Advice on Freediving Fins

[AB Diver]

I was wondering if they make freediving fins that are not full foot. The problem is that there are so many rocks to cross when abalone diving that you have to wear booties anyway and then change to socks if you want to use freediving fins. I was just wondering if there would be an easier way with a different fin that will fit a bootie?

[deckhand mike]

Just use scuba fins. I have gone through this whole dilema too. Usually when I ab dive I rarely go deeper than 20 feet and my buddies go up to 35 and they all use scuba fins for several reasons. You can wear a 7mil shoe bootie and the shorter fins are way easier to climb in and out of the water. True freedive fins REALLY work your legs in the surge. Just go with a semi stiff non split scuba fin. I have never been more stoked to ab dive than the first day I left my freedive fins in the trunk! So much better! Borrow a pair of really stiff freedive fins before you make the purchase and see what you think. I wear a 10 if your intrseted, just don't ask to borrow my scuba fins.

[deep thinker]

Hey I doubt you get freediving fins thats open heel, transfer of power from leg to fin could be a problem with such a setup, I think they mite feel loose having more resistance in the water. You could always modify a old pair by cutting open the heel and attaching heel straps from a pair of scuba fins. Or get socks that fits around your big toe like those gloves you get and wear a pair of slip slops to your entry point where you would tie them to your float or store them in your belly bag

[Marwan]

Riffe and Esclapez make open heel freediving fins , maybe you should check them out

[AB Diver]

Thanks fellas,

Marwin, I will check that out.

Mike, I want to try going deeper for lingcod and such after I pick my 3 abs. Swim to the outer washrocks and try to find some bigger fish in a little deeper-less picked over waters. I would much rather have freediving fins than the scuba ones. I currently have and use the scuba fins when i dive in the < 20ft range. (not that I can go over 45 otherwise or anything. It's just that I love my cressi gara's and would rather swim with those.

[Jon]

You can get the openheel Esclapez fins here: Hana Pa`a Hawaii

If you check Ebay you might still be able to find the Openheel freediving fins made by Sporasub or Cressi-sub. I used to own a pair of the openheel cressi's and thought that they worked fine. I currently own a pair of the openheel esclapez fins for use with a drysuit.

Another option, which I use, is to wear a pair of sandels out to the dive site, like a pair of Teva's or Croc's, and then switch into my freediving fins once I am in waist deep water. I then just tie my sandels off to my float and swim from there.

Jon

[Polystigma]

If you like soft fins. The Riffe freediving fins are also available in open heel.

[chaneym]

I saw some guy with a pair of Cressi Gara's the other day wearing them w/ booties on.

Okinawa is pretty much completley engulfed in coral so I've got the same problem. My solution was to bring a float w/ pockets. Walk out to the drop off with my boots on them stash them in our float and just tow it around with us.

[Metridium]

Hi Ab Diver,

I dive a lot for California abs too and the picture shows what has worked well for me while still using a full pocket fin. I just take a regular dive sock and glue some material to the sole. The black sock has just a plain sheet of rubber and the blue sock has a thicker sheet with some fibers (a piece of "lay-flat" irrigation pipe) sandwiched in to reinforce it. You should sand the bonding surface of the rubber first before gluing. I had my local wetsuit maker do the gluing.

A pair lasts 2 to 3 years of use before the neoprene compresses too much and my feet get cold. I never wear shoes or flip-flops to walk to a site and the socks don't wear out even though I walk all over sharp granite crystals, sandstone, and climb up and down the rock cliffs. They slip right into both my Cressi Gara and Beuchat fin pockets no problem. The thinner more flexible plain black rubber has performed a little better.

A downside to switching to finstraps with buckles is that you lose some power transfer and the buckles will get caught in the kelp a lot when swimming ocross the surface or starting your dive. A real drag.

David

[AB Diver]

Thanks for the sock tip. That sounds like my best option so far.

What type of glue are you using to get the layflat to stick to the sock?

Thanks, Ken

[Metridium]

Hmmm, I don't know what glue since the wetsuit shop did the gluing. They probably used the same flexible glue that they use for wetsuit seam bonding. Here is the shop # to call: 831 458 2960. He probably still makes rubber soled socks as well.

The best glue I know of for neoprene repairs is sold by Picasso. Picasso America - Deep Down We're the Best Freediving and Spearfishing Equipment Once dry it is very elastic just like the neoprene, and you don't get tears around the repair like stiffer glues sold for the same purpose. It would probably work real well for the sock soles. The glue is well worth the $20 for repairing glove tears etc...

If you do it yourself, concentrate on a complete sanding of the rubber surface, complete glue coverage on both surfaces, and don't use too thick a material because it will pucker when you bend your foot and the stretchy glue will separate a little along the edges of the puckers. The lay flat rubber I used measures about 0.08 inches thick and seems to be about as thick as is practical. The other black rubber was about 0.05 inches and worked better. A discarded piece of auto innertube is probably even thinner, and you will feel the rock points, but it would still probably protect the socks from shredding.

More than you wanted to know about dive moccasins.

David

[AB Diver]

Perfect. I am going to make myself a set of shoes/socks before my next ab dive (maybe late june, if I get out of Iraq in time. . . crossed my fingers)

Thanks again, Ken

[covert]

I know its expensive, but why not just go to your dive shop, fit a pair of soled booties, and then get a pair of fins that fit specifically with that setup. That way you have a perfect fit, dont have to bother with open heel, and you have the comfort factor which means more time in the water? Then keep your other fins, for boat dives or easy entry points, where they wont get banged up. Anyway thats what im considering.

[covert]

Also for the above mentioned setup it could be wise to get a softer compound I use esclapez carbon fiber fins which work great but surface swimming can be tough if im in a strong top current. Something like soft compount Omer or Cressi should work nicer for surface swimming while still allowing you to reach your depths comfortably.

[Metridium]

Ken,

I'll cross my fingers too that you get that well deserved fun.