Avoid C4 - New fins cracked - no support from C4

[subzil]

Hi,
Just thought I'd vent my frustration and hopefully save a few people the same stress I have gone through with C4.

Just some background - I have had many different brands of fins over the past 20 years I have been diving and have never had a fin break on me. My most recent fins - Omer Stingray Carbon - have been really put through hell the past 3 years in hard conditions diving shore dives in hard conditions in South Africa/Carribean/Australia to name a few places. They are scratched and scuffed and very well used. On one of my last dives with them I was bounced on the reef so hard that the blade nearly completely popped out...
Tough as nails...

Onto my story....having been so happy with the Omers, I went to buy a new pair in Italy. At the shop they convinced me to try C4...we all know C4, big name, big prices, etc. A little against my better judgement I invested in a pair of C4 Mustang fins...

I travelled to Thailand to do some diving and to use my fins...we dived a few pinnacles and wrecks so there was a bit of current and the occasional bump into something...nothing near what I am used to so no problems until I got on deck and discovered the crack in my fin.

I wrote to C4 and sent them pics...only to get a very quick reply back that I was at fault and there would be no warranty to cover this. Considering the fins were used such a short amount of time, as a manufacturer I'd want to examine the fin and look to improve them - as Rob Allen and Free Divers in South Africa do, and then try help the customer. Unlike C4 that really does not care.

All I can say is that if C4 products are so fragile, avoid them and save yourself a lot of money and heartache.
Personally I will ditch the C4 gun I have along with the fins and never buy their products again.
Your money is better invested in other brands - Back to Omer for me.

In all the years of my diving, this is the worst experience I have had with equipment and service.

"C4 you suck!"

What a rat mate.

You had no 'idea' what fins you bought, you moan about a crack you did.

You ask the company to give you a 'fin' as you mention for free.

They decline, you go public stating false accusations

When Nata comes and rubs on your face you did not buy the fins you claim you did, you say nothing.

And then you continue.

I come three years later to clap on your way of thinking.

Good job to Nata.

 

[popgun pete]

Surprised to see this thread bob up again, but since I last posted I have purchased a brand new C4 "Urukay" speargun and it is absolutely flawless in finish from butt to muzzle. However one should remember that stock in shops can be subjected to rough handling by customers who don't necessarily go on to buy the item and they may clumsily drop it on the display rack prongs or some other hard obstruction in the store. Years ago I bought a gun from a shop where I had seen it months before, it was still there but in another location in the store and I noticed it had collected a few scratches since I last saw it. Figuring that sooner or later it would collect a few more I decided to buy it anyway.

 

[Darryll]

What a rat mate.

You had no 'idea' what fins you bought, you moan about a crack you did.

You ask the company to give you a 'fin' as you mention for free.

They decline, you go public stating false accusations

When Nata comes and rubs on your face you did not buy the fins you claim you did, you say nothing.

And then you continue.

I come three years later to clap on your way of thinking.

Good job to Nata.

Don't be a dick....read the message...I never asked for a free fin etc...I wanted to send the fin back for checking and testing...but whatever mate...
Just relaying my experience and muppets like you and C4 just keep bumping this post higher and higher and keep it alive. Genius! No cure for stupidity, is there? You do realise the stress it requires to "crack" a carbon blade and not to mention in that shape? Thankfully I got some good tips on how to fix the issue (although I haven't and just put the fins into storage...)

 

[popgun pete]

Check this one out, not a C4, but these things happen.

Broken Carbon Fiber Blade - Spearboard.com - The World's Largest Spearfishing Diving Boating Social Media Forum

Broken Carbon Fiber Blade Mid-Atlantic States

www.spearboard.com

 

[Darryll]

100% probably not very common, but for sure it happens...

 

[PoseidonSv]

Don't be a dick....read the message...I never asked for a free fin etc...I wanted to send the fin back for checking and testing...but whatever mate...
Just relaying my experience and muppets like you and C4 just keep bumping this post higher and higher and keep it alive. Genius! No cure for stupidity, is there? You do realise the stress it requires to "crack" a carbon blade and not to mention in that shape? Thankfully I got some good tips on how to fix the issue (although I haven't and just put the fins into storage...)

I think I love to see a repair done on this since this is possible to do on a carbon fiber fin for sure.

 

[Jacob spearo]

Dear Mr Darryll

Stop lying, my friend, and distorting the company's reputation. A company like C4 Carbon is well-established in the field of manufacturing the finest types of carbon fiber, especially in the field of diving fins. As an example of this, I'm Jacob ( spearo)from Algeria, I have been using a C4 Carbon Red Fox Hard fins for more than 6 years, and so far . they have not shown any scratches or Broken blades. I hated and got tired of using them to the point that I tried to break them on spearfishing trips with intense use, but they did not break. I am talking about an experience that has surpassed imagination and still produces strength. This is not a compliment to the company. The truth is spoken. You are free with your money to buy what you want and from any company you want, but forget the dirty work

 

[Bill McIntyre]

So this has been going on for 7 years. When will it end?

 

[popgun pete]

So this has been going on for 7 years. When will it end?

When people take responsibility for their own actions.

Remember a guy who complained when he crashed his car that the steering had failed. Taking a closer look at the wreck, which was still towable, the steering arm and suspension members had been bent. Blind drunk he had lost control of the vehicle straddling a road reservation and the short warning plate post at the end had caught the suspension and the roll pan in front of it rearranging them. Some stories need more detail if you want to assess what happened.

 

[Bill McIntyre]

Whoever is responsible, it happened 7 years ago and has been argued ever since. We know all we'll ever know about it. We aren't getting any closer to the truth. Bumping fins on the reef happens all the time without the fin breaking. But was this an excessive bump? Who the hell knows? No one is going to change his mind now. Its time to give it a rest.