Webbed Gloves
- Thread starter JeffG
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
Roy McKinney
Contributor
Thanks for the great comments! Check out our FB page an blog and see what others say about Darkfin. 2-new products coming out this year. Can't wait to show them!
Roy
Roy
JKPAO
Contributor
I have and use something like these for surfing! My old man syndrome. May be another market to hit! Good luck Roy!
See you topside! John
See you topside! John
Last edited:
Domsz06
Guest
followed you on facebook!!
how close is the sizing, I tend to be in-between on small/medium it seems on most gloves....
Roy, I recently order gloves from you. Love the "Not made in friggen China". Everyone I show that to chuckles.
Now about the gloves.
I have been using them at the pool for 2 weeks now. I love the upper body workout I am getting doing laps (I swim with fins and gloves, mask and snorkel) I get some odd looks, but man, do I fly.
10 25 meter laps and I can feel the burn, so I will do the breast stroke, and whats great is that I can keep up with the people in the other lanes doing the crawl stroke.
For swimming underwater, I find, I do not use them alot. If I am doing underwater laps, it seems the second I swim with my hands (after the initial pull down) I burn up way more o2. So i generally just keep my hands folded in front of me.
I am not sure if I will use them for scuba, but a few of the applications seem like good ideas. Like the surf entry, and boat exit when I need to take my fins off first.
Just one other note, the gloves seem to be very well made and they don't feel in any ways like they will tear or wear out quickly.
Now about the gloves.
I have been using them at the pool for 2 weeks now. I love the upper body workout I am getting doing laps (I swim with fins and gloves, mask and snorkel) I get some odd looks, but man, do I fly.
10 25 meter laps and I can feel the burn, so I will do the breast stroke, and whats great is that I can keep up with the people in the other lanes doing the crawl stroke.
For swimming underwater, I find, I do not use them alot. If I am doing underwater laps, it seems the second I swim with my hands (after the initial pull down) I burn up way more o2. So i generally just keep my hands folded in front of me.
I am not sure if I will use them for scuba, but a few of the applications seem like good ideas. Like the surf entry, and boat exit when I need to take my fins off first.
Just one other note, the gloves seem to be very well made and they don't feel in any ways like they will tear or wear out quickly.
Warning slightly off topic
The theory is your arms mofe water directly behind you moving you in the desired direction forward with maximum efficency. The legs on the otherhand move up and down and naturaly move water up and down (witness the splashing white water when swimming on the surface) and provide minimal forward thrust compared to the energy expended (Oxygen consumed). Add to that the legs are huge mussels and Oxygen hogs. I once tried an unsientific test after first reading this book a few years ago. Swim on the surface and do a normal flutter kick but don't use your arms do the old time distance test see how far you get in say 20 cycles (20 kicks of the right leg), now try the same thing using only your arms and you will note you are moving much faster.
By the way I would recommend this book Source Diving Science (book is picuted here)Scuba Diver Info - Book Review: Diving Science -- Essential Physiology and Medicine for Divers to any diver to give a better understanding of what is going on in the body during each phase of the dive and what can go south at each phase.
Now if you have a pair of well made fins, I will agree that keeping the hands folded in is better and uses less air. I have added 15 minutes to the bottom time of several divers by having them stop waiving their arms around and swimming with their hands duiring SCUBA opertions. Acutally if you look at a diver using their hands underwater to swim they are usally not using them to move forward, but rather to maintain their depth (sculling motion) because they are not at neutral buoyancy. If they fold their hand under they body they are forced to address the real problem and adjust their buoyancy. In short I have dove with divers, and between dives at the same site discussed not using their hands and on the 2nd dive to the same depths at the same site we got 15 minutes more bottom time because their air lasted that much longer.
If you are talking swimming with fins I would agree. If you are talking about without fins the book Diving Science argues that wthout fins, you arms are more efficent than your legs for swimming.
The theory is your arms mofe water directly behind you moving you in the desired direction forward with maximum efficency. The legs on the otherhand move up and down and naturaly move water up and down (witness the splashing white water when swimming on the surface) and provide minimal forward thrust compared to the energy expended (Oxygen consumed). Add to that the legs are huge mussels and Oxygen hogs. I once tried an unsientific test after first reading this book a few years ago. Swim on the surface and do a normal flutter kick but don't use your arms do the old time distance test see how far you get in say 20 cycles (20 kicks of the right leg), now try the same thing using only your arms and you will note you are moving much faster.
By the way I would recommend this book Source Diving Science (book is picuted here)Scuba Diver Info - Book Review: Diving Science -- Essential Physiology and Medicine for Divers to any diver to give a better understanding of what is going on in the body during each phase of the dive and what can go south at each phase.
Now if you have a pair of well made fins, I will agree that keeping the hands folded in is better and uses less air. I have added 15 minutes to the bottom time of several divers by having them stop waiving their arms around and swimming with their hands duiring SCUBA opertions. Acutally if you look at a diver using their hands underwater to swim they are usally not using them to move forward, but rather to maintain their depth (sculling motion) because they are not at neutral buoyancy. If they fold their hand under they body they are forced to address the real problem and adjust their buoyancy. In short I have dove with divers, and between dives at the same site discussed not using their hands and on the 2nd dive to the same depths at the same site we got 15 minutes more bottom time because their air lasted that much longer.
Last edited:
These webbed fins really interest me for my father. He is a 60 year old with knee problems that loves to swim and scuba dive. He uses his hands a lot for swimming so would these be great for scuba diving or just regular swimming and training? Do they tire you out more but give you speed or do they just easily let you glide through the water. Roy if you are still giving out samples I would love to have my dad test these out and provide feedback.
Domsz06
Guest
must say I just tried out my darkfin gloves finally and they are awesome! Did some laps in the pool and felt really good in them. They for sure help me move a lot of water 
can't wait to get underwater and scuba with them.
can't wait to get underwater and scuba with them.I will say I have been swimming laps with them and fins at the pool, I am up to 2 miles a night in about 45 minutes or so. I thought of another use for the darkfins this weekend. I was diving in a current and when we came up we were 1/2 a mile from my boat. I had my brother running the boat so it was no problem. But if I didn't have a pickup man, I could have given my buddy my BC and tank and made it back to my boat in 10 minutes VS. trying to swim against current with my gear. I am going to keep them in my bc pocket, just in case. I can also see it happenning with shore dives, and even with the BC on I could see them helping a ton to swim back to shore.
Similar threads
