[mksmith713]

Scratch that.........I still want my SPG......

 

[TN Traveler]

You can still dive vintage with an SPG - just need to use a banjo fitting.

 

[Nemrod]

I love threads like this.
I dive in Fla and with the exception of Jan & Feb, I dive with no exposure protection whatsoever and only 3/2 full then.
I dive a BP/W setup but feel like I could dive sans BC if I could pop a rock or 2 in my pockets to ditch at depth.
Currently, I add a puff of air when I get to around 60 feet or so just to keep me off the bottom.
That would be an ideal place to ditch the rocks......same results.

Other than the surface swim being hairy, being forever away from the boat (most dives are drift dives here), I think I could go vintage.
I'm already diving 40 year old regs.

I did a solo beach dive a few weeks ago at the PDO that went for nearly four hours with no BC. I wore about two pounds on my belt to offset my neoprene rash guard and shorts. At the beginning of the dive I was a little negative, by the end slightly positive. For the swim back in I pulled my belt off and hung it on my inner tube dive flag float. Now I was very buoyant and comfortably snorkeled back in. Don't need no stink'n BC. The max depth was around 35ish feet give or take so did not need a spg either. It was a lot of fun.

Fun, modern scuba:

N

 

[David Wilson]

BP/W - BC - SPG

Now there's another reason why I prefer vintage snorkelling: too many pesky acronyms to look up the meaning of in modern diving!

 

[Thalassamania]

You can still dive vintage with an SPG - just need to use a banjo fitting.

Or a DACOR K-valve.

 

[herman]

I love threads like this.
I dive in Fla and with the exception of Jan & Feb, I dive with no exposure protection whatsoever and only 3/2 full then.
I dive a BP/W setup but feel like I could dive sans BC if I could pop a rock or 2 in my pockets to ditch at depth.
Currently, I add a puff of air when I get to around 60 feet or so just to keep me off the bottom.
That would be an ideal place to ditch the rocks......same results.

Other than the surface swim being hairy, being forever away from the boat (most dives are drift dives here), I think I could go vintage.
I'm already diving 40 year old regs.

If your regs are 40 yo then they are vintage, just find yourself an old backpack and dive them, nothing wrong with single hose vintage diving, you don't have to do it in a double hose to be vintage....but it is more fun. I am sure some of my DH brothers will disagree but you have to start somewhere....(don;t worry guys, this is a gateway reg to get him hooked. ) If you are properly weighted and diving with no wetsuit or most likely the 3/2 you won't need the rocks. You may have to swim down the first few feet with the 3/2 on but that is no problem. You need to give it a try, you will be surprized at the freedom and streamlining you get by dropping the wing. I had to put on a wing on my BP for a class a few weeks ago, I had not been in one for a while and realized that I now hate the thing.
Surface swims are not that big of a deal either. You will be a little on the positive side at the end of the dive if you are properly weighted. This is esp true if you are wearing a wetsuit you had to swim down some at the beginning.

"Try it, you'll like it"....to steal a vintage add.

 

[mksmith713]

Still, there's some feeling of security when you're down about 70 feet or so tickling lobster and you can look at your SPG.
My SAC goes even higher when I get excited trying to finese those bugs outta their holes.
I guess having a wing, knowing you can blow and go plays into that feling of security as well.
I might consider going naked on a really shallow or shore dive shooting pictures.
You know....just to get my feet wet.