Flutter kick technique, ankle flexibility and fin stiffness

[dmaziuk]

I fail to imagine what the mechanism would be. I can imagine stiff paddles being more "responsive" dealing with greater inertia of heavier gear, but more power to move forward? -- Does not compute.

 

[ronscuba]

Maybe a stiffer fin helps get a heavy load started moving in some direction ?

A fin that is too stiff is not good for sustained speed, straight ahead movement or air efficiency, but seems like a single kick or 2 from a stiff fin would be better to get a heavy load started vs a softer fin.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

If a person is strong and can handle the blade, a freedive fin can be purchased in a stiffness that matches the leg strength and type of diving the diver is going to do. Large jet fins have very little power, the blade is too small. the XL are considerably larger, heavier and do provide a noticable improvement in power of the size large.

The discussion can go round and round but just this weekend my dive buddy was "selling" another diver on freedive fins. He talked about how I told him for years to ditch the jetfins and he refused, until one time he tried the freedive fins.. Says he is never going back... Green Eggs and Ham..

 

[Hitham]

Maybe a stiffer fin helps get a heavy load started moving in some direction ?

A fin that is too stiff is not good for sustained speed, straight ahead movement or air efficiency, but seems like a single kick or 2 from a stiff fin would be better to get a heavy load started vs a softer fin.

ofc hence the freediving stiffness difference the more the dive weights the stiffer freediving fin he requires.. softer fin is indeed saves oxygen but whats the point if u need 3-4 stroke to move same distance with stiffer fin.. a diver needs to find the sweet spot..

 

[Hitham]

If a person is strong and can handle the blade, a freedive fin can be purchased in a stiffness that matches the leg strength and type of diving the diver is going to do. Large jet fins have very little power, the blade is too small. the XL are considerably larger, heavier and do provide a noticable improvement in power of the size large.

The discussion can go round and round but just this weekend my dive buddy was "selling" another diver on freedive fins. He talked about how I told him for years to ditch the jetfins and he refused, until one time he tried the freedive fins.. Says he is never going back... Green Eggs and Ham..

im a freediver originally and used many fins from plastic to most exp carbon 600$.. for scuba diving single tank i found diving with medium stiffness fiber glass is amazing.. but noticed loss of power once i put heavier tanks on..
my xl jet fins use more effort but they have the necessary power for tec dives..
at the end of the day both fins require alot of training.. not like regular med sized scuba fins

 

[dumpsterDiver]

Well it sounds like you have done some testing. my favorite is also a medium stiffness freedive fin for scuba.

As an FYI, I think many people don't know this, but there is a technique to get tons of power from almost any fin. It works incredibly well for the jetfins BTW. You do NOT use the normal kick pattern. Instead you use a super fast, very short amplitude kick.. almost the same as a competitive swimmer with no fins on. Try it some time with either freedive or jet fins. The acceleration and power is incredible and the jetfins might actually be faster in a sprint than freedive fins..I can only do it for maybe 15 or 20 seconds and will be very tired and out of breath, but you can power up..

However, in all honesty, I try to avoid putting out that level of exertion - especially when diving deep. Not great to get out of breath.

 

[ronscuba]

.... You do NOT use the normal kick pattern. Instead you use a super fast, very short amplitude kick.. almost the same as a competitive swimmer with no fins on. ...

Yep, this is what I was talking about. A narrow width kick with straighter knees propels you more directly forward vs wide kick which propels you a little up or down in addition to forward. For me, a softer blade works better with a narrow kick. When I started to kick narrower, fins which I thought were a little too soft, worked perfect.

As you and Hitham noted, fin stiffness is a personal choice. Kind of like a bicycle, but you could only choose 1 gear for everything. The type of bike riding you do, where you ride, how long you ride and your leg strength, all factor into choosing what gear is best for you.

 

[RollingBlackOut]

I, too, have heard freedive fins are much better than "scuba" fins. My buddy who freedives suggested plastic or fiberglass. He said he started freediving with force fins. For brands he recommended Hammerhead Kaudal fins, or if I wanted to splurge, the Cressi Gara plastic fins. He said fiberglass fins are better but typically more expensive. He mentioned carbon fiber, but wanted to see what you guys thought about the three types.

I swam competitively growing up and do masters swimming now, so kicking is second nature to me. Just want to get a fin that allows me to expend less energy, thus, less oxygen. From all the videos I've seen, the freedive fins look the most flexible and require minimal leg kick to propel yourself through the water. Certified diver for 16 years but haven't been in at least 5 years.

Any advice/suggestions are appreciated.

 

[ronscuba]

Where are you located ?

Ideally, go to a shop that carries many different models and try them all on to find a foot pocket that fits you best.

 

[dmaziuk]

Any advice/suggestions are appreciated.

If you want open heel, Imersion's the only freedive option I know of. Cressi has reaction and ara, they're slightly shorter and don't come with replaceable blades. You get more options if you don't need to wear booties and can use full foot ones.

I've had ARAs on my wish list for a while now but haven't yet found the need to replace/add to my Accels -- in a group of vacation divers you could probably keep up in zoomers and come up with the required 500 psi at the end. If you plan on e.g. spearfishing on your own, it'd be a very different story.