TYR Flex fins okay for snorkeling?

[MECindylou]

Hello and help! I'm leaving Tuesday on a snorkel trip to Raja Ampat and am having second thoughts about the fins I'm planning to bring. I have an old pair of Sea Quest fins, but got a pair of TYR Flex fins (rubber) because they seemed pretty comfortable and, when I tried them in a small pool, felt like I had good control, maybe even better than my old ones. (My feet are small and I was having trouble finding any that fit.) Also, they're a bit smaller and I figured they'd pack well. Then I read some reviews and they all indicated that these fins are used for swim training to strengthen the foot. No mention of snorkeling or diving in any reviews. The folks at the dive shop seemed to think they were a fine choice; one woman said she'd used them on a dive trip. Would love thoughts of anyone who's familiar with them. Alternatively, I can take my old tried-and-true fins; they're not the most up to date, but I know they'll be okay.

Maybe I'm overthinking.

Thanks!

 

[lowwall]

I can't see any problem using them for snorkeling. They probably don't have enough surface area to fight a big current, but I assume you aren't going to be doing that.

 

[David Wilson]

As a lifelong snorkeller, I'm a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to fins. When I started 65 years or so ago, the best fins around were all-rubber full-foots and I saw no reason to change when the plastic-bladed fin bandwagon rolled into western dive stores, ousting the likes of the classic Cressi Rondines that had served snorkellers and scuba divers perfectly well in indoor pools and open waters on both sides of the "Pond".

Underwater swimming equipment retailers in western countries do not tend to stock all-rubber fins these days, relegating them to the status of "swim training fins" and claiming that they lack the power necessary for open-water currents. The Japanese have no such qualms about snorkelling or scuba diving nowadays shod with all-rubber fins, which are the only kind produced by the manufacturers there. I also recall reading an Australian underwater photographer's recent diving magazine article singing the praises of his all-rubber full-foots that his local dive store refused to stock simply because they were not profitable enough to sell.

Fins are very personal items of gear. Unlike freediving or scuba diving, snorkelling neither prescribes nor proscribes what its practitioners should wear on their feet to swim and dive. Nobody should categorise all-rubber full-foot fins as merely "swim-workout gear" or insist they should never be used for snorkelling.

Finally, I have a pair of all-rubber full-foot TYR Flex Fins in my collection of underwater swimming equipment. I have snorkelled with them in the North Sea, finding them excellent both for wearing comfort and for delivery of power and manoeuvrability.

These fins were awarded a US Design patent back in 1988:

A while ago, I created a product description for them:

 

[happy-diver]

All the way with TYR yay yay yay!

Here are my comfy fins, the ones I also use for lightweight scuba diving

We could have a comfy off

There's a guide at Raja Ampat that uses white rubber fins and boy is he magnificent in the water, like art

 

[lowwall]

@MECindylou

No one knows more about the universe of rubber fins than @David Wilson . If they are comfortable for you and have his seal of approval, you are good to go.

 

[David Wilson]

All the way with TYR yay yay yay!

Here are my comfy fins, the ones I also use for lightweight scuba diving

View attachment 825326

We could have a comfy off

There's a guide at Raja Ampat that uses white rubber fins and boy is he magnificent in the water, like art

Those white rubber fins are likely to have been Japanese-made Gull Mews (below). Great fins! They come in different hardnesses as well as a large range of other colours.

​

As for those blue and orange fins, they look like Eyeline full-foots made in Malaysia by Adila Manufacturing for the Australian market. If so, they are the same fins that the Australian underwater photographer Pete Atkinson (below) - the man I mentioned in my earlier post - who bought them at a general sporting goods outlet when his local dive store declined to stock them as plastic-bladed fins were much more profitable.

​

His verdict on these fins: "I currently use the best fins I have ever used, but no dive store in Cairns will stock them, because they aren’t profitable enough. They are orange and blue, Malaysian rubber fins by Eyeline, available from a local sports shop for £20. From new, I could snorkel for a couple of hours without any hint of blisters. They are stiff enough that I can push a Seacam housing around all day. For the diving I do, full-foot fins like these are by far the best. Manufacturers are continually trying to dream up fancy expensive gimmicks to extract more money from us. I’ll concede a few of these might actually be useful, but offhand, I can’t think of any".

The full interview with Pete is accessible at My favourite kit – Pete Atkinson.

 

[MECindylou]

As a lifelong snorkeller, I'm a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to fins. When I started 65 years or so ago, the best fins around were all-rubber full-foots and I saw no reason to change when the plastic-bladed fin bandwagon rolled into western dive stores, ousting the likes of the classic Cressi Rondines that had served snorkellers and scuba divers perfectly well in indoor pools and open waters on both sides of the "Pond".

Underwater swimming equipment retailers in western countries do not tend to stock all-rubber fins these days, relegating them to the status of "swim training fins" and claiming that they lack the power necessary for open-water currents. The Japanese have no such qualms about snorkelling or scuba diving nowadays shod with all-rubber fins, which are the only kind produced by the manufacturers there. I also recall reading an Australian underwater photographer's recent diving magazine article singing the praises of his all-rubber full-foots that his local dive store refused to stock simply because they were not profitable enough to sell.

Fins are very personal items of gear. Unlike freediving or scuba diving, snorkelling neither prescribes nor proscribes what its practitioners should wear on their feet to swim and dive. Nobody should categorise all-rubber full-foot fins as merely "swim-workout gear" or insist they should never be used for snorkelling.

Finally, I have a pair of all-rubber full-foot TYR Flex Fins in my collection of underwater swimming equipment. I have snorkelled with them in the North Sea, finding them excellent both for wearing comfort and for delivery of power and manoeuvrability.

These fins were awarded a US Design patent back in 1988:

View attachment 825322
View attachment 825320
View attachment 825321​

A while ago, I created a product description for them:

View attachment 825323
View attachment 825324​

Thank you so much, David, and everyone else who chimed in. I'm so grateful. You've put my mind at ease. I did try them in a small pool and they're super comfy and I do have the fin socks which will help with any chafing.

Off we go to Indonesia, whoo-hoo!

 

[dcvf2]

Hi everyone

@ “MECindylou“
Where are you going in Indonesia ?
I went there in 2017 & 2018
Please find here after some videos I've done in snorkelling
Video in free diving
Snorkeling video from Raja Ampat and Sulawesi

For the fins, mine are carbon with rubber full foot pockets that I wear with 2mm neoprene socks
Picture done by my wife, me in red sea in Oct 2023.

More details here below
Mer Rouge, à Mangrove Bay en octobre 2023.

 

[David Wilson]

Thank you so much, David, and everyone else who chimed in. I'm so grateful. You've put my mind at ease. I did try them in a small pool and they're super comfy and I do have the fin socks which will help with any chafing.

Off we go to Indonesia, whoo-hoo!

A pleasure. Do let us know how you got on when you return.

 

[happy-diver]

Ha ha ha Mr David, I've been re reading this article for years it's a real beauty, thank you.

The full interview with Pete is accessible at My favourite kit – Pete Atkinson.

Off we go to Indonesia, whoo-hoo!

Ultra magnificent!