Basic gear from mid-twentieth-century Italy: Mares and Pirelli

[David Wilson]

Thank, all!

As promised, the Mark X/Sea Hawk. This Mares fin model appears to have evolved from an exercise in international collaboration. In 1973, the US diving equipment manufacturer Voit/Swimaster came up with the Mark IX fin, which the company described as the most efficient fin available:

The Mark X fin (right below) arrived the following year, fitted with "extra-large oval jet vents to reduce pressure drag by as much as 30% over conventional fins":

In the same year, 1974, the Italian diving magazine Il Mondo Sommerso published a picture of the Mark X fin (above) and announced "Quest’anno, la casa di Rapallo ha iniziato la produzione delle famose pinne Mark X, progettate nei laboratori di Santa Ana, in California, dalla Voigt Swimaster. Adatte soprattutto a chi si immerge con l’autorespiratore, queste pinne hanno un sistema di propulsione a canali direzionali, che riduce notevolmente la fatica del nuoto subacqueo. Le Mark X sono fornite di un cinturino regolabile, in corrispondenza del tallone, per adattarlo alle diverse calzate." (This year, the Rapallo-based company [Mares] began production of the famous Mark X fins, designed in the workshops of Santa Ana, California, by Voit Swimaster. Particularly suitable for anyone diving with scuba, these fins have a propulsion system with directional channels, which significantly reduces underwater swimming fatigue. The Mark Xs come with an adjustable strap, matching the heel and adapting to different fittings.)

The Mark X appeared in this mid-1970s Mares catalogue fin page:

It is number 4, on the extreme right, the only open-heel fin in the then Mares range of fins.

 

[David Wilson]

Here is a page from the 1975 Mares catalogue:

There is today's fin, on the extreme left at the top next to all those Mares full-foots. But one detail has changed, the model name, which is now "Sea Hawk". The name stuck and the 1976 Mares catalogue supplied more detail:

Italian: "SEA HAWK. Le pinne SEA HAWK, le vere pinne da lavoro, sono state appositamente studiate per essere utilizzate con calzari normali o con suola ed hanno perciò la calzata aperta con un cinturino adattabile a qualsiasi misura di piede. Il sistema propulsivo a canali direzionali annulla lo sforzo di spinta e la mescola speciale con cui sono costruite garantisce una lunghissima durata."
English: "SEA HAWK. Real work fins. Especially designed to be used with normal or soled footwear. Open wearing with adjustable belt to all foot sizes. The directional channel propulsion system balances the thrust effort and the special material mix they are made of ensure a very long life."
German: "SEA HAWK. Die Sea Hawk - Flossen sind echte Arbeitsflossen und wurden speziell für den Gebrauch mit Füßlingen ohne und mit Sohle entworfen und besitzen deshalb einen Schuhteil mit verstellbaren Gurten, die eine Anpassung an jede Schuhgrösse ermöglichen. Die Entwicklung der Längskanäle verhindert hohen Kraftaufwand. Die Specialmischung des Materials, das für die Herstellung dieser Flosse verwendet wird, garantiert eine sehr lange Lebensdauer."
French: "SEA HAWK. Les palmes Sea Hawk, les véritables palmes de travail, ont été spécialement étudiées pour être utilisées avec bottillons sans ou avec semelle. Le chaussant est ouvert et une lanière permet de l'adapter à toutes les pointures. La propulsion est donnée par un système de canaux de direction qui ne fatigue pas et est efficace dans l’action négative du palmage. Le mélange spécial et particulièrement dosé avec lequel ces palmes sont fabriquées en assure une longue durée."
Spanish: "SEA HAWK. Son las verdaderas aletas de trabajo. Especialmente estudiadas para ser usadas con botín con o sin suela, tienen el talón abierto con una correa ajustable a cualquier número de pie. Sistema de propulsión de tubos Venturi que elimina el esfuerzo. La mezcla especial usada para su fabricación asegura una larguísima duración."

I'll leave you to work out for yourselves the hydrodynamics of the "directional channel propulsion system" balancing "the thrust effort" tersely mentioned in the quinquelingual product description above.

In 1977, another Il Mondo Sommerso review mentioned the role of the Mark X in the now "AMF MARES" (AMF=American Machine and Foundry) repertoire: "A titolo esemplificativo, dal vasto catalogo, ricordiamo per il settore lavoro le pinne Mark X, molto robuste, adatte anche per lavori in mezzo a lamiere. Canali direzionali per spinte assiali ad alto rendimento. Usate dalla marina militare americana." (By way of example, from the huge catalogue, we recall the Mark X fins for the work sector, very robust, also suitable for work among the rollers. Directional channels for high performance axial thrusts. Used by the US Navy.)

In the same year States-side, Voit-Swimaster offered two versions of the Mark X as well as its earlier Mark IX model:

So the Mark X/Sea Hawk was Voit's - and Mares' - answer to Scubapro's - and Beuchat's Jet Fin/Jetfin.

That's it for today. At the weekend we'll have a look at Mares odds and ends when it comes to fins, in particular the company's budget line. Keep well, stay safe.

 

[WeRtheOcean]

a pair of GDR-manufactured "Naiade" (note different spelling) fins:

I assume that this (and the other spelling with a "j") is a reference to the naiads of Greek mythology?

 

[David Wilson]

I assume that this (and the other spelling with a "j") is a reference to the naiads of Greek mythology?

John William Waterhouse, The Naiad, 1983.
Indeed. The word Naiad derives from Ancient Greek Νᾱϊάς (Naias), water nymph, parallelling "Draiad" (wood nymph) and Nereid (sea nymph), female deities resident in particular natural settings according to Ancient Greek mythology. The Naiads are associated with streams, rivers, springs and other bodies of fresh running water. "Najade" with a "J" is German for Naiad and it was the name given to our fin when it was first manufactured in the German Democratic Republic (East Germany). The fin moulds eventually ended up in Hungary, where the fins were renamed "Naiade", which is Hungarian for Naiad.

 

[Angelo Farina]

It appears that these fin moulds last for several decades.
I was always fascinated by rubber moulding technology...

 

[David Wilson]

It appears that these fin moulds last for several decades.
I was always fascinated by rubber moulding technology...

Then you'll appreciate this video shot in a SoCal factory showing how all-rubber Oceanways full-foot fins are assembled, moulded, washed and trimmed:

 

[David Wilson]

Thanks, everyone!

Using horseracing parlance, we're on the "home straight" and "final furlong" with Mares in general and Mares fins in particular. Top right on the page above from the 1974 Mares catalogue shows "Poker Sub", which I take to be a separate range of budget snorkelling gear manufactured and/or marketed by Mares. The fins portrayed bear at least a passing resemblance to the Moby Dick model:

As can seen from the images above, a fin without a manufacturer's identification but with a childlike logo representing the famous whale from Herman Melville's 1851 novel Moby Dick. Here is the fin from a British Spartan catalogue of 1967:

So the Moby Dick fins for children were exported to the UK in the mid-1960s alongside Mares Sea King and OK fins for youngsters and adults.

 

[David Wilson]

Just to complicate matters, Moby Dick junior fins had their senior equivalent in Onda fins:

The logo this time was a fish instead of a cetacean. The product name "Onda" derives from the Italian word for "wave". Note the absence of a manufacturer's mark.

That's enough for today and I'll be back midweek with the final trio of Mares fins to complete our review of masks, snorkels and fins made by Mares. Afterwards, we'll be moving on to Pirelli basic diving equipment. Keep safe to stay well as we approach the twelfth month of the year and its festive season celebrations.

 

[David Wilson]

Thanks, everybody, for all the likes!

We're down to the last few models in the Mares fin range. Let's begin with the Mares "Key":

While there is little particularly distinctive about these fins, the anti-skid heel studs do remind me of a similar tread on certain all-rubber fins made currently or in recent years by OEM manufacturers in Malaysia for western swimgear companies:

DF-300 model branded as "Tanga":

SF-158 model branded as "Beco":

Who knows? The Mares "Key" fin moulds may have found their way to a factory conveniently close to some rubber plantation in Malaysia where their original form was slightly modified for a new service life as an aid to pool workouts in the West.

 

[David Wilson]

Second fin of the day is the Mares Vola:

The Vola resembles another Mares fin we have already reviewed, the GTX:

As you may have noticed, however, the Vola comes without those two ribs on the top surface of the GTX blade radiating from the foot pocket toe opening. The heel treads differ too. "Vola" is the third-person singular present indicative of "volare", "to fly", so I suppose "Vola" may be rendered as "(it) flies", which sounds like a good name for a fin if you want a good turn of speed and are contemplating a purchase. The Italian verb "Volare" is also the title of an Italian pop song that I frequently heard on my first trip to continental Europe in the early 1960s. It was the Italian entry in the 1958 Eurovision song contest and came third. It still reminds of simpler, happier times. Here it is sung by the man who wrote it, Domenico Modugno, on the Ed Sullivan Show:
Lyrics:
Pienso que un sueno parecido no volvera mas
Y me pintaba las manos y la cara de azul
Y me improviso el viento rapido me llevo
Y me hizo a volar en el cielo infinito
Volare, oh, oh
Cantare, oh, oh, oh, oh
Nel blu dipinto di blu
Felice di stare lassu
Y volando, volando feliz
Yo me encuentro mas alto
Mas alto que el sol
Y mienstras que el mundo
Se aleja despacio de mi
Una musica dulce
Se ha tocada solo para mi
Volare, oh, oh
Cantare, oh, oh, oh, oh
Nel blu dipinto di blu
Felice di stare lassu
Pienso que un sueno parecido no volvera mas
Y me pintaba las manos y la cara de azul
Y me improviso el viento rapido me llevo
Y me hizo a volar en el cielo infinito
Volare, oh, oh
Cantare, oh, oh, oh, oh
Nel blu dipinto di blu
Felice di stare lassu

A free English translation...
To Fly

Let's fly way up to the clouds
Away from the maddening crowds
We can sing in the glow of a star that I know of
where lovers enjoy peace of mind
Let us leave the confusion and all disillusion behind
Just like bird of a feather, a rainbow together we'll find
No wonder my happy heart sings

No wonder my happy heart sings
Your love has given me wings
I think, such a dream
Will never return.
I painted hands and face in the blue
And then suddenly the wind kidnapped me
And I began to fly in an infinite sky.

To fly,
To sing
In the blue, painted in the blue,
I am happy to be above.

And I flew, flew happy
Higher the sun and even higher
While the world disappeared slowly
Far away down.
A sweet music played only for me.

But all my dreams disappeared at the daybreak because
When the moon sets, it brings them with itself.
But I continue dreaming about your beautiful eyes
Which are blue as the sky embroidered with stars...

To fly,
To sing
In the blue, painted in the blue,
I am happy to be above.

And I flew, flew happy
Higher the sun and even higher
While the world disappeared slowly
In your blue eyes.
Your voice is a sweet music
Which plays for me.

To fly,
To sing
In the blue of your blue eyes,
I am happy to be here down.